This is a list of U.S. presidential campaign slogans from 1840 onward.
1800âÂÂ1896
- Millions for Defense, but Not a Cent for Tribute!. Federalist slogan against Jeffersonian Republicans in 1800. During the XYZ Affair, the French foreign minister, Talleyrand, refused to negotiate with the U.S. envoys sent by President Adams unless they paid a bribe. The Jeffersonians were pro-French.
- âÂÂMr. MadisonâÂÂs War,â âÂÂVirginia Dynasty,â âÂÂMr. Madison and War! Mr. Clinton and Peace!â âÂÂPeace and Commerce,â and "the Peace Partyâ ' were some of the catch phrases and slogans the Federalists wielded in their opposition to war. The War of 1812 came and American victories at its end ruined the defeatists, and their party faded away.
There was practically no campaigning with little opposition to James Monroe.
The Era of Good Feelings climaxed with a nearly unanimous vote to re-elect Monroe.
Seventeen men entered the presidential race, and a newspaper reported that "electioneering begins to wax hot." Henry Clay campaigned for his "American System" of economic stimulus. But the other campaigns did not use policy-oriented slogans but instead focused on scandal mongering and character assassination. The contest went to the House of Representatives, where Clay threw his support to elect John Quincy Adams. That squeezed out the popular favorite General Andrew Jackson of Tennessee.
Andrew Jackson came roaring back in 1828, making Corrupt Bargain his campaign slogan.
- "For President of the People" â Zachary Taylor
- "The Sub Treasury and the Tariff of '46" â Lewis Cass
- "Resolved, That we inscribe on our banner, FREE SOIL, FREE SPEECH, FREE LABOR, AND FREE MEN, and under it we will fight on, and fight ever, until a triumphant victory shall reward our exertions." Free Soil Party in 1848.
- "Free Soil, Free Labor, Free Speech, Free Men, Fremont" â 1856 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of John Fremont
- "Fremont and freedom" â John Fremont
- "We'll Buck 'em in '56" â James Buchanan, playing on "Old Buck", the nickname associated with his last name.
- "We Po'ked 'em in '44, we Pierced 'em in '52, and we'll Buck 'em in '56".
- "Vote yourself a farm and horses" â Abraham Lincoln, referring to Republican support for a law granting homesteads on the American frontier areas of the West.
- "The Union must and shall be preserved!" â Abraham Lincoln
- "Protection to American industry" â Abraham Lincoln
- "True to the Union and the Constitution to the last." â Stephen A. Douglas
- "The champion of popular sovereignty." â Stephen A. Douglas
- "The Union now and forever" â Stephen A. Douglas
- The Union and the Constitution" â John Bell (Also "John Bell and the Constitution", and "The Union, the Constitution, and the enforcement of the laws.")
- "Union, liberty, peace" â Abraham Lincoln
- "For Union and Constitution" â Abraham Lincoln (Also "The Union and the Constitution")
- "An honorable, permanent and happy peace." â George B. McClellan
- "Let Us Have Peace" â 1868 presidential campaign slogan of Ulysses S. Grant
- "Vote as You Shot" â 1868 presidential campaign slogan of Ulysses S. Grant
- "Peace, Union, and constitutional government." â Horatio Seymour
- "Grant Us Another Term" â Ulysses S. Grant
- Turn the Rascals Out â 1872 Horace Greeley slogan against Grantism.
- Universal amnesty, Liberty, equality and fraternity, Impartial suffrage â Greeley slogan showing support for reconciling with white ex-Confederates.
- "Tilden and Reform" â Samuel Tilden, the Democratic candidate
- "Honest Sam Tilden" â Samuel Tilden
- "Tilden or Blood!" â 1877 slogan of Tilden supporters during post-election controversy that led to the Compromise of 1877
- "Hayes the true and Wheeler too" â Slogan and campaign song title for Rutherford B. Hayes and William A. Wheeler, with song adapted from 1840s "Tippecanoe and Tyler too".
