The United States presidential election of 1988 featured an open primary for both major parties. Ronald Reagan, the incumbent President, was vacating the position after serving the maximum two terms allowed by the Twenty-second Amendment. Reagan's Vice President, George H. W. Bush, won the Republican nomination, while the Democrats nominated Michael Dukakis, Governor of Massachusetts. Bush capitalized on Reagan's popularity while Dukakis's campai...
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The United States presidential election of 1988 featured an open primary for both major parties. Ronald Reagan, the incumbent President, was vacating the position after serving the maximum two terms allowed by the Twenty-second Amendment. Reagan's Vice President, George H. W. Bush, won the Republican nomination, while the Democrats nominated Michael Dukakis, Governor of Massachusetts. Bush capitalized on Reagan's popularity while Dukakis's campaign suffered from several miscues; the result was a third consecutive Republican presidential election victory. In this election, Bush became the first incumbent Vice President to win the presidency since Martin Van Buren in 1836. Like Van Buren in 1840, President Bush would also be defeated for reelection in 1992.
Democratic candidates
In the 1984 presidential election the Democrats had nominated Walter Mondale, a traditional New Deal-type liberal as their candidate. When Mondale was defeated in a landslide, party leaders became eager to find...
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