List of presidential nominating conventions in the United States
These lists are a companion to the Wikipedia article entitled United States presidential nominating convention.
Significant third-party conventions before 1860
[edit]| Elec- tion |
Party | City | Year | Presidential nominee |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1832 | Anti-Masonic | Baltimore, Maryland | 1831 | William Wirt | usually considered the first U.S. political party nominating convention |
| 1836 | Anti-Masonic | Philadelphia | 1836 | no candidate nominated | |
| 1840 | Anti-Masonic | Philadelphia | 1838 | William Henry Harrison (Whig) | By 1840, Anti-Masons had been largely absorbed into the Whig Party |
| Liberty | Albany, New York | 1840 | James G. Birney | first U.S. anti-slavery political party | |
| 1844 | Liberty | Buffalo, New York | 1843 | James G. Birney | |
| Tyler Democratic | Baltimore | 1844 | John Tyler | Nominated sitting President Tyler in May 1844 but Tyler withdrew from running in August 1844. [Also known as the National Democratic or Democratic Republican Party] | |
| 1848 | Free Soil | Utica, New York & Buffalo | 1848 | Martin Van Buren | united Liberty Party supporters with anti-slavery Democrats and Whigs |
| 1852 | Free Soil | Pittsburgh | 1852 | John P. Hale | Most Free-Soilers joined the Republican Party after its foundation in 1854. |
| 1856 | American | Philadelphia | 1856 | Millard Fillmore (Whig) | The anti-immigrant American (or Know Nothing) Party endorsed Fillmore in February 1856, followed by the Whigs in September. |
Major-party conventions
[edit]The two right-hand columns show nominations by notable conventions not shown elsewhere. Some of the nominees (e.g. the Whigs before 1860 and Theodore Roosevelt in 1912) received very large votes, while others who received less than 1% of the total national popular vote are listed to show historical continuity or transition. [For example, the Equal Rights Party convention of 1872 nominated the first national ticket to include either a woman (Victoria Woodhull) or an African-American (Frederick Douglass), although this ticket received no votes at all.]
Many important candidates are not shown here because they were never endorsed by a national party convention (e.g. William Henry Harrison in 1836, George C. Wallace in 1968, John B. Anderson in 1980 and Ross Perot in 1992); for a list by year of all notable candidates (at least one Elector or 0.1% of the popular vote), please see List of United States presidential candidates.
Note that there is no organizational continuity between the American Parties of 1856 and 1972, the Union Parties of 1860, 1864, 1888, 1900 and 1936, or the Progressive Parties of 1912–16, 1924 and 1948–52.
- Presidential winner in bold.
- People's [Middle of the Road] = "Middle of the Road" faction of the People's Party, who opposed fusing with the Democrats after 1896.
Third-party conventions since 1872
[edit]Prohibition and socialist parties
[edit]The Prohibition Party was organized in 1869. At the 1896 Prohibition Party convention in Pittsburgh, the majority of delegates supported a "narrow-gauge" platform confined to the prohibition of alcohol, while a "broad-gauge" minority — who also wanted to advocate for Free Silver and other reforms — broke away to form the National Party.
The Socialist Party of America (1901–1972) resulted from a merger of the Social Democratic Party (founded 1898) with dissenting members of the Socialist Labor Party (founded 1876). The Socialist Party of America stopped running its own candidates for president after 1956, but a minority of SPA members who disagreed with this policy broke away in 1973 to form the Socialist Party USA (SPUSA).
¶ Note that the years refer to the relevant presidential election and not necessarily to the date of a convention making a nomination for that election. Some nominating conventions meet in the year before an election.