- "The boys in blue vote for Hayes and Wheeler" â Hayes' appeal to fellow Union Army veterans.
- "Rum, Romanism and Rebellion" a local clergyman introduced Republican candidate Blaine with this remark, which insulted German drinkers, Catholics, and Southerners, respectively. The Democrats eagerly seized on this slogan to hold those Democratic factions in line and thereby won the election.
- Ma, Ma, where's my Pa? â Used by Republicans against Grover Cleveland. The slogan referred to the allegation that Cleveland had fathered an illegitimate child. When Cleveland was elected, his Democratic supporters added "Gone to the White House, Ha, Ha, Ha!".
- "Burn this letter!" â Cleveland supporters' attack on Blaine's supposed corruption, quoting a line from Blaine correspondence that became public.
- "Blaine, Blaine, James G. Blaine! The continental liar from the state of Maine!" â Cleveland campaign attack on Blaine's reputation for corruption in office.
- "Rejuvenated Republicanism" â Benjamin Harrison
- "Grandfather's hat fits Ben!" â Benjamin Harrison, referring to his grandfather, William Henry Harrison
- "Tippecanoe and Morton too" â Slogan and campaign song title for Benjamin Harrison and Levi P. Morton, with song adapted from 1840s "Tippecanoe and Tyler too".
- "Unnecessary taxation oppresses industry." â Grover Cleveland
- "Reduce the tariff on necessaries of life." â Grover Cleveland
- "Our choice: Cleve and Steve." â Grover Cleveland and Adlai Stevenson
- "Tariff Reform" â Grover Cleveland
- "No Force Bill." â Grover Cleveland (To which southern Democrats appended "No Negro Domination
- "Protection-Reciprocity-Honest Money." â Benjamin Harrison
1900âÂÂ1996
- "Four more years of the full dinner pail" â William McKinley
- "Let Well Enough Alone" â William McKinley
- We stand at Armageddon and we battle for the Lord, Roosevelt accepting the nomination of his crusading new party on June 17, 1912.
- "America First and America Efficient" â Charles Evans Hughes
- "He has kept us out of war." â Woodrow Wilson 1916 U.S. presidential campaign slogan
- "He proved the pen mightier than the sword." â Woodrow Wilson 1916 U.S. presidential campaign slogan
- "War in Europe â Peace in America â God Bless Wilson" â Woodrow Wilson 1916 U.S. presidential campaign slogan
- "Who but Hoover?" â 1928 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Herbert Hoover.
- "A chicken in every pot and a car in every garage" â Commonly cited version of a claim asserted in a Republican Party flier on behalf of the 1928 U.S. presidential campaign of Herbert Hoover.
- "Honest. Able. Fearless." â Al Smith
- "All for 'Al' and 'Al' for All." â Al Smith
- "Make your wet dreams come true." â Al Smith, referring to his stand in favor of repealing Prohibition.
- "Happy Days Are Here Again" â 1932 slogan by Democratic presidential candidate Franklin D. Roosevelt.
- "We are turning the corner" â 1932 campaign slogan in the depths of the Great Depression by Republican president Herbert Hoover.
