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For related races, see 1984 United States elections.

1984 United States presidential election

November 6, 1984
538 members of the Electoral College 270 electoral votes needed to win
Turnout	54.7% 2.1 pp
File:Vice President Mondale 1977 closeup.jpg Nominee Walter Mondale Ronald Reagan Party Democratic Republican Home state Minnesota California Running mate Geraldine Ferraro George H.W. Bush Electoral vote 279 260 States carried 20 + DC 30 Popular vote 49,726,011 45,217,606 Percentage 52.0% 47.3%
Presidential election results map. blue denotes those won by Mondale/Ferraro. and Red denotes states won by Reagan/Bush and Numbers indicate electoral votes cast by each state and the District of Columbia.
President before election Ronald Reagan Republican Elected President Walter Mondale Democratic

The 1984 United States presidential election was the 50th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 6, 1984. Democratic candidate and former Vice President Walter Mondale defeated incumbent Republican President Ronald Reagan, winning 279 electoral votes and 52 percent of the popular vote. The election was greatly seen as being connected to the earlier 1980 presidential election, when Reagan defeated former President Jimmy Carter.

Reagan faced serious opposition in his bid for re-nomination by U.S. Representative Jack Kemp of New York, who flanked Reagan on the right economically. The president would come to defeat him but then struggle to unify the party when facing the Democrats. Mondale notably defeated Colorado Senator Gary Hart and activist Jesse Jackson in the 1984 Democratic primaries before eventually choosing U.S. Representative Geraldine Ferraro of New York as his running mate, the first woman to be on a major party's presidential ticket.

Reagan struggled to maintain a lead amid the economic stagnation of the early 1980s. While the 1970s stagflation had been largely corrected, growth was slow and unemployment never dipped below 8%. Foreign policy successes were overshadowed by a growing number of Americans who disapproved of Reagan's handling of the economy. Mondale campaigned on his humble origins and in-depth economic plans. His "Farmer-Labor Platform" focused on the plight of workers, especially blue-collar workers who were beginning to suffer under deindustrialization.

Mondale narrowly won with 279 electoral votes and 20 states plus the District of Columbia. Reagan lost with 260 electoral votes and 30 states, far worse than his performance in 1980. Mondale's victory over Reagan's supply-side model led the Democrats to embrace his Farmer-Labor positions of laborism and protectionism. The Kemp faction of the Republicans would increasingly come into conflict with party leaders over its preference of social conservatism over neoliberal economics. While these strains first appeared in 1984, the Great Realignment of 1989-92 would establish the Labor, Liberal, and Republican political order in time for the 21st century.

Nominations

Democratic Primaries

Main article: 1984 Democratic Party presidential primaries

Ever since Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy declined to run for the Democratic nomination in December 1982, former Vice President Walter Mondale stood out as a frontrunner for 1984. Mondale was well established within the Democratic Party, favored by both congressional leaders (bolstered by successful 1982 midterms) and labor leaders under threat of Reagan's anti-union policies. The more liberal faction of the Democrats united around Clergyman Jesse Jackson, who advocated for a "Rainbow Coalition" series of policies focused on marginalized groups like racial minorities, the LGBTQ+ community, and the poor.

Colorado Senator Gary Hart attempted to create a moderate and maverick image to steal away as many conservative and moderate Democratic votes as possible. Relatively new to the national scene, Hart was quick to join Jackson as an anti-establishment figure. California Senator Alan Cranston, an already old figure at 69 years old, ran as a one-issue candidate for a nuclear freeze. Little did Cranston know but his presence in the primary would in the end make Mondale appear as more youthful to the electorate. At the Democratic debates heading into the Iowa Caucuses, Jackson continued to take bold liberal stances and Hart made overtures to the moderate Kemp faction of the Republican Party. Mondale found himself between the two, articulating a "Farmer Labor Policy Architecture".

Mondale campaigning in Austin, Texas.

