Blue text on white background

This button was issued for the campaign of Wendell Willkie, a Republican who opposed incumbent president Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940. With the two-term limit tradition rather than law, Roosevelt ran for an unprecedented third term with Henry Wallace as his running mate. Willkie, a businessman from New York, campaigned against Roosevelt's New Deal programs as wasteful and ineffective in ending the Great Depression. He also portrayed FDR as too eager to have America join World War II, and instead advocated military aid, but not necessarily troops, to the Allies. Yet Willkie was hurt by being a symbol of big business, which many felt helped cause the economic crisis in the first place. Roosevelt won with 54.7% of the vote to Willkie's 44.8%, 449 electoral votes to 82.

Roosevelt became the second of only three U.S. presidents to win re-election with a lower percentage of both the electoral vote and the popular vote than in the previous election (James Madison in 1812 and Barack Obama in 2012 were the other two). The U.S. did join the war effort after the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Roosevelt then won a fourth term in 1944, and upon his death in April 1945 was succeeded by Vice President Harry S Truman. After suffering numerous heart attacks, Willkie died in October 1944.

White lithograph of a building's dome on blue background at the center, surrounded by a red circular border with white text

This button was for the 1932 election campaign of Democrats Franklin D. Roosevelt and John Nance Garner. They ran against incumbent U.S. President Herbert Hoover and Vice President Charles Curtis. The country was still gripped by the Great Depression, and many blamed Hoover and his policies for not doing more to help the country out of it. Self-built shanty towns that housed the homeless were even named "Hoovervilles" after the president. Backed by the campaign song "Happy Days Are Here Again," Roosevelt won by a tally of 472 electoral votes to 59 for Curtis, getting 57.4% of the popular vote to Curtis' 39.7%. It was the first election since 1852 in which a Democrat won a majority of both the popular vote and the Electoral College.

Roosevelt began to enact his New Deal policies after the victory and won a second term with Garner in 1936, a third term (with Henry Wallace as VP) in 1940 and a fourth (with Harry S Truman as VP) in 1944, presiding over the United States for most of World War II. Truman succeeded to the presidency after Roosevelt's death in April 1945. Hailing from Texas, Garner had served in the U.S. House of Representatives as minority leader and speaker of the house. He is one of only two vice presidents (Schuyler Colfax under Ulysses S. Grant was the other) to have previously been speaker of the house.

Illustration of the head and shoulders of a man wearing a suit on a red, brown, yellow and green striped background with black text

This is a button supporting Rickey R. Hendon’s successful 1991 campaign for Alderman of the 27th Ward of Chicago, IL. Chicago’s 27th Ward encompasses portions of downtown, the West Loop and west side of the city. Prior to running for Alderman, Hendon was appointed as the Secretary/Treasurer of the Cook County Forest Preserve by former Cook County Board President George Dunn. Hendon served one year as Alderman, and then launched a successful campaign for State Senator of Illinois’ 5th District. Hendon served in the Illinois State Senate from 1992 to 2011.

Red text on a white background

George McGovern was an American politician who was the Democratic Party nominee in the 1972 United States Presidential election against incumbent Republican nominee, Richard Nixon.  McGovern drew support from anti-war activitists and those who supported liberal reform.  He supported withdrawing from the Vietnam War.  McGovern was defeated by Nixon by a 24% margin. 

Yellow illustration of an elephant with brown text on its back and yellow text above and below it on a brown background. This button also has a piece of yellow felt shaped like a flower pinned to the back. 

This button dates back to the 1936 presidential election when Alf Landon, a Republican as the elephant on the button indicates, ran against incumbent president Franklin D. Roosevelt. Landon had become governor of Kansas in 1932, and in 1936 ran for the presidency with Frank Knox, a newspaper publisher from Chicago. During his campaign, Landon rarely traveled, which hurt his relationship with voters, and later accused Roosevelt of corruption. Unsurprisingly, Roosevelt won the election, carrying 46 out of 48 states in what was the most lopsided election in American History. Landon returned to the governorship and never again ran for an elected position, but remained politically active by backing presidential candidates, and was known for giving lectures from the 1960s until his death in the 1980s which featured influential political leaders like Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton.

