Top 20 Disturbing Moments from US Elections
Those who ignore the past are destined to repeat it. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the darkest and most insane moments in U.S. Presidential Election history.
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00:00To use a favorite term that all of you people really came up with, we will stop the steal.
00:09Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the 20 darkest and most insane
00:15moments in U.S. presidential election history. Russia had hacked the Democrats. Then it emerged
00:21that Russia was behind masses of fake news and adverts on social media.
00:2620. Racism and the birther attack
00:31The 2008 election was a pivotal moment for the United States, resulting in the election of the
00:36first black president. Ugliness around the election, though, punctured any fantasies of
00:41a potentially post-racial America. Obama's candidacy was met with racist and bigoted rhetoric.
00:47The election saw the rise of the birther movement. Ultra-conservative pundits peddled
00:52the conspiracy that Obama wasn't born in America and was actually a secret Muslim.
00:58His opponent, Senator John McCain, publicly rejected these conspiracies. Unfortunately,
01:04the narrative persisted throughout Obama's presidency, fueled by figures like Donald Trump.
01:10This climate of racial resentment and revanchism helped lay the groundwork for Trump's rise in 2016
01:17and his transformative influence on the GOP.
01:2519. The Great Depression scandal
01:28When George McGovern won the 1972 Democratic primary, anti-war progressives felt ascendant.
01:34To balance out the ticket, McGovern chose Senator Thomas Eagleton,
01:39a moderate Catholic from Missouri, as his running mate.
01:4619. Eagleton's candidacy lasted less than three weeks.
02:00Soon after his selection, it was revealed that Eagleton had suffered from depression
02:04earlier in his life. He was treated by doctors with electroshock therapy.
02:09The media fell into a frenzy over concerns about his mental health and fitness for office.
02:16In an era where mental health issues were highly stigmatized,
02:30the media treated the story as a scandal. McGovern ultimately asked Eagleton to withdraw,
02:36fearing the controversy would derail the campaign. He would go on to lose in a landslide anyway.
02:4218. Ford sunk by a debate gaffe
02:46Despite Watergate, the American public wasn't necessarily ready to hand the White House to
02:50Democrats in 1976. The race between President Ford and challenger Jimmy Carter was very tight.
03:08Ford waged a surprisingly strong campaign but struggled to close the gap. His controversial
03:14pardon of Nixon enabled Carter's pitch as an outsider wanting to restore trust to resonate
03:19with the electorate. Still, Ford could have pulled it off until his chances were fatally
03:25dashed in their second debate. Ford made a huge gaffe, claiming erroneously that Eastern Europe
03:31was not under Soviet domination. This misstep reinforced concerns about Ford's foreign policy
03:37expertise. The gaffe helped propel Carter to a narrow victory. He won with just 50.1% of the
03:45popular vote. 17. Daisy and a referendum on civil rights
03:59The 1964 presidential election between Lyndon B. Johnson and Barry Goldwater was one marked by
04:05intense polarization similar to what we see today. Goldwater, a staunch conservative,
04:19opposed the Civil Rights Act, which passed only four months before Election Day. Civil rights
04:25became a defining issue as Johnson framed the election as a battle between progress and
04:29regression. Johnson hammered this home with a powerful ad campaign portraying Goldwater
04:34as dangerous and extreme. The most infamous of these was the Daisy ad. It aired only once,
04:56but has been talked about for decades since. It implied that Goldwater's recklessness could
05:01lead to nuclear war. Though controversial, it underscored the election's stakes.
05:07Johnson won in a landslide, reflecting a clear rejection of Goldwater's hardline platform.
05:1416. Swift boating and the birth of modern fake news
05:18John Kerry first became a public figure in the early 1970s. He was one of the most vocal
05:23Vietnam War vets to speak out against the war. That led to a career in public service,
05:29culminating in his candidacy for president in 2004. Unfortunately, a political group,
05:48the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, launched an ad campaign to destroy him. The Swift Boat ads
05:55falsely accused Kerry of lying about his military service and painted him as a traitor. The attack
06:01completely undermined Kerry's history of service, one of his greatest strengths. The ad circulated
06:06widely on right-wing media and severely damaged Kerry's credibility with veterans and swing voters.
06:18Despite being debunked by many sources, the campaign helped George W. Bush narrowly secure
06:30re-election. 15. Multiple assassination attempts
06:35The 2024 presidential election has been one of heightened political tension and rhetoric.
06:40Donald Trump took the stage in Butler, Pennsylvania, just after 6 p.m. Within
06:45minutes, the campaign event erupted into chaos. Polls have indicated that some members of the
06:50electorate are just fine with the use of violence to achieve political results. During 2024,
06:56there were two assassination attempts on the life of former President Donald Trump. The first shot
07:02at him with a long rifle, grazing Trump's ear. The other was caught after laying in wait on a
07:07golf course for half a day. These attempts reflected the dark undercurrents of an increasingly
07:12divided nation, where extreme rhetoric and partisan hostility fuel violence. 58-year-old
07:17Ryan Wesley Ruth expected to enter a plea during his arraignment today. Ruth, who was originally
07:23arrested for gun violations, is now facing an attempted assassination charge after being
07:28indicted by a federal grand jury last week. 14. Two sex scandals and a wild inauguration
07:36The election of 1828 was a rematch between President John Quincy Adams and Democratic
07:41rival Andrew Jackson. Their second election set a new, low standard for mudslinging. Adams,
07:47the former ambassador to Russia, was accused of pimping a young woman out to the Tsar.
