Say what you will about our country’s electoral process: presidential candidates know how to bring the drama. On this week’s episode of Join or Die with Craig Ferguson, HISTORY’s late-night host and his celebrity panelists will discuss just some of the (many) White House hopefuls who never stood a chance—but ran unforgettable, and sometimes cringeworthy, campaigns regardless. Read on for more about some of America’s most doomed presidential candidates ever.
7. CHARLES COATSWORTH PINCKNEY, 1804
Thomas Jefferson’s first term came on the heels of a close (and bitter) race. Four years later, he earned his second in an absolute blowout. Of the 17 states that participated in the 1804 election, Jefferson lost only Connecticut and Delaware. Those two holdouts gave his opponent, Federalist Charles C. Pinckney, a combined 14 electoral votes. Jefferson got 160.
6. GEORGE CLINTON, 1808
Following a tradition established by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson chose to step down from the presidency rather than seek a third term. So, on January 23, 1808, 89 leaders of his Democratic-Republican party got together in the Senate chambers to pick a nominee for the 1808 campaign.
Before long, a clear frontrunner emerged. Secretary of State James Madison received some 83 votes while the remaining six were split between James Monroe and Vice President George Clinton. Unsurprisingly, Madison took home the nomination. Clinton decided to run for president anyway (also as a Democratic-Republican). Alas, the bold move didn’t pay off and Clinton was trounced in the general election. Still, he did get a nice consolation prize—under President Madison, the native New Yorker was able to resume his duties as VP before dying in office on April 20, 1812.
5. JOHN BELL, 1860
There was only one core issue defining the Constitutional Union Party: if elected president, their pick would remain aggressively neutral on the slavery issue. In 1860, America looked poised to tear itself apart over this toxic subject. Only by ignoring it could a Civil War be avoided—or, at least, so thought the CUP.
Founded in 1859, the party held its first (and only) national convention during the summer of 1860. A former Whig senator, Bell was chosen as their presidential nominee. With Edward Everett—another ex-senator—as his running mate, he did surprisingly well, claiming the electoral votes of Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia. Not bad, but not nearly enough.