- "Defeat the New Deal and Its Reckless Spending" â 1936 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Alfred M. Landon
- "Let's Get Another Deck" â 1936 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Alfred M. Landon, using a card game metaphor to answer the "new deal" cards metaphor of Franklin D. Roosevelt
- "Let's Make It a Landon-Slide" â 1936 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Alfred M. Landon
- "Life, Liberty, and Landon" â 1936 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Alfred M. Landon
- "Land on Washington" â 1936 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Alfred M. Landon
- "Remember Hoover!" â 1936 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Franklin D. Roosevelt
- "Forward with Roosevelt" â Franklin Roosevelt
- "Better A Third Termer than a Third Rater" â 1940 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Franklin D. Roosevelt
- "I Want Roosevelt Again!" â Franklin D. Roosevelt
- "Willkie for the Millionaires, Roosevelt for the Millions" â Franklin D. Roosevelt
- "Carry on with Roosevelt" â Franklin D. Roosevelt
- "No Third Term" â 1940 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Wendell L. Willkie
- "No Fourth Term Either" â Wendell Willkie
- "Roosevelt for Ex-President" â 1940 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Wendell Willkie
- "There's No Indispensable Man" â 1940 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Wendell L. Willkie
- "We Want Willkie" â 1940 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Wendell L. Willkie
- "Win with Willkie" â 1940 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Wendell L. Willkie
- "Don't swap horses in midstream" â 1944 campaign slogan of Franklin D. Roosevelt. The slogan was also used by Abraham Lincoln in the 1864 election.
- "We are going to win this war and the peace that follows" â 1944 campaign slogan in the midst of World War II by Democratic president Franklin D. Roosevelt
- "Dewey or don't we" â Thomas E. Dewey
- "Win the war quicker with Dewey and Bricker" - 1944 campaign slogan during World War II in support of Thomas E. Dewey and his vice presidential nominee, John W. Bricker
- I still like Ike â Eisenhower
- Peace and Prosperity â Eisenhower, who ended the Korean War in 1953,
- Adlai and Estes â The Bestest â Adlai Stevenson and Estes Kefauver, the losing Democrats
- The Winning Team â Stevenson and Kefauver.
- "A time for greatness" â U.S. presidential campaign theme of John F. Kennedy (Kennedy also used "We Can Do Better" and "Leadership for the 60s").
- "Peace, Experience, Prosperity" â Richard Nixon's slogan showing his expertise over Kennedy.
- "Experience Counts" - Richard Nixon slogan boasting the experience of the Nixon Lodge ticket.
- "Kennedy, Kennedy, Kennedy" â Catchy jingle extolling Kennedy's virtues.
- "All the way with LBJ" â 1964 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Lyndon B. Johnson
- "In Your Heart, You Know He's Right" â 1964 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Barry Goldwater
- "In Your Guts, You Know He's Nuts" â 1964 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Lyndon B. Johnson supporters, answering Goldwater's slogan
- "The Stakes Are Too High For You To Stay Home" - 1964 U.S. campaign slogan of Lyndon B. Johnson, as seen in The Daisy Ad
- "LBJ for the USA" - 1964 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Lyndon B. Johnson
- "A Choice â Not an Echo" - 1964 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Barry Goldwater
- "Some People Talk Change, Others Cause It" â Hubert Humphrey, 1968
- "This time, vote like your whole world depended on it" â 1968 slogan of Richard Nixon
- "To Begin Anew..." â Eugene McCarthy, 1968
- "Nixon's the One" â Richard M. Nixon, 1968
- "Send them a Message" â George Wallace, 1968
- "Stand Up for America" â George Wallace, 1968
- "Nixon Now" â Richard M. Nixon, 1972 (also, "Nixon Now, More than Ever" and "President Nixon. Now more than ever")
- "Come home, America" â George McGovern, 1972
