The 2004 presidential election isn't quite ancient history, but it often feels that way. The contest between incumbent George W. Bush and challenger John Forbes Kerry was bitter, long-lasting and hard-fought, and in the end proved to be a disappointment to many, many Americans.
It was the fifty-fifth election in United States history, and Bush was vying to become the second consecutive sitting president to win a second term, as well as the third out of the last four. The only sitting president to not win a second term in that interim was Bush's father, George H.W. Bush, who was defeated by William Jefferson Clinton in 1992's presidential election. Clinton would of course go on to defeat Bob Dole and Ross Perot - a third party candidate who ran in both 1992 and 1996 - in the 1996 presidential election.
Bush, of course, did win a second term in the 2004 presidential election and went on to govern until 2008, as dictated by the United STates' term limit regulations when it comes to the legislative branch. The final popular vote of the 2004 presidential election was relatively close, as Bush won by just over 3,000,000 votes. His final total of 62,040,610 was, at that time, the most votes any presidential candidate had ever received in an election. Ironically, Kerry's total of 59,028,444 was at that time the second most votes any candidate had received in an election - even more than Ronald Reagan in 1984, when Reagan won everywhere but challenger Walter Mondale's home state of Minnesota and Washington, D.C. itself.
The 2004 presidential election also provided a stark illustration of the widening gap between "blue state" America and "red state" America. "Blue states" tend to be progressive states found on the coasts and in the Great Lakes region. These states are characterized by a higher rate of education and financial success, as well as more progressive political and social thinking by their inhabitants. These also tend to be the states that pay more in taxes to the federal government than they receive back in aid. Kerry won these states handily.
"Red states" are predominantly southern and plains states. These states are characterized by a lower rate of education and fewer people with full sets of teeth and chromosomes. They are also home to many NASCAR races Flat Earth Society members and mega-churches. Naturally this was George W. Bush's home territory, and he was able to win these states in a clean sweep and, eventually the 2004 presidential election itself by a count of 286 votes to 251 votes in the electoral college.
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