| Elec- tion |
Prohibition Party convention | Prohibition Party nominee | Socialist Labor Party convention | Socialist Labor Party nominee | Social Democratic or Socialist Party convention | Social Democratic or Socialist Party nominee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1872 | Columbus, Ohio | James Black | ||||
| 1876 | Cleveland | Green Clay Smith | ||||
| 1880 | Cleveland | Neal Dow | ||||
| 1884 | Pittsburgh | John St. John | ||||
| 1888 | Indianapolis | Clinton B. Fisk | ||||
| 1892 | Cincinnati | John Bidwell | New York City | Simon Wing | ||
| 1896 | Pittsburgh (Prohibition Party) | Joshua Levering | New York City | Charles Matchett | ||
| Pittsburgh (National Party) | Charles Eugene Bentley | |||||
| 1900 | Chicago | John G. Woolley | New York City | Joseph F. Malloney | Indianapolis (SDP) | Eugene V. Debs |
| 1904 | Indianapolis | Silas C. Swallow | New York City | Charles H. Corregan | Chicago (SPA) | Eugene V. Debs |
| 1908 | Columbus | Eugene W. Chafin | New York City | August Gillhaus | Chicago (SPA) | Eugene V. Debs |
| 1912 | Atlantic City | Eugene W. Chafin | New York City | Arthur E. Reimer | Indianapolis (SPA) | Eugene V. Debs |
| 1916 | St. Paul | J. Frank Hanly | New York City | Arthur E. Reimer | (mail ballot) | (Allan L. Benson) |
| 1920 | Lincoln, Nebraska | Aaron Watkins | New York City | William Wesley Cox | New York City (SPA) | Eugene V. Debs |
| 1924 | Columbus | Herman P. Faris | New York City | Frank T. Johns | Cleveland (SPA) | Robert La Follette, Sr. (Progressive) |
| 1928 | Chicago | William F. Varney | New York City | Verne L. Reynolds | New York City (SPA) | Norman Thomas |
| 1932 | Indianapolis | William D. Upshaw | New York City | Verne L. Reynolds | Milwaukee (SPA) | Norman Thomas |
| 1936 | Niagara Falls, New York | D. Leigh Colvin | New York City | John W. Aiken | Cleveland (SPA) | Norman Thomas |
| 1940 | Chicago | Roger W. Babson | New York City | John W. Aiken | Washington, D.C. (SPA) | Norman Thomas |
| 1944 | Indianapolis | Claude A. Watson | New York City | Edward A. Teichert | Reading (SPA) | Norman Thomas |
| 1948 | Winona Lake, Indiana | Claude A. Watson | New York City | Edward A. Teichert | Reading (SPA) | Norman Thomas |
| 1952 | Indianapolis | Stuart Hamblen | New York City | Eric Hass | Cleveland (SPA) | Darlington Hoopes |
| 1956 | Milford, Indiana | Enoch A. Holtwick | New York City | Eric Hass | Chicago (SPA) | Darlington Hoopes |
| 1960 | Winona Lake, 1959 | Rutherford Decker | New York City | Eric Hass | ||
| 1964 | Chicago | E. Harold Munn | New York City | Eric Hass | ||
| 1968 | Detroit | E. Harold Munn | Brooklyn | Henning A. Blomen | ||
| 1972 | Wichita, Kansas | E. Harold Munn | Detroit | Louis Fisher | ||
| 1976 | Wheat Ridge, Colorado | Benjamin C. Bubar | Southfield, Michigan | Jules Levin | Milwaukee (SPUSA) | Frank P. Zeidler |
| 1980 | Birmingham | Benjamin C. Bubar | Milwaukee (SPUSA) | David McReynolds | ||
| 1984 | Mandan, North Dakota | Earl Dodge | Milwaukee (SPUSA) | Sonia Johnson (Citizens') | ||
| 1988 | Springfield, Illinois | Earl Dodge | Milwaukee (SPUSA) | Willa Kenoyer | ||
| 1992 | Minneapolis | Earl Dodge | Chicago (SPUSA) | J. Quinn Brisben | ||
| 1996 | Denver | Earl Dodge | Cambridge (SPUSA 1995) | Mary Cal Hollis | ||
| 2000 | Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania | Earl Dodge | Milwaukee (SPUSA) | David McReynolds | ||
| 2004 | Fairfield Glade, Tennessee | Gene Amondson | Chicago (SPUSA) | Walt Brown | ||
| 2008 | Indianapolis | Gene Amondson | St. Louis (SPUSA) | Brian Moore | ||
| 2012 | Cullman, Alabama | Jack Fellure | Los Angeles (SPUSA) | Stewart Alexander | ||
| 2016 | (conference call) | (James Hedges) | Milwaukee (SPUSA) | Mimi Soltysik | ||
| 2020 | (conference call) | (Phil Collins) | Newark (SPUSA 2019) | Howie Hawkins (Green) | ||
| 2024 | Buffalo (2023) | Michael Wood | (Zoom call, SPUSA, 2023) | (Bill Stodden) |
Workers', Communist and Socialist Workers parties
[edit]The Communist Party was formed by Leninists who had left the Socialist Party of America in 1919. The Socialist Workers Party was formed by Communists who followed Leon Trotsky rather than Joseph Stalin and briefly joined the Socialist Party before forming their own party in 1937.