- "Acid, Amnesty, and Abortion for All" â 1972 anti-Democratic Party slogan, from a statement made to reporter Bob Novak by Missouri Senator Thomas F. Eagleton (as related in Novak's 2007 memoir, Prince of Darkness)
- "Dick Nixon Before He Dicks You" â Popular anti-Nixon slogan, 1972
- "They can't lick our Dick" â Popular campaign slogan for Nixon supporters
- "Don't change Dicks in the midst of a screw, vote for Nixon in '72" â Popular campaign slogan for Nixon supporters
- "Unbought and Unbossed" official campaign slogan for Shirley Chisholm
- "McGovern. Democrat. For the People" - George McGovern, 1972
- "He's making us proud again" â Gerald Ford
- "Not Just Peanuts" â Jimmy Carter
- "A Leader, for a Change" (also "Leaders, for a Change") â Jimmy Carter
- "Why not the Best?" â Jimmy Carter
- "Peaches And Cream" Jimmy Carter (from Georgia) and running mate Walter Mondale (from Minnesota)
- "For America, for the people" â 1992 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Bill Clinton
- "It's Time to fix America" â a theme of the 1992 U.S. presidential campaign of Bill Clinton
- "Putting People first" â 1992 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Bill Clinton
- "It's the economy, stupid" â originally intended for an internal audience, it became the de facto slogan for the Bill Clinton campaign
- "Stand by the President" â George H. W. Bush
- "A Proud country" â George H. W. Bush
- "Don't Change my team in the Middle of my Stream" â George H. W. Bush and Dan Quayle
- "America first" â Pat Buchanan
- "Down with King George" â Pat Buchanan, in reference to Bush
- "Send Bush a message" â Pat Buchanan
- "Conservative of America" â Pat Buchanan
- "A Voice for the voiceless" â Pat Buchanan
- "Ross for Boss" â Ross Perot
- "I'm Ross, and you're the Boss!" â Ross Perot
- "Leadership for a Change" â Ross Perot
- "Building a bridge to the twenty-first century" â Bill Clinton
- "Bob Dole. A Better Man. For a Better America." or "The Better Man for a Better America" â Bob Dole
- "Go Pat Go" â Pat Buchanan
2000âÂÂpresent
Republican Party candidates
Democratic Party candidates
Libertarian Party candidates
Democratic Party candidates
- "Yes We Can" â Barack Obama campaign chant, 2008
- "We are the ones we've been waiting for." â 2008 U.S. presidential campaign rallying cry of Barack Obama during the Democratic convention in Denver.
- "Change We Can Believe In." â 2008 US presidential campaign slogan of Barack Obama
- "Change We Need." and "Change." â 2008 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Barack Obama during the general election.
- "Fired up! Ready to go!" â Barack Obama campaign chant, 2008
- "Hope" â 2008 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of Barack Obama during the general election.
- "Ready for change, ready to lead" â Hillary Clinton campaign slogan, also "Big Challenges, Real Solutions: Time to Pick a President," "In to Win," "Working for Change, Working for You," and "The strength and experience to make change happen."
Republican Party candidates
- "Country First" â 2008 U.S. presidential campaign slogan of John McCain
- "Reform, prosperity and peace" â 2008 U.S. presidential motto of John McCain.
Independent candidates
Libertarian Party candidates
Democratic Party candidates
- "Forward" â 2012 U.S. presidential slogan of Barack Obama.
- "Middle Class First" - 2012 U.S. presidential slogan of Barack Obama.
Republican Party candidates
Libertarian Party candidates
- "The People's President" â Gary Johnson campaign slogan
- "Live Free" â Gary Johnson campaign slogan
Green Party candidates
Constitution Party candidates
Republican Party candidates
Democratic Party candidates
- "Hillary For America" â used by Hillary Clinton's campaign
- "Forward Together" â used by Clinton's campaign, on the side of her bus.
- "Fighting for us" â used by Clinton's campaign.
- "I'm With Her" â used by Clinton's campaign.
- "Stronger Together" â used by Clinton's campaign.
- "Love Trumps Hate" used by Clinton's campaign.