07:53Jackson's wife, Rachel, was accused of bigamy, having married Jackson before finalizing her
07:59divorce. The rhetoric was heated and increasingly nasty. Unfortunately, Rachel's heart gave out
08:05before Jackson could take office, dying right before Christmas. Jackson accused his detractors
08:11of her murder. When he was finally inaugurated, the party devolved into an angry mob. They were
08:17only and finally sated when lured away with liquor placed on the White House lawn.
08:2313. Roosevelt's assassination attempt After serving two terms as president,
08:29Teddy Roosevelt had a wild post-presidency. He went on a protracted African safari,
08:35tour of Europe, and even flew in an early Wright Brothers plane. When he returned to the states,
08:40he began to stir up trouble within his Republican Party. Distressed by the power of both the Supreme
08:51Court and corporate oligarchs, he spread a progressive message. He eventually decided
08:56to run for a third term under a new banner, the Progressive Party. In 1912, Roosevelt was at an
09:03event in Milwaukee preparing to give a speech. There, a disgruntled saloon keeper shot him from
09:09just a few feet away. Roosevelt then proceeded to give his entire lengthy speech, with the bullet
09:15still lodged in his chest. 12. A generational candidate
09:30destroyed by monkey business Gary Hart, Senator from Colorado, was considered by many to be a
09:36brilliant, forward-thinking, once-in-a-generation political mind. He preached modernizing American
09:50foreign policy, and foresaw a future where non-state terrorists were the biggest threat
09:55to the U.S. Unfortunately, the country was denied his expertise thanks to a lurid sex scandal.
10:02Rumors about extramarital affairs swirled around him. He was livid when pressed by reporters,
10:07believing that the issues were more important than his personal life. He dared the media to dig up
10:12any evidence themselves. They did, in less than 72 hours. They published a photo of Hart with
10:19model Donna Rice aboard a yacht named Monkey Business. With his credibility shot,
10:24Hart had to drop out of the race. 11. Running from prison
10:37Eugene V. Debs ran for president in the 1920 election as the Socialist Party candidate.
10:44What made this – his fifth candidacy – extraordinary was that he campaigned from
10:49prison. Debs had long been a fierce advocate for workers' rights, socialism, and pacifism.
10:54By 1920, he was serving a ten-year sentence under the Espionage Act for his outspoken opposition to
11:00the U.S. involvement in World War I. He'd fought the conviction all the way to the Supreme Court
11:06and lost in 1919. Despite his imprisonment, his message resonated with a significant portion of
11:12the electorate. His slogan, From Atlanta Prison to the White House, symbolized his defiance.
11:18Debs earned over 900,000 votes, around 3.4%. President Harding commuted Debs' sentence a year
11:26later. 10. Eating dogs and cats
11:30The second presidential debate of 2024 saw Donald Trump contend with a new Democratic candidate,
11:35Vice President Kamala Harris. During the debate, Trump falsely claimed that Haitian migrants were
11:41eating dogs and cats in Springfield, Ohio. The statement sparked outrage and disbelief across
11:47the country. His campaign, led by running mate J.D. Vance, doubled and tripled down
11:53on this lie in the weeks that followed. If I have to create stories so that the
11:59American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people,
12:03then that's what I'm going to do, Dana. The disinformation campaign had real consequences,
12:09fueling anti-immigrant hatred and causing fear and division across the country.
12:13Haitian migrants faced increased threats and harassment. Established Springfield residents,
12:19too, had to deal with bomb threats and lockdowns at local schools and hospitals.
12:23The mayor says he believes that the threats are directly connected to the baseless claims
12:28that Haitian migrants were abducting pets in Springfield in order to eat them.
12:32Officials, including the town's Republican mayor and the state's Republican governor,
12:37begged the candidates to stop. 9. A Candidate's Death
12:42The 1872 presidential election was one of the most bizarre in U.S. history. Incumbent President
12:49Ulysses S. Grant ran against Horace Greeley, a newspaper editor and founder of the New York
12:54Tribune. Greeley had earned the nomination of both the liberal Republican and Democratic parties.
13:00The mudslinging was at a fever pitch, and Greeley's running mate,
13:03Gratz Brown, was often drunk during his public appearances. Greeley's wife died weeks before the
13:10election. When he lost, the failed candidate was soon ousted from his position at the Tribune
13:16and fell into a horrific depression. Just weeks after Election Day, Greeley died in a sanitarium
13:22before the Electoral College could cast its votes. They were ultimately divided up against several
13:27other candidates. 8. A Terror Campaign Against Poll Workers
13:33After his loss in 2020, Donald Trump pushed the big lie, claiming that the election had been stolen.
13:39That call to arms endangered poll and election workers across the nation.