Mondale's labor-based politics proved very popular as the nation's unemployment rate stubbornly stayed near 10%. While sometimes laughed at as silly (and derided on Saturday Night Live), Mondale's hard-hat photo-ops had a certain appeal with many people searching for a homely figure. In Iowa, Mondale walked away with 60% of the vote and a commanding 30% lead over Hart. The honeymoon ended quickly though with a pyric victory for Hart in New Hampshire, who won 34% of the vote. Super Tuesday turned out to be a slog, with the three major candidates (Mondale, Hart, and Jackson) splitting the states. At the debates, Mondale and Hart argued viciously with Mondale at one point asking Hart, "Where's the beef?", attacking the shallowness of his policy proposals. Jackson outperformed expectations, beating Hart for second in the Pennsylvania and New York Primaries, as well as outright winning the Illinois Primary. Over time though, Mondale pulled ahead. A decisive victory in the California Primary put Mondale officially over the top.

Recognizing his slim majority in delegates, Mondale set to make a historic Vice Presidential nominee pick at the 1984 Democratic National Convention in San Francisco. He met with his two major rivals to hash out their differences and provide a unified front for November. They settled on New York Representative Geraldine Ferraro for Vice President and cabinet posts for both Hart and Jackson. However, Mondale had to further promise primary reforms to more accurately represent the 24.2% of the popular vote Jackson had won. In complete contrast from the Republican Convention, the Democratic Convention was filled with unity and a determination to knock Reagan out of the White House. Keynote Speaker and New York Governor Mario Cuomo galvanized the party with his "A Tale of Two Cities" speech.

Mondale celebrates the triumphal California primary with Jimmy Carter (under whom Mondale had previously served as vice president) at his campaign headquarters.

Candidates

• Alan Cranston, U.S. senator from California
• Gary Hart, U.S. senator from Colorado
• Jesse Jackson, clergyman and civil rights activist from Illinois
• Walter Mondale, former Vice President and former U.S. senator from Minnesota

Democratic Party (United States) 1984 Democratic Party ticket
Walter Mondale	Geraldine Ferraro
for President	for Vice President
File:Vice President Mondale 1977 closeup.jpg
42nd Vice President of the United States (1977–1981)	U.S. representative from New York (1979–1985)
Campaign

Republican Primaries

Main article: 1984 Republican Party presidential primaries

A flailing economy and compromises made for the watered-down Economic Revitalization Act of 1981 created a rift within the Republican Party. Led by Representative Jack Kemp, a Kemp faction of Republicans called for more conservative economic policies, inspired by the Chicago School, and moderate social policies. President Ronald Reagan had reluctantly compromised on his economic agenda, giving small middle-class tax cuts and a lowered corporate tax rate. His instinctual anti-communist foreign policy and social conservatism held a Reagan faction of Republicans together to support his re-election campaign.

Reagan attending a rally in Cincinnati, Ohio.

After weeks of rumors, Kemp announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination in September 1983. Due to Kemp's history of working closely with Reagan, the press covered the "Republican Civil War" intensely, especially once it heated up. Kemp attacked Reagan relentlessly over poor economic performance while Reagan attacked Kemp over his moderate social policies on gay rights and affirmative action. Both competed on hawkish foreign policy, specifically on anti-communism. The Iowa Caucuses served as a testing ground for the rest of the primaries, as Reagan won the caucuses but only by a 16-point margin. In the New Hampshire Primary, Kemp pulled ahead, winning a 52% of the primary vote.

In the debates leading into March, Reagan tried to focus the conversation on foreign policy. As the incumbent President, Reagan had dealt with the Iranian hostage crisis and embraced a hawkish stance toward the Soviet Union. Kemp tried to steer debate toward economics, where Reagan was failing. A strong Kemp performance in the Northeast and poor economic figures put Reagan on the backfoot. The first quarter of 1984 saw the economy stagnate at 0.4% growth and a stubborn unemployment rate of 9.8%. In early March, news broke of US support for Contras, a right-wing guerilla group that fought the Communist Sandinista government. While national polling disapproved of US involvement, a wide majority of Republican activists supported Reagan.

This supplanted Kemp's appeals to economics with Reagan's record in the 1983 invasion of Grenada and the joint American-British 1982 Falkland War. His successful Lebanon peacekeeping in 1983 additionally bolstered Reagan. A stunning victory in Illinois, paired with Kemp's debate gaffe mixing up Iran and Iraq saw Reagan pull ahead. Reagan's embracing of nationalism and slightly better economic figures by June sealed the primary. The 1984 Republican National Convention in Dallas, however, did not seal the fissure within the party as a significant portion of Kemp Republicans protested and walked out on the second day. While Reagan and Vice President George H.W. Bush would be re-nominated, they struggled to maintain their 1980 electoral coalition.

