Ronnie America Needs You

White and black text on a red, white and blue background with a black and white photograph of Reagan's head in the center

Ronald Reagan made his first run for President of the United States as the Republican nominee in the 1980 election. He ran against the incumbent, Jimmy Carter, and won a total of 489 electoral votes. In January of 1981, he became the 40th president of the United States and served two terms.

Before entering into politics, Reagan was an actor in Hollywood. He also served for eight years as the president of the Screen Actors Guild. His official switch from acting to politics came in 1964 when he gave a televised speech for the Republican Presidential candidate Barry Goldwater. Two years later, he ran for governor of California and went on to serve two terms.