White background with a peanut in its shell in the center. Green text above, tan text inside the peanut.

Plains, Georgia, with a population of about 700 people is located in the southwestern region of the state surrounded by peanut fields. Prior to the Great Depression Plains was a bustling town, but the economic downturn caused the small town's prosperity to take a dive. The 1976 presidential election and years following it reawakened Plains as thousands of people visited the community to see the hometown of the 39th United States President Jimmy Carter. The town now hosts the annual Plains Peanut Festival, which attracts visitors from around the world. The event includes a parade and educational exhibits about the area’s agriculture. 

Illustrated silhouette of Albany, New York's skyline on a blue background with white text.  Upper edge of button is grey with black text.  Lower portion of button is black with red shape of New York state and white text.

In 2000 the Democratic Convention was held at the Pepsi Arena in Albany, New York. It was there that Hillary Clinton accepted the nomination for US senate. She attended the convention with her husband, Bill Clinton, who was the president of the United States at that time. 

"History in the making" was the slogan for Clinton's campaign as she took on the challenge of the US Senate after being first lady of the United Sates for eight years.

Illustration of "sad face" with black text along upper edge or button on a yellow background.

Entering into the 1980 presidential campaign, Jimmy Carter struggled to gain support from the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, due in large part to Ted Kennedy running against him. Though he eventually secured the candidacy, he was unable to match his opposition Ronald Reagan's promise of a reinvigorated economy and tax cuts. Reagan took 44 of the 50 states, with Carter winning only his home state of Georgia, his Vice President's state (Minnesota) and four others. The sad face buttons were produced by Reagan's campaign to express the general dissatisfaction America felt with Carter's first term, contrasting with smiley buttons bearing Reagan's name. Carter was the first incumbent president to lose since Hoover in 1932, and the first Democrat to serve only one term since Buchanan in 1857.

Illustration of the state of Wisconsin above a photograph of Al Gore with red and blue text on a white background.  Blue outer border with red ring and white 5-pointed stars.

The 2000 Presidential election is known for being a very close election. The deciding electoral vote came down to Florida, which the U.S. Supreme Court was involved to ensure election security. Despite winning the popular vote, Gore lost the electoral vote and the election.

Gore is also known for his environmental activism starring in a documentary, An Inconvenient Truth (2006). He was vice president under Bill Clinton, U.S. Senator for Tennessee from 1985 to 1993, and a U.S. Representative for Tennessee from 1977 to 1985.

While he did push environmental policies during his campaign, his main concern was the economy. The economy was seen by the people as progressing, so his campaign pushed that Gore wanted to continue the work Clinton was already doing. Gore believed that low-interest rates would stir the economy and wanted to keep it that way. He wanted to expand Medicare and find a way to integrate a universal health care system.

Blue-tinted photographs of Lyndon B. Johnson and Hubert Humphrey with blue text in center of button.  White text on illustration of red ribbon along top of button.  White text on blue portion of button on bottom of button.

Lyndon Baines Johnson or LBJ was sworn in as president following the assassination of John F. Kennedy in November of 1963. When he ran with Hubert Humphrey against Senator Barry Goldwater a year later he won in a landslide victory. Barry Goldwater and William (Bill) Edward Miller ran together and lost the presidential election of 1964, representing the Republican ticket.

Goldwater, an Arizona Senator at the time, picked Miller as his vice presidential candidate and the two ran on a campaign of staunch conservatism and anti-communism. Johnson on the other hand fought for an increase in social programs and was seen as a moderate while Goldwater was portrayed as an extremist. This was really highlighted in the Johnson campaign ad "Daisy Girl" which shows a little girl picking petals off a daisy and counting them. Her countdown segues into a launch countdown and nuclear explosion. The ad was in reference to Goldwater's nonchalance of nuclear weaponry and his advocacy of nuclear weapons as standardized tactic in Vietnam.

Button divided half brown, half orange with brown and orange text.

Ronald Reagan’s history with unions is complicated. In 1981, shortly after taking office for his first term, Reagan fired around 12,000 air traffic controllers. The employees were skilled and did not believe that the government would be able to replace them. Reagan found them in violation of a law that bars federal workers from striking, and the government gradually replaced them with retirees and controllers from the military and other sources. Reagan is also accused of appointing anti-union members to the National Labor Relations Board. On the other hand, Regan was president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1947 to 1952, and later in 1959.

Whether his actions hastened the decline of unions or signaled the changing times is a matter that historians and commentators still debate. Some historians and other experts contend that corporations were already challenging unions before Reagan’s decision during the PATCO strike, and that union membership had been declining since the 1950s. Others argue that Reagan emboldened efforts to weaken unions.

Photograph of Ralph Nader on a background consisting of the American flag and a photograph of the White House.  Yellow text.

Ralph Nader ran for president in the 2000 election as a representative of the Green Party and his running mate was Winona LaDuke of the Ojibwe tribe in Minnesota. Nader was a lawyer, author, political activist, and lecturer who decided to run as a third-party candidate against Republican candidate George W. Bush and Democratic candidate Al Gore. Some of his campaign issues included universal healthcare, workers' rights, free education, affordable housing, and environmental justice. Ralph Nader was on the ballot in 43 states and he received 2.74 percent of the popular vote.

White text on a red background.

In 1980 Ted Kennedy, younger brother to John F. and Robert Kennedy, announced his campaign for president of the United States, seeking the Democratic Party nomination over the incumbent Jimmy Carter. A reelection for Carter was in jeopardy due to national crises, and Kennedy seemed to be the obvious choice of a candidate for the party. 

However, in a televised interview with Roger Mudd of CBS, his unfortunate response to the question, “Why do you want to be president?” shattered that advantage. Kennedy was unable to answer the question with a direct and honest answer, but rambled without giving a straight reply. 

His head start fell away, and the expected easy win instead became a battle.

Light blue background with dark blue text on top while the word "Carter" is spelled out in red letters to resemble a bunny.

In an interview that was published in November 1976 for Playboy Magazine, then-Governor Jimmy Carter sat down with interviewer, Robert Sheer and discussed how religion factored into his life and beliefs. When the topic of lust came up, Carter famously replied by stating that:

"I've looked on a lot of women with lust. I've committed adultery in my heart many times. This is something that God recognizes I will do-and I have done it-and God forgives me for it."

The comments were highly controversial at the time, threatening Carter's campaign for the presidency. Though Carter would go on to win the presidential election, his Playboy interview has been hailed as an infamous aspect of Carter's overall political career.

Photograph of Al Gore with a red macaw parrot on his shoulder.  Yellow text with black drop-shadow on a background photograph of a beach and palm trees.

“Parrot Head” is a nickname for fans of Jimmy Buffet, an American musician who, with his Coral Reefer Band, is known for playing songs that celebrate a tropical island lifestyle. The term “Parrot Head” was coined in 1985, by Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band-mate Timothy B. Schmit, during a concert at the Timberwolf Amphitheater in Cincinnati, Ohio. Schmit came up with the term “Parrot Head” after Buffett made comments during the show about his fans being “just like Dead Heads”, a reference to the community of fans devoted to American rock band The Grateful Dead.

The first Parrot Head club formed in Atlanta in 1989. Parrot Head clubs often get together for live concerts, happy hours, and events supporting various charitable organizations. Many Parrot Heads saw Jimmy Buffett perform at fundraisers held in New York City and Miami, Florida supporting the Democratic National Committee and Al Gore’s 2000 presidential run.