As Donald Trump heads for US election loss, he joins 9 other US presidents who served just one term

President Donald Trump speaks about early results from the 2020 US presidential election in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Picture: Carlos Barria/Reuters

President Donald Trump speaks about early results from the 2020 US presidential election in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Picture: Carlos Barria/Reuters

Published Nov 6, 2020

Share

Johannesburg: The writing is on the wall, Joe Biden is set to become the 46th president of the US after a gruelling electoral contest.

Biden holds a narrow lead in Georgia, Nevada and Arizona, and should he retain those leads until the final count, he will have enough in his armour to become the next US president.

In the US, presidential candidates require 270 electoral votes to win the elections.

In 2016, when US President Donald Trump emerged as the winner, stunning Hillary Clinton and her supporters, Trump received 2 million fewer votes than the Democratic candidate, but crucially, obtained 304 electoral votes compared with Clinton’s 227.

As things stand now, Biden has at least 3 million more votes than Trump, but also leads him 264 to 214 on the electoral vote system.

Biden needs just six more electoral votes to become the next POTUS (president of the US).

With Trump seemingly in a panic and in denial about his imminent defeat, with court actions in several swing states, the writing seems clear on the wall that he will not retain the White House.

Starting with the most recent presidents to serve only one term, here is a list of nine other former US presidents who served only one term:

George HW Bush – 1989-1993

It has been 27 years since a US president failed to secure a two-term mandate from the electorate. The most recent US president to fail to secure a second term was Bush, as the 41st POTUS, who was defeated in 1993 by Democratic nominee Bill Clinton, who served two terms in the White House.

Clinton was succeeded by Bush’s son, George W Bush, who also served two terms, before Barack Obama served two terms.

Bush snr’s White House biography says he was determined to make America a kinder and gentler nation. He died in November 2018, at the age of 94.

Jimmy Carter – 1977-1981

Jimmy Carter was the 39th POTUS until he was ousted by Ronald Reagan, who served two terms. He was a Democrat.

His biography on the White House website says “Carter worked hard to combat the continuing economic woes of inflation and unemployment. By the end of his administration, he could claim an increase of nearly eight million jobs and a decrease in the budget deficit, measured in percentage of the gross national product. Unfortunately, inflation and interest rates were at near record highs, and efforts to reduce them caused a short recession”.

US Embassy staff were also held hostage in Iran during his tenure. When he left office, Iran released 52 Americans, the White House said.

In 2002, Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for work to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development, the White House said.

His non-profit organization, Habitat for Humanity, built thousands of houses in Africa, including in Sherwood, Durban.

Gerald Ford – 1974-1977

Gerald Ford was POTUS #38 after he became the country’s first unelected president when Richard Nixon resigned after the Watergate scandal. He pardoned Nixon and Americans did not forget, booting him out of office to pave the way for Carter at the next poll.

He was a Republican.

Herbert Hoover - 1929-1933

Herbert Hoover was POTUS #31 until he lost re-election to Franklin D. Roosevelt, who went on to complete three terms.

The stock market crashed shortly after his election and the US went into a Great Depression.

“After the crash Hoover announced that while he would keep the Federal budget balanced, he would cut taxes and expand public works spending.

“In 1931 repercussions from Europe deepened the crisis, even though the President presented to Congress a program asking for creation of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation to aid business, additional help for farmers facing mortgage foreclosures, banking reform, a loan to states for feeding the unemployed, expansion of public works, and drastic governmental economy,” his page on the White House website said.

He was a Republican.

William Howard Taft – 1909-1913

Taft was the 27th president of the US and lost to Woodrow Wilson, who served two terms.Taft also served as the tenth Chief Justice of the US between 1921-1930.

He remains the only person to have served in both offices.

He was a Republican.

Benjamin Harrison – 1889-1893

Benjamin Harrison was the 23rd US president for a single term until he was ousted by Grover Cleveland.

He was a Republican.

Martin Van Buren – 1837-1841

Martin Van Buren was the eighth president of the US until he lost his re-election campaign to William Henry Harrison of the Whig party.

He also served as Secretary of State, both under President Andrew Jackson.

A founder of the Democratic Party.

John Quincy Adams – 1825 -1829

JQ Adams was the sixth US president and the second to fail to secure a second term when he lost to Andrew Jackson, a Democratic-Republican. He represented the Whig Party.

John Adams – 1797-1801

Adams was the first US president to fail to serve a second term, when he lost to Thomas Jefferson, a Democratic-Republican. He represented the Federalist Party.

IOL

Related Topics: