Red text on a white background.

The 1960 United States Senate election in Maine was historic. It was the first time in senate history that both major party candidates were women: popular Republican incumbent Margaret Chase Smith and Democratic contender Lucia Cormier. Smith had been elected in 1948, again in 1954, and was seeking her third term in 1960. That year Maine’s junior senator, Edmund Muskie, in a surprise twist, supported the opposing candidate. 

Cormier was a successful businesswoman and veteran state representative. She became Democratic floor leader in Maine’s State House of Representatives in 1959. The historic senate contest gained national attention when Senator Muskie escorted Cormier to the Senate Chamber, introduced her as “the next senator from Maine.” He urged her to take a seat at one of the historic desks. Smith complained it was a breach of Senate etiquette, and media frenzy began. 

Despite the accomplishments of both women, the press frequently derided their qualifications. They were pitted against each other as the “Widow v. Spinster.” However, the two women—who had worked together for years—were determined to be taken seriously. Referred to as the “Petticoat Race,” Margaret Chase Smith won the election by 62%.

Red and blue text on a white background.  Light blue silhouette illustration of the Liberty Bell.

The Liberal Party, founded in 1944, is a minor political party in New York State. The party generally supports democratic candidates, but has been known to support more liberal republican candidates as well. In the case of the 2000 U.S. presidential election, the Liberal Party supported the democratic ticket of former vice president Al Gore and his running mate, Joe Lieberman—the first Jewish man to be on the presidential ticket for a major American political party. Gore and Lieberman campaigned along with former first lady Hillary Clinton (who was running to represent New York in the U.S. Senate), and regularly attended rallies and other election-related events together.

When Al Gore chose Lieberman—a more conservative democrat who would eventually become an Independent—as his running mate, there were great hopes the choice would boost democratic support in New York, and undermine republican George W. Bush’s efforts to make inroads in the traditionally democratic stronghold of the Northeast.

The election was one of the closest in U.S. presidential history, and sparked a months-long investigation into the legitimacy of the results that was eventually decided in favor of Bush by the U.S. Supreme Court. Gore and Lieberman received more popular votes, but were defeated 271 to 266 in the Electoral College. Hillary Clinton was elected as senator from New York on November 8, 2000.

Yellow text on a green background.

The slogan, "Give 'em Hell, Harry"  comes from Harry Truman's presidential campaign in 1948. The media was predicting that he would lose to his opponent, Dewey. Truman's approval rating when he was President after FDR died was low and newspapers were already printing issues with Dewey as the winner of the election on the front page, but Truman ended up winning. His win may have been due to his tactic of attacking the "do-nothing" Republican dominated Congress of that period. Instead of attacking his opponent during the campaign, he continuously brought up the shortcomings of Congress while he was President.

"Give 'em Hell, Hillary" was adapted as a slogan for Hillary Clinton's campaign for President in 2016. This suggests that Secretary Clinton was in a similar position as Truman and utilized the same campaign tactics.

Side by side photographs of Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale with illustration of a peanut and red outlined shape of Franklin County, Pennsylvania on a white background.

Voters elected Democrat Jimmy Carter as the 39th United States President in 1976. His Vice President was U.S. Senator Walter Mondale from Minnesota. While Carter won Pennsylvania state in the 1976 election, Republican candidate Gerald Ford won Franklin County on the state’s southern border with 56.5 percent of the vote compared to Carter’s 41.4 percent. Carter and Mondale remained in the White House until 1981 after losing the 1980 election to Republican Ronald Reagan and his running mate George H.W. Bush. In the 1980 election, Carter lost Pennsylvania with 42.48 percent of the vote where Reagan got 49.59 percent. Franklin County supported Reagan with 61.8 percent of the vote compared to Carter’s 32.8 percent. After losing the election, Carter returned to his hometown of Plains, Georgia, and his peanut farm.

Photograph of Ronald Reagan's head on a white background encircled by green text.

Ronald Reagan was an actor and union leader who became involved with politics in the 1960s. He was the Governor of California from 1966 to 1974. In 1968 he unsuccessfully ran against Richard Nixon to become the Republican Party's nominee for President. Reagan campaigned that he would balance the budget by freezing hiring and raising taxes. Reagan lost the Republican nomination again in 1976. In 1980, he won the Presidential election defeating Democratic incumbent, President Carter to become the 40th President of the United States. He served as the President for two terms, from 1981-1989.