Alf Landon. (n.d.). Retrieved November 15, 2015 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alf_Landon.

Yellow and brown illustration of a sunflower with yellow text in the center on a brown background. The button also has a yellow flower shaped piece of felt pinned behind the button. 

This button dates back to the 1936 presidential election when Republican Alf Landon ran against incumbent president Franklin D. Roosevelt. Landon had become governor of Kansas in 1932, and in 1936 ran for the presidency with Frank Knox, a newspaper publisher from Chicago. During his campaign, Landon rarely traveled, which hurt his relationship with voters, and later accused Roosevelt of corruption. Unsurprisingly, Roosevelt won the election, carrying 46 out of 48 states in what was the most lopsided election in American history. Landon returned to the governorship and never again ran for an elected position, but remained politically active by backing presidential candidates, and was known for giving lectures from the 1960s until his death in the 1980s which featured influential political figures like Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton.

Alf Landon. (n.d.). Retrieved November 15, 2015 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alf_Landon.

White text on a blue background with an American flag on the upper right and a red outer ring

The 55th presidential election was held on November 2, 2004. Democratic party nominee John Kerry and John Edwards were defeated by incumbent President George Bush and Vice President Dick Chaney. Kerry, a Senator from Massachusetts was often called a "flip-flopper" by the Bush administration for Kerry's constant change in voting, especially with funding for the Iraq War.Kerry was a supporter of the "No Child Left Behind Act," supported many bills to remove toxins from the environment, supported gay rights, pro-choice, and affirmative action. Kerry chose John Edwards, a North Carolina Senator, as his running mate.  Edwards policy positions were to aid in the elimination of poverty within the United States, slow down global warming, create a universal health care system, and remove troops from Iraq.

Illustration of a rainbow on a black background with yellow text underneath

In 1984 Jesse Jackson launched his presidential campaign, only the second time that an African American had launched a nationwide campaign for the position. Jackson, an Illinois reverend and activist, ran against Walter Mondale for the Democratic party’s nomination. Political pundits did not believe that Jackson could launch an effective campaign for the nomination, but he took third place, winning five primaries.

Jackson’s platform advocated a “Rainbow Coalition” made up of minority groups, inspiring this button, as well as a program for higher employment, de-escalating the War on Drugs, and higher taxation on the rich. Ultimately, Walter Mondale won the Democratic nomination and went on to run unsuccessfully against Ronald Reagan. Jesse Jackson continued to be active in politics, running again for the presidency in 1988, and merged the Rainbow Coalition with another organization called PUSH, which works towards social justice.

Jesse Jackson presidential campaign, 1984. (n.d.). Retrieved November 15, 2015 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_Jackson_presidential_campaign,_1984.

Black text on a gold background

This political badge was created for the 1940 U.S. presidential campaign of incumbent Franklin D. Roosevelt. Emphasizing "Greater" prosperity was in response to the "Prosperity Builder" slogan of Roosevelt's opponent, Wendell Willkie, as shown on the button above. A businessman from New York, Willkie campaigned against Roosevelt's New Deal programs as wasteful and ineffective in ending the Great Depression, and promoted better economic times if he was elected. Yet Willkie was hurt by being a symbol of big business, which many felt helped cause the economic crisis in the first place. Roosevelt won with 54.7% of the vote to Willkie's 44.8%, 449 electoral votes to 82.

Roosevelt became the second of only three U.S. presidents to win re-election with a lower percentage of both the electoral vote and the popular vote than in the previous election (James Madison in 1812 and Barack Obama in 2012 were the other two). Roosevelt continued his New Deal policies during his third term and won a fourth in 1944. Upon his death in April 1945, FDR was succeeded by Vice President Harry S Truman.

Black and white photograph of the head and shoulders of a man wearing a suit in the center of the button on a white background with a red outer ring with white text

Gary Hart is an American politician who was a Senator from the state of Colorado.  He ran for the Democratic party nomination for the 1984 United States Presidential election.  He ran against fellow Democratic, Walter Mondale for the party nomination.  Hart ran as a candidate with "new ideas" for the party, and began campaigning early in the state of New Hampshire.  Mondale would go on to win the nomination for the Democratic party as a result of securing the support from fellow Democratics.