With the 2016 Presidential Election rapidly approaching, and polls between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump tightening, we wanted to take a look at some facts about former presidents and the candidates they faced. We didn’t see any particular trends occur, and history is full of surprises. Does height make a difference? James Madison was only 5’4 and Abraham Lincoln was 6’4. Do voters care about the age of candidates? John F. Kennedy was only 43 when he was elected president. What about family and marital status? Ronald Reagan was divorced, James Buchanan never married, and six former presidents did not have children. From height to age to marital status, there are a lot of factors that may influence the vote in presidential elections.
The candidate winning the most votes doesn’t always become president. Some become president due to the death of their predecessor, and four times in American history; the winner of the popular vote did not become president. John Quincy Adams, Rutherford B. Hayes, Benjamin Harrison, and George W. Bush all lost the popular vote but won the Electoral College. Gerald Ford was the only president or vice-president who never won a presidential election. Eight former presidents tragically died while in office. William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, Warren Harding, and Franklin Roosevelt all passed away from natural causes, and Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, William McKinley, and John F. Kennedy were assassinated. With this election underway, will Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump be our next president? Because history is full of surprises, we will have to wait until Election Day to really know.
[Via: ADT Home Security]