| Election | Communist Party convention | Communist nominee | SWP convention | Socialist Workers Party nominee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1924 | Chicago [Workers Party] | William Z. Foster | ||
| 1928 | New York City [Workers (Communist) Party] |
William Z. Foster | ||
| 1932 | Chicago | William Z. Foster | ||
| 1936 | New York City | Earl Browder | ||
| 1940 | New York City | Earl Browder | ||
| 1944 | CPUSA briefly dissolved into Communist Political Association |
|||
| 1948 | New York City | Henry A. Wallace (Progressive) | New York City | Farrell Dobbs |
| 1952 | Vincent Hallinan (Progressive) | New York City | Farrell Dobbs | |
| 1956 | New York City | Farrell Dobbs | ||
| 1960 | (Farrell Dobbs) | |||
| 1964 | New York City | Clifton DeBerry | ||
| 1968 | New York City | Charlene Mitchell | New York City | Fred Halstead |
| 1972 | New York City | Gus Hall | Detroit | Linda Jenness |
| 1976 | Chicago | Gus Hall | (Peter Camejo) | |
| 1980 | Detroit | Gus Hall | Oberlin, Ohio | Andrew Pulley |
| 1984 | Cleveland, Ohio | Gus Hall | New York City | Melvin T. Mason |
| 1988 | New York City | James Warren | ||
| 1992 | Chicago | James Warren |
Libertarian, Green, and Constitution Parties
[edit]In 1999, the United States Taxpayers' Party changed its name to the Constitution Party.
The individual article about a Libertarian convention after 1980 or a Green Party convention after 1996 is linked to its respective city in the table below. Cities linked for Constitution and U.S. Taxpayers' Party conventions lead to individual sections of Constitution Party National Convention.
Location of the Party Convention in Relation to Election Winner
[edit]The list below shows the location of the party convention, along with the winner of the election. Bold font indicates that party won the presidential election. If the party won the state where the convention was held the box is shaded. Other parties are only listed if they garnered electoral college votes.[5]
| Election | Democratic Convention | Republican Convention | Other Party Convention |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1832 | Baltimore | Baltimore (National Republican, 1831) | |
| 1836 | Baltimore (1835) | ||
| 1840 | Baltimore | Harrisburg, Penna. (Whig, 1839) | |
| 1844 | Baltimore | Baltimore (Whig) | |
| 1848 | Baltimore | Baltimore (Whig) | |
| 1852 | Baltimore | Baltimore (Whig) | |
| 1856 | Cincinnati | Philadelphia | Baltimore (American) |
| 1860 | Charleston & Baltimore | Chicago | Baltimore (Constitutional Union) |
| 1864 | Chicago | Baltimore (National Union) | |
| 1868 | New York City | Chicago | |
| 1872 | Baltimore | Philadelphia | Cincinnati (Liberal Republican) |
| 1876 | St. Louis | Cincinnati | |
| 1880 | Cincinnati | Chicago | |
| 1884 | Chicago | Chicago | |
| 1888 | St. Louis | Chicago | |
| 1892 | Chicago | Minneapolis | Omaha (People's) |
| 1896 | Chicago | St. Louis | St. Louis (People's) |
| 1900 | Kansas City | Philadelphia | |
| 1904 | St. Louis | Chicago | |
| 1908 | Denver | Chicago | |
| 1912 | Baltimore | Chicago | Chicago (Progressive) |
| 1916 | St. Louis | Chicago | |
| 1920 | San Francisco | Chicago | |
| 1924 | New York City | Cleveland | Cincinnati (Progressive) |
| 1928 | Houston | Kansas City | |
| 1932 | Chicago | Chicago | |
| 1936 | Philadelphia | Cleveland | |
| 1940 | Chicago | Philadelphia | |
| 1944 | Chicago | Chicago | |
| 1948 | Philadelphia | Philadelphia | Birmingham (States' Rights Democratic) |