Photograph of Ronald Reagan wearing a cowboy hat below a photograph of an archway on a red background. Republican "elephant" symbols are on either side of Reagan photo and white text is along top edge of button. Bottom portion of button is a blue stripe with white stars and a white bottom portion with blue text.

Ronald Reagan ran for—and won—a second presidential term in 1984 against former Vice President Walter Mondale. 
 

Reagan attended Dixon High School in Illinois and was commonly referred to as "Dixon’s Favorite Son." The family settled in Dixon in 1920 and Reagan often regarded his childhood there in the most positive light. Spectator’s of Reagan’s life in Dixon suggested that the things that made him a beloved President were begun in the small town and helped shape his approachable nature.

Illustration of two women holding a large sign with red and blue text on a white background.

Ronald Reagan was the 40th president of the United States, serving from 1981 to 1989. Before he became president, he was a Hollywood actor, staring in several movies from the 40s, TV shows in the 50s, and serving as president of the Screen Actors Guild and the governor of California. In the 1984 election, Reagan ran for reelection against former vice president Walter Mondale, defeating him with 97.6% of the electoral votes.

The Reagan "ERA" is considered by many historians to cover the 1980s during Reagan's presidency. However, others see Reagan's influence lasting into the following decades, including the George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush presidencies during the 1980s, 90s, and early 2000s. The era is marked by a shift to conservative policy making in areas such as taxes, welfare, defense, the federal supreme court, and the Cold War.

Blue background with yellow text with inset illustrations of Bob Dole and Leonard Arons inside yellow ovals.

In 1996, Robert "Bob" Joseph Dole ran for President of the United States as the official Republican candidate, but lost the election to Democrat William "Bill" Clinton. Concurrently, Leonard Arons sought election as a Missouri State Senator, but did not win. 

Photograph of Bill Clinton against a blue-tinted American Flag background with a smaller inset photograph of Hillary Clinton in the lower right hand corner.  Red and blue outlined white text.

Hillary Rodham Clinton provoked criticism as first lady for playing a key and public role in her husband’s 1992 presidential run and presidency. During the election, she made speeches, met voters, and advised her husband. She came under scrutiny for her law career and her work for liberal causes, and for her response to her critics (that she could have “stayed home and baked cookies”).

Bill Clinton implied during the campaign that Hillary would play an active role in his White House. Early on, she chose her own staff and established an office of her own in the West Wing, unheard of for a first lady at that time. Bill Clinton appointed Hillary to lead the Task Force on National Health Care. She appeared before congressional committees to present the task force’s findings, to largely favorable press, though Congress would reject the recommendations. Her prominent role in the proceedings may have handed Congress to Republicans in 1994.

During her husband’s re-election campaign in 1996, Hillary stepped back and acted more traditionally. She quickly began her own political career in the Senate. She later served as Barack Obama’s first secretary of state, and ran for president twice. Hillary Clinton remains a divisive but meaningful figure in American politics, almost overshadowing her husband at times.

Button is divided into red, white and blue horizontal sections with white and blue text.

Ronald Reagan was the 40th president of the United States. He served two terms from the years 1981-1989. Prior to becoming president, Reagan worked in Hollywood appearing in 53 films. His Hollywood career was put on hold when he was drafted after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1942. His film skills were put to use during his active duty as he assisted making air force training videos and documentaries. His political views shifted from liberal to conservative after his time in active duty. He started campaigning for the Republican Party’s presidential candidate for the 1976 election.

Reagan’s time in office is defined by his economic policies, commonly known as Reaganomics. The major economic policy objectives were to reduce the growth of government spending, reduce the federal income tax and capital gains tax, reduce government regulations, and tighten the money supply to reduce inflation.

Opposition to Reagan’s policies and values was a constant throughout his presidency, particularly in liberal circles and by left-wing activists. The most lasting opposition to Reagan comes from the music, particularly punk and hardcore music, from the 1980s. Reagan and his policies inspired a myriad of songs, leading up to the “Rock Against Reagan” concerts in 1984.