United States presidential election of 2004 | George W. Bush vs. John Kerry, Campaign, & Results | Britannica (original) (raw)

United States presidential election of 2004, American presidential election held on November 2, 2004, in which Republican George W. Bush was elected to a second term, defeating Democrat John Kerry, a U.S senator from Massachusetts.

At a glance: the election of 2004

The campaign

In the primary campaign, Bush faced little opposition for the Republican nomination, while Kerry overcame an initial surge by Vermont governor Howard Dean and North Carolina senator John Edwards; Edwards was nominated as Kerry’s running mate. The general election was contested less than 18 months after the beginning of the Iraq War and three years after the September 11 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people. As a result, central issues in the campaign were terrorism and, particularly, the Iraq War—with the lack of evidence that Iraq had stocks of weapons of mass destruction (one rationale given for the invasion) and with continuing American casualties. Kerry touted plans to reduce joblessness and the national deficit, increase access to health care, and roll back tax cuts that Bush had secured for America’s wealthiest. Other campaign issues included free trade and the role of the country in the international community, as well as debates over religion, abortion, gay rights (particularly same-sex marriage), and civil rights.

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John KerryDemocratic presidential candidate John Kerry, 2004.

Candidate spending, voter turnout, and partisan dissension were high, and Bush defeated Kerry in a contentious and close election, which, as in 2000, hinged on the electoral votes of a single state, this time Ohio rather than Florida. Bush finished with 50.7 percent of the vote and 286 electoral votes (16 more than the required 270), while Kerry captured 48.3 percent and 251 electoral votes (Edwards received 1 electoral vote).

For the results of the previous election, see United States presidential election of 2000. For the results of the subsequent election, see United States presidential election of 2008.

Michael Levy

The results of the 2004 U.S. presidential election are provided in the table.

American presidential election, 2004