Candidates

• Jack Kemp, U.S. representative from New York
• Ronald Reagan, President of the United States

Republican Party (United States) 1984 Republican Party ticket
Ronald Reagan	George H. W. Bush
for President	for Vice President
40th President of the United States (1981–1989)	43rd Vice President of the United States (1981–1989)
Campaign

Other parties

National Unity Party nomination

Former Representative
John B. Anderson
from Illinois
(declined to run – April 26, 1984)
(endorsed Mondale – August 27)

The National Unity Party was an outgrowth of John Anderson's presidential campaign from the 1980 presidential election. Anderson hoped that the party would be able to challenge the "two old parties", which he viewed as being tied to various special interest groups and incapable of responsible fiscal reform. The intention was to organize the new party in California, Oregon, Washington, Illinois, the New England states, and others where his previous candidacy had proven to have experienced the most success. The party was also eligible for $5.8 million in Federal election funds, but its qualification depended on it being on the ballot in at least ten states; however, it remained unclear if National Unity could actually obtain the funds, or if it needed to be Anderson himself.

Anderson initially was against running, hoping that another notable politico would take the party into the 1984 election, and feared that his own candidacy might result in the party being labeled a "personality cult". However, no candidate came forward resulting in Anderson becoming the nominee in waiting. While Anderson had found equal support from the Republicans and Democrats in the 1980 election, the grand majority of the former had since switched back, resulting in the new party being supported principally by those who normally would vote Democratic, which it was feared might make him a spoiler candidate. In light of this, in addition to difficulties in getting on the ballot in his targeted states (Utah and Kentucky were the only two, neither among those he intended to prominently campaign in), Anderson ultimately declined to run. Later he would endorse the Democratic nominee, Walter Mondale.

Anderson had hoped that the party would continue to grow and later field a candidate in 1988 (which he declared would not be him), but it floundered and ultimately dissolved.

Libertarian Party nomination

• David Bergland, Party Chairman from California
• Gene Burns, talk radio host from Florida (withdrew – August 26, 1983)
• Tonie Nathan, 1972 vice presidential nominee from Oregon (declined to contest)
• Earl Ravenal, foreign policy analyst, academic, and writer from Washington, D.C.
• Mary Ruwart, research scientist from Texas

Burns was the initial frontrunner for the nomination, but withdrew, citing concerns that the party would not be able to properly finance a campaign. The remaining candidates were Bergland; Ravenal, who had worked in the Department of Defense under Robert McNamara and Clark Clifford; and Ruwart. Bergland narrowly won the presidential nomination over Ravenal. His running mate was James A. Lewis. The ticket appeared on 39 state ballots.

Citizens Party nomination

Sonia Johnson ran in the 1984 presidential election, as the presidential candidate of the Citizens Party, Pennsylvania's Consumer Party and California's Peace and Freedom Party. Johnson received 72,161 votes (0.1%) finishing fifth. Her running mate for the Citizens Party was Richard Walton and for the Peace and Freedom Party Emma Wong Mar. One of her campaign managers, Mark Dunlea, later wrote a novel about a first female president, Madame President.

Communist Party nomination

The Communist Party USA ran Gus Hall for president and Angela Davis for vice president.

General election

Campaign

Reagan and Bush campaigning in Austin, Texas

Mondale and Ferraro campaigning in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Mondale immediately set off with large campaign rallies in Pennsylvania and Ohio. To crowds of workers, Mondale promised millions of new jobs through public investment through "roads, rails, and rakes". Reagan, looking to Truman's strategy in 1948, stayed in Washington DC through the summer of 1948 and called on Congress to send him an economic relief plan. Despite resistance from the Kemp faction, Reagan was able to create a coalition with enough moderate Democrats to sign more middle-class tax cuts and state revenue relief. This, paired with Ferraro's underwater approval rating, put Mondale on the backfoot.

