Think 2016 was the craziest election ever? Not by a long shot. Learn about four of the craziest, most contentious elections in American history.
Listen to the full series from The Glenn Beck Program:
Part I: 1800
The ink was barely dry on the Constitution before the nation was embroiled in one of the craziest elections of all time: The presidential election of 1800.
In 1796, Washington's vice president John Adams seemed the logical choice to succeed him --- and he did, becoming the second president of the United States. Just when it appeared electing a Founding Father to the highest office in the land would be easy, as easy as powdering a wig, Thomas Jefferson decided to oppose Adams to stop his reelection in 1800.
Part II: 1860
The 1800s were turbulent time in America, with the nation discovering what it was. It was growing exponentially, assimilating tens of millions of new immigrants. America had captured the imagination of the entire world.
It was also a time of confronting the evil of slavery. The Founders had laid the groundwork, stopping the importation of slaves. But ending the practice of slavery itself would require the right leader, at the right time to see the country safely through to the other side. The election of 1860 was critically important to achieve this worthy goal, with Abraham Lincoln rising to capture the attention of the nation and secure his place in history.
Part III: 1912
In the nation-altering election of 1912, a rare four-way contest, Woodrow Wilson became the 28th president of the United States. After former President Theodore Roosevelt failed to receive the Republican nomination, he called his own convention and created the Progressive Party (nicknamed the “Bull Moose Party”). Three weeks before the presidential election, Roosevelt was shot on the campaign trail and delivered a speech with a bullet lodged in his chest, less than a quarter inch from his heart. On the Democratic side, Woodrow Wilson finally received his party's nomination on the 46th ballot at a contentious convention. Wilson, arguably the worst president in American history, won the election, gaining a large majority in the Electoral College and winning 42 percent of the popular vote.
Part IV: 1948
In the presidential election of 1948, the incumbent president Harry S. Truman was facing off against his Republican challenger, Thomas Dewey. Truman had succeeded to the presidency in 1945 following the death of President Franklin Roosevelt. The election, considered to be the greatest upset in American election history, had virtually every single indicator predicting Dewey as the victor. There may have only been one person in the United States who firmly believed Harry Truman would win the election: Harry Truman himself.
Listen to all serials at glennbeck.com/serials.
