1996 U.S. presidential election

1996

Bill Clinton won re-election over Republican Bob Dole on a strong economy, becoming the first Democrat re-elected since Franklin Roosevelt.

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The story

On November 5, 1996, President Bill Clinton defeated Republican Bob Dole of Kansas, who had resigned from the Senate to campaign, a World War II veteran and former Senate majority leader. Clinton won 379 electoral votes and 49.2 percent of the popular vote to Dole's 159 and 40.7 percent. Ross Perot, now running for his new Reform Party, won 8.4 percent. Clinton became the first Democrat to win a second full term since Franklin Roosevelt.

Two years earlier, Republicans led by Newt Gingrich had won Congress with their Contract with America. Clinton recovered by blaming them for the government shutdowns of 1995 and 1996, while moving to the center, signing welfare reform and calling for a balanced budget, a strategy called triangulation. The economy was booming, unemployment and crime were falling, and the country was at peace. Republicans kept control of both houses of Congress, extending a period of divided government that lasted the rest of his presidency.

Why it mattered

Clinton's second term brought the first balanced federal budgets since 1969.
The Lewinsky scandal led to his impeachment by the House in 1998 and acquittal by the Senate in 1999.
Debates over Clinton's legacy and scandals shaped the 2000 race between Al Gore and George W. Bush.

Sources

1996 Electoral and Popular Vote Summary Federal Election Commission
United States presidential election of 1996 Britannica
Dole leaves Senate (June 10, 1996) NPR

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