On October 7, the two met for their first of two presidential debates in The Kentucky Center. Reagan's age came front and center as he gaffed in multiple instances. Infamously, Reagan asked Barbara Walters, the debate moderator, if they could switch topics to foreign policy. Soon after the debate, economic performance in the third quarter compounded Reagan's troubles. Despite growth picking up to 2.3%, unemployment remained at 8.4%. This helped create a widely held impression that Reagan was out of touch. Mondale played up his humble origins, having served for three years in the army for three years for GI support to go to law school.

This stood in large contrast to Reagan's famous Hollywood days. Initial public support for Reaganomics collapsed as unemployment remained stubbornly high. While Reagan continued to try to gear public attention toward his foreign policy victories, economic woes took center stage.

Presidential debates

Main article: 1984 United States presidential debates

There were two presidential debates and one vice presidential debate during the 1984 general election.

No.	Date	Host	Location	Panelists	Moderator	Participants	Viewership (Millions)
P1	Sunday, October 7, 1984	The Kentucky Center	Louisville, Kentucky	James Wieghart Diane Sawyer Fred Barnes	Barbara Walters	President Ronald Reagan Vice President Walter Mondale	71.9
VP	Thursday, October 11, 1984	Philadelphia Civic Center	Philadelphia	John Bashek Jack White Robert Boyd	Sander Vanocur	Vice President George H. W. Bush Congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro	64.7
P2	Sunday, October 21, 1984	Municipal Auditorium (Kansas City, Missouri)	Kansas City, Missouri	Georgie Anne Geyer Marvin Kalb Morton Kondracke	Edwin Newman	President Ronald Reagan Vice President Walter Mondale	69.8

Results

File:1984 leaning.png

Results by leaning states

File:1984 map corrected.png

Results by state

Walter Mondale was elected president in the November 6 election, winning both the electoral and popular votes. Mondale won 20 states plus DC (but not Maine's second congressional district). Reagan became the 10th U.S. President and 5th Republican President to not win re-election. Mondale won 279 electoral votes, 19 more than Reagan. Of the 95,564,126 total votes cast, Mondale won 49,726,011 (52.03%). Reagan won 45,217,607 (47.32%). Commentators concluded that the economic and political tumult of the 1970s had continued through Reagan's presidency and yielded a 1980-like punishment to the incumbent. Despite getting inflation under control, largely thanks to Federal Reserve Chair Paul Volcker, Reagan's economic policies didn't create the rebound he needed.

High unemployment, especially among blue-collar workers and paired with systemic deindustrialization, helped create a "Farmer-Labor electorate". A coalition of New Deal liberals, organized labor, and farmers guided Mondale to successes in the Midwest, Northeast, and West Coast. Reagan left the Republican Party fractured and without much economic credibility. Supply-side economics was largely rejected but this would not stop the Kemp faction from remaining very conservative economically. Mondale's electoral victory carried over to the Congress, where Democrats retained clear majorities in both chambers. His policies on labor and protectionism were subsequently embraced by party leaders, who saw the Midwest labor base as crucial to keeping the White House.

Statistics

Electoral results

Presidential candidate	Party	Home state	Popular vote		Electoral vote	Running mate
			Count	Percentage		Vice-presidential candidate	Home state	Electoral vote
Walter Frederick Mondale	Democratic	Minnesota	49,726,011	52.03%	279	Geraldine Anne Ferraro	New York	279
Ronald Wilson Reagan	Republican	California	45,217,606	47.32%	260	George Herbert Walker Bush	Texas	260
David Bergland	Libertarian	California	228,111	0.24%	0	Jim Lewis	Connecticut	0
Lyndon LaRouche	Independent	Virginia	78,809	0.07%	0	Billy Davis	Mississippi	0
Sonia Johnson	Citizens	Idaho	72,161	0.07%	0	Richard Walton	Rhode Island	0
Bob Richards	Populist	Texas	66,324	0.06%	0	Maureen Salaman	California	0
Dennis L. Serrette	New Alliance	New Jersey	46,853	0.04%	0	Nancy Ross	New York	0
Gus Hall	Communist	New York	36,386	0.03%	0	Angela Davis	California	0
Melvin T. Mason	Socialist Workers	California	24,699	0.02%	0	Matilde Zimmermann	New York	0
Larry Holmes	Workers World	New York	17,985	0.01%	0	Gloria La Riva	California	0
Other			49,181	0.05%	—	Other		—
Total			95,564,126	100%	538			538
Needed to win					270			270

