Which presidents lost the popular vote (but won the election)?
These five presidents are stuck together in the Unpopular Bond—the next infographic in our Iconic Bonding series. Check it out (and hopefully learn a thing or two along the way)!
A TIME LINE OF EVENTS
Andrew Jackson received the most electoral votes, but not a majority. John Quincy Adams was chosen by the House of Representatives, and Jackson supporters called it a corrupt bargain.
In a disputed election, Rutherford B. Hayes defeated Samuel J. Tilden by one electoral vote.
Benjamin Harrison defeated incumbent Grover Cleveland—only to be defeated by Cleveland in the next election.
George W. Bush defeated Al Gore after the Supreme Court ended a recount.
Donald Trump lost the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by more than 2.8 million votes, but he won the electoral vote.
WHAT IS THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE?
A state’s electoral votes are calculated by adding its number of representatives (depends on population) and its number of senators (all states have two). For example, Hawaii has two representatives and two senators, so it has a total of four electoral votes. At 54 votes, California currently has the most electoral votes.
To learn more about the electoral college, be sure to check out our poster.
WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS?
Our Book
Our Posters
BOOKS
Davis, Kenneth C., and Pedro Martin. Don’t Know Much about the Presidents. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2014.
DeGregorio, William A., and Aaron Jaffe. The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents. Fort Lee, NJ: Barricade Books, Inc., 2017.
Kane, Joseph Nathan, and Janet Podell. Facts about the Presidents: A Compilation of Biographical and Historical Information. New York: H.W. Wilson, 2009.
WEBSITES
Encyclopedia Britannica, britannica.com
Library of Congress, loc.gov
Miller Center, University of Virginia, millercenter.org/the-presidency
The White House, whitehouse.gov