- "When they go low, we go high" â used by Michelle Obama and adopted by Clinton's campaign
- "A Future To Believe In" â used by Bernie Sanders' campaign
- "Feel the Bern" â a common but unofficial slogan used by supporters of Bernie Sanders
Libertarian Party candidates
Green Party candidates
Independents
- "It's never too late to do the right thing" â used by Evan McMullin
Democratic Party candidates
Republican Party candidates
- "Keep America Great" used by Donald Trump's campaign
- "Make America Great Again Again" used by Trump's campaign
- "Promises Made, Promises Kept" used by Trump's campaign
- "Buy American, Hire American" used by Trump's campaign
- "Make Our Farmers Great Again" used by Trump's campaign
- "Build the Wall and Crime Will Fall" used by Trump's campaign
- "Jobs Not Mobs" used by Trump's campaign
- "Leadership America Deserves" used by Bill Weld's campaign
Libertarian Party candidates
Green Party candidates
- "For Our Future" used by Howie Hawkins' campaign
- "For an Ecosocialist Green New Deal" used by Hawkins' campaign
Constitution Party candidates
Democratic Party candidates
- "Let's Finish the Job" used by Joe Biden's campaign
- "Together, we can win this!" used by Kamala Harris' campaign
- "When we Fight, we Win." used by Harris' campaign.
- "We are not going back." used by Harris' campaign.
- âÂÂFreedomâ â used by Harrisâ campaign.
- "Let's WIN this." used by Harris' campaign.
- "A New Way Forward." used by Harris' campaign.
- "A new beginning" used by Marianne Williamson's campaign
- "Disrupt the system" used by Williamson's campaign
Republican Party candidates
Libertarian Party candidates
- "Chase-ing Freedom" used by Chase Oliver's campaign.
- "The Gold New Deal" used by Mike ter Maat's campaign.
Independent candidate
See also
References
Further reading
- Barrett, Grant. Hatchet Jobs and Hardball: The Oxford Dictionary of American Political Slang (Oxford University Press, 2004) online
- Boller, Paul F. Presidential Anecdotes (1996) , a chapter for each president online
- Boller, Paul F. Presidential campaigns (1984) online Chapters on each one 1789 to 1992.
- Cunningham, Noble E. Popular images of the presidency: from Washington to Lincoln (1991) online, heavily illustrated.
- Eigen, Lewis D. The Macmillan dictionary of political quotations (1993)
- Frank, Beryl. The Pictorial History of the Democratic Party (1980); covers 1832 through 1976. online, heavily illustrated.
- Gifford, Jacqueline N., and Guido H. Stempel, eds. Historical Dictionary of Political Communication in the United States (1999) online
- Hillygus, D. Sunshine, and Todd G. Shields. The Persuadable Voter: Wedge Issues in Presidential Campaigns (Princeton University Press, 2008)
- Jay, Anthony. The Oxford Dictionary of Political Quotations (Oxford University Press, 1996), over 4500 quotes from worldwide politics--many of them from USA . online
- Roberts, Robert North, Scott John Hammond, and Valerie A. Sulfaro. Campaigns, slogans, issues, and platforms: The complete encyclopedia ' (Greenwood, 2nd ed. 3 vol, 2012) First edition by Roberts and Hammond was Encyclopedia of presidential campaigns, slogans, issues, and platforms (2004);, a major scholarly compendium online 2nd edition
- Safire, William. Lend me your ears : great speeches in history (1992) online
- Safire, William. The new language of politics: an anecdotal dictionary of catchwords, slogans, and political usage (1968) online
- Safire, William. Safire's new political dictionary: The definitive guide to the new language of politics (3rd ed. 1978) online; 1100 short essays on political rhetoric.
- Schlesinger, Jr., Arthur M. Running for President: The Candidates and their Images 1789 to 1896 (1994), heavily illustrated.
- Schlesinger, Jr., Arthur M. Running for President: The Candidates and their Images 1900 to 1992 (1994) online, heavily illustrated.
- Schlesinger, Robert. White House Ghosts: Presidents and their speech writers (2008), from 1932 to 2004
- Schnapper, M. B. Grand Old Party: the first hundred years of the Republican Party; a pictorial history (1955) online, heavily illustrated.
- Singer, Aaron, ed. Campaign speeches of American presidential candidates 1928 to 1972 (1976) online
- Sperber, Hans, and Travis Trittschuh. American political terms; an historical dictionary (1962) over 1200 entries in 530 pages online
- Stempel III, Guido H. ed. Media and Politics in America: A Reference Handbook (2003) online