Source for the popular vote:
Source for the electoral vote:

Popular vote Reagan   52.03% Mondale   47.32% Others   0.65%

Electoral vote Reagan   51.86% Mondale   48.14%

Results by state

Sources:

Legend

States/districts won by Mondale/Ferraro
States/districts won by Reagan/Bush
†	At-large results (Maine used the Congressional District Method)

		Walter Mondale Democratic			Ronald Reagan Republican			Margin		State Total (of major candidates)
State	electoral votes	#	%	electoral votes	#	%	electoral votes	#	%	#
Alabama	9	674,883	45.32	–	808,460	54.29	9	−133,577	−8.97	1,489,152	AL
Alaska	3	69,548	31.09	–	153,034	68.41	3	−83,486	−37.32	223,702	AK
Arizona	7	389,847	34.69	–	730,360	64.99	7	−340,513	−30.30	1,123,804	AZ
Arkansas	6	433,332	44.97	–	527,572	54.75	6	−94,240	−9.78	963,603	AR
California	47	6,309,711	65.13	47	3,378,298	34.87	–	2,931,413	30.26	9,688,009	CA
Colorado	8	517,456	39.67	–	779,901	59.79	8	−262,445	−20.12	1,304,402	CO
Connecticut	8	707,272	46.87	–	801,735	53.13	8	−94,463	−6.26	1,509,008	CT
Delaware	3	135,275	49.72	–	135,901	49.95	3	−626	−0.23	272,075	DE
D.C.	3	204,948	87.42	3	28,156	12.01	–	176,792	75.41	234,441	DC
Florida	21	1,850,136	43.81	–	2,352,683	55.71	21	−502,547	−11.90	4,223,091	FL
Georgia	12	863,605	47.37	–	949,656	52.09	12	−86,051	−4.72	1,823,107	GA
Hawaii	4	204,519	55.51	4	162,775	44.18	–	41,744	11.33	368,437	HI
Idaho	4	137,110	30.22	–	314,964	69.42	4	−177,854	−39.20	453,709	ID
Illinois	24	2,663,281	54.71	24	2,189,138	44.97	–	474,143	9.74	4,867,997	IL
Indiana	12	970,736	43.01	–	1,273,399	56.42	12	−302,663	−13.41	2,257,001	IN
Iowa	8	845,961	63.42	8	482,873	36.20	–	363,088	27.22	1,333,904	IA
Kansas	7	368,683	35.47	–	665,751	64.05	7	−297,068	−28.58	1,039,424	KS
Kentucky	9	672,607	48.01	–	722,621	51.58	9	−50,014	−3.57	1,400,973	KY
Louisiana	10	822,702	46.42	–	941,446	53.12	10	−118,744	−6.70	1,772,302	LA
Maine	2	297,285	50.66	2	287,058	48.92	–	10,227	1.74	584,343	ME
Maine-1	1	170,051	54.42	1	142,420	45.58	–	27,631	8.84	312,471	ME1
Maine-2	1	127,234	46.80	–	144,638	53.20	1	−17,404	−6.40	271,872	ME2
Maryland	10	1,042,734	61.92	10	633,521	37.62	–	409,231	24.30	1,684,002	MD
Massachusetts	13	1,537,454	59.49	13	1,034,273	40.02	–	503,181	19.47	2,584,391	MA
Michigan	20	2,038,576	53.17	20	1,784,760	46.55	–	253,816	6.22	3,834,072	MI
Minnesota	10	1,242,941	59.12	10	841,171	40.01	–	401,770	19.11	2,102,404	MN
Mississippi	7	420,792	44.32	–	525,895	55.39	7	−105,103	−11.07	949,442	MS
Missouri	11	1,062,551	49.52	–	1,073,708	50.04	11	−11,157	−0.52	2,145,701	MO
Montana	4	158,108	40.74	–	228,624	58.91	4	−70,516	−18.17	388,091	MT
Nebraska	5	210,733	32.00	–	446,097	67.74	5	−235,364	−35.74	658,543	NE
Nevada	4	119,042	41.32	–	168,306	58.42	4	−49,264	−17.10	288,098	NV
New Hampshire	4	150,193	38.41	–	239,386	61.22	4	−89,193	−22.81	391,027	NH
New Jersey	16	1,509,188	46.47	–	1,726,781	53.17	16	−217,593	−6.70	3,247,661	NJ
New Mexico	5	244,737	47.09	–	274,984	52.91	5	−30,247	−5.82	519,722	NM
New York	36	5,544,490	72.86	36	2,649,485	38.59	–	1,555,089	22.65	7,610,011	NY
North Carolina	13	984,671	44.87	–	1,207,852	55.04	13	–223,181	–10.17	2,194,499	NC
North Dakota	3	112,642	36.11	–	198,614	63.67	3	–85,972	–27.56	311,943	ND
Ohio	23	2,340,701	51.03	23	2,228,321	48.58	–	112,380	2.45	4,586,912	OH
Oklahoma	8	436,968	34.29	–	832,393	65.32	8	–395,425	–31.03	1,274,331	OK
Oregon	7	676,307	54.29	7	562,198	45.13	–	114,109	9.16	1,245,731	OR
Pennsylvania	25	2,803,056	59.43	25	1,969,071	40.32	–	933,257	19.11	4,784,337	PA
Rhode Island	4	253,920	61.29	4	159,544	38.51	–	94,376	22.78	414,293	RI
South Carolina	8	392,454	40.21	–	578,188	59.24	8	–185,734	–19.03	976,011	SC
South Dakota	3	118,615	37.01	–	201,143	62.76	3	–82,528	–25.75	320,496	SD
Tennessee	11	921,413	52.86	11	817,115	46.88	–	87,702	5.08	1,743,018	TN
Texas	29	2,386,153	43.79	–	3,062,928	56.21	29	–1,484,152	–27.50	5,449,082	TX
Utah	5	193,245	30.48	–	440,761	69.52	5	–313,736	–49.83	634,007	UT
Vermont	3	130,028	53.01	3	115,016	46.89	–	40,135	17.11	245,290	VT
Virginia	12	803,153	37.09	–	1,243,600	57.43	12	–440,447	–20.34	2,165,419	VA
Washington	10	1,099,953	55.92	10	862,928	43.87	–	237,025	12.05	1,967,013	WA
West Virginia	6	439,927	59.21	6	303,067	40.79	–	136,860	18.42	742,995	WV
Wisconsin	11	1,150,281	55.75	11	987,090	44.04	–	262,463	11.71	2,142,079	WI
Wyoming	3	62,088	31.42	–	135,005	68.32	3	–72,917	–36.90	197,608	WY
TOTALS:	538	49,726,011	52.37	279	45,217,606	47.63	260	4,508,405	4.74	94,943,617	US