| 1952 | Chicago | Chicago | |
| 1956 | Chicago | San Francisco | |
| 1960 | Los Angeles | Chicago | |
| 1964 | Atlantic City | San Francisco | |
| 1968 | Chicago | Miami Beach | |
| 1972 | Miami Beach | Miami Beach | |
| 1976 | New York City | Kansas City | |
| 1980 | New York City | Detroit | |
| 1984 | San Francisco | Dallas | |
| 1988 | Atlanta | New Orleans | |
| 1992 | New York City | Houston | |
| 1996 | Chicago | San Diego | |
| 2000 | Los Angeles | Philadelphia | |
| 2004 | Boston | New York City | |
| 2008 | Denver | Saint Paul | |
| 2012 | Charlotte | Tampa | |
| 2016 | Philadelphia | Cleveland | |
| 2020 | Milwaukee | Charlotte | |
| 2020 | Chicago | Milwaukee |
See also
[edit]- List of Democratic National Conventions
- List of Whig National Conventions
- List of Republican National Conventions
- Prohibition Party#Presidential campaigns
- Socialist Labor Party of America#National Conventions
- Socialist Labor Party of America#Presidential tickets
- Socialist Party of America#National Conventions
- National conventions of the Communist Party USA
- Socialist Workers Party — Presidential politics
- Libertarian National Convention
- Constitution Party National Convention
- Green National Convention
- Reform Party of the United States of America
- American Party (1969)#Presidential and vice-presidential candidates
- Electoral History of the American Independent and American Parties
References
[edit]- ^ "Woodhull & Claflin's Weekly Archives May 25, 1872 - OFFICIAL REPORT OF THE EQUAL RIGHTS CONVENTION, HELD IN NEW YORK CITY, ON THE NINTH, TENTH AND ELEVENTH OF MAY 1872". victoria-woodhull.com. Archived from the original on 2021-11-30. Retrieved 2024-07-08.
- ^ Epstein, Kayla (2019-09-11). "A woman who ran for president in 1872 was compared to Satan and locked up. It wasn't for her emails". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 2022-12-10. Retrieved 2024-07-08.
- ^ Sen. Eagleton later withdrew as the Democratic vice-presidential candidate, to be succeeded by Sargent Shriver
- ^ "Reform Party Convention | August 28, 2004 | C-SPAN.org". www.c-span.org. Archived from the original on July 9, 2024. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
- ^ "Historical Presidential Election Map Timeline". 270toWin.com. Archived from the original on 2020-02-11. Retrieved 2020-03-11.
Sources (partial list)
[edit]- National Party Conventions eGuide, The Campaign Finance Institute, [1]
- Chase, James S. Emergence of the Presidential Nominating Convention, 1789–1832 (Houghton Mifflin: 1973).
- Congressional Research Service. Presidential Elections in the United States: A Primer. (Washington, Congressional Research Service, April 17, 2000).
- History House: Conventional Wisdom
- Kane, Joseph Nathan, Presidential Fact Book (Random House, New York, 1998: ISBN 0-375-70244-X)
- Kull, Irving S. and Nell M., An Encyclopedia of American History in Chronological Order, enlarged and updated by Samuel H. Friedelbaum (Popular Library, New York, 1961)
- Morris, Richard B., Encyclopedia of American History, revised and enlarged edition (Harper & Row, New York and Evanston, Ill., 1961)
- Online NewsHour: Interview with Historian Michael Beschloss Archived 2013-10-30 at the Wayback Machine on the origins of the convention process
- Republican National Convention 2004: Convention History
- Taylor, Tim, The Book of Presidents (Arno Press, New York, 1972; ISBN 0-405-00226-2)