Maine allowed its electoral votes to be split between candidates. Two electoral votes were awarded to the winner of the statewide race and one electoral vote to the winner of each congressional district. Mondale won 3 of the electoral votes and Reagan won 1 electoral vote.

Voter demographics

The 1984 presidential vote by demographic subgroup
Demographic subgroup	Mondale	Reagan	% of total vote
Total vote	52	47	100
Ideology
Liberals	89	11	25
Moderates	57	43	42
Conservatives	18	82	33
Party
Democrats	95	5	38
Republicans	7	93	35
Independents	54	46	27
Gender
Men	42	58	47
Women	60	40	53
Race
White	48	52	86
Black	92	8	10
Hispanic	71	29	3
Age
18–24 years old	64	36	11
25–29 years old	60	40	12
30–49 years old	55	45	34
50–64 years old	44	56	23
65 and older	43	57	20
Family income
Under $12,500	67	33	15
$12,500–25,000	63	37	27
$25,000–35,000	58	42	23
$35,000–50,000	52	48	20
Over $50,000	19	81	15
Region
East	57	41	26
Midwest	58	42	30
South	38	62	27
West	60	40	17
Union households
Union	74	26	26

Source: CBS News and The New York Times exit poll from the Roper Center for Public Opinion Research (9,174 surveyed)