13:44Do you think we could see a shift in how elections are run at the state level and how election
13:48workers interact with the public after everything that happened following the 2020 election?
13:53Notably, poll workers Shea Moss and her mother, Ruby Freeman, faced intense scrutiny and abuse
14:00after being falsely accused of manipulating votes in Georgia. The personal threats got so
14:05bad that they were forced into hiding. This intimidation has created an environment where
14:10election workers fear for their safety. More alarmingly, the MAGA wing of the Republican
14:15Party has been strategically placing election deniers in key state and local positions.
14:20Seemingly poised to undermine the electoral process, these deniers are preparing to gum
14:26up the works in 2024, hoping to force the election to the House of Representatives.
14:30It makes me angry that we have elected officials who seem to want to just suck up to the former
14:37president as opposed to following the law. That they'd rather disenfranchise voters than allow
14:43their voices to be heard. 7. A Racist and Rigged Election
14:48The election of 1876 was one of the most racist and disputed elections in American history.
14:54It was still violence in the South, which had existed since the Civil War.
14:58Republican Rutherford B. Hayes faced Democrat Samuel J. Tilden in a contest tainted by
15:04allegations of voter fraud and intimidation. As Reconstruction came to an end, white supremacists
15:10like the Ku Klux Klan sought to annihilate black voting rights. Widespread use of violence,
15:16murder, and terrorism drastically suppressed the black vote. Redemption campaigns among
15:22white Democrats sought to manipulate vote tallies and restore white democratic control.
15:27In the face of resurgent white power, Rutherford B. Hayes engaged in a controversial compromise.
15:34He became president in exchange for withdrawing federal troops from the South.
15:39This decision effectively abandoned black citizens, leading to decades of Jim Crow
15:43laws and systemic racism. The Republicans get the White House,
15:48the Democrats effectively regain control of the American South. No more federal protection of the
15:54rights of recently freed African Americans. 6. SCOTUS PICKS A PRESIDENT
16:00The 2000 presidential contest between George W. Bush and Al Gore came down to a razor-thin margin
16:07in Florida. A recount was initiated due to disputed ballots.
16:19Frantically trying to beat constitutionally mandated deadlines, the campaigns fought in
16:27court. The case quickly reached the Supreme Court, culminating in the monumental Bush v. Gore
16:32decision. On December 12, the court ruled 5-4 to halt the Florida recount, citing dubious
16:40equal protection concerns. This decision effectively awarded Florida's electoral votes to
16:45Bush. He won the presidency, despite losing the nationwide popular vote. For his part,
16:51seeking to ameliorate tensions, Gore quickly conceded. The court declared that the recounts
16:57violated the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause because there was no uniform standard
17:03for counting all ballots. Still, the ruling was incredibly controversial. To this day,
17:09legal experts question the validity of the decision, bemoaning judicial influence in
17:13electoral politics. 5. TUMULTUOUS PRIMARIES
17:181968 was one of the most transformative years in modern history. Protests against the Vietnam War
17:25erupted after the Tet Offensive ramped up operations. Prague Spring challenged Soviet
17:30control in Czechoslovakia. Martin Luther King Jr. was killed. Amid this
17:43turmoil, the Democratic primary became a chaotic spectacle. Senator Robert F. Kennedy entered the
17:49race, inspiring hope for change. Incumbent Lyndon B. Johnson dropped out. Then, Kennedy was
17:55assassinated shortly after winning the California primary. He turned to the right toward the kitchen.
18:02When he did come through, lots of television cameras and stuff, and we were going into a
18:07press conference. He was shaking hands with the two busboys talking with him, and it was at that
18:14time that the shots started. Following his death, the political landscape shifted dramatically.
18:22Hubert Humphrey, the established candidate, gained traction despite not winning any primary
18:27elections. The Democratic National Convention in Chicago became the site of massive, angry
18:32demonstrations. Anti-war protests erupted outside and were violently put down by the police.
18:394. RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE
18:42Russia engaged in a multi-pronged assault on American democracy during the 2016 presidential
18:48election. As the presidential campaign continues in the fall of 2016, American intelligence
18:53officials brief members of Congress that the Russian government is looking to interfere in
18:58the election. According to U.S. intelligence, their aim was to increase division, encourage
19:03mistrust of the democratic process, and to hurt Hillary Clinton's campaign while benefiting
19:08Trump's. Russia's military intelligence hacked and leaked thousands of Clinton's emails. The
19:14Mueller report concluded that while there was insufficient evidence to establish collusion,
19:19there were numerous contacts between individuals linked to Russia and Trump campaign staff,
19:24who were aware of Russia's efforts. Several misled or lied to investigators about these contacts.
19:31Additionally, the Cambridge Analytica scandal revealed how data analytics were used to
19:36micro-target voters. They used this micro-targeting to maximum effect, enticing
19:42voters onto the Trump train with a social media blitzkrieg of memes, videos, and messages.
19:48Russia reportedly manipulated social media algorithms to sow discord and spread disinformation,
19:55amplifying divisive narratives.
19:583. THE CORRUPT BARGAIN
20:01The four-way race in the election of 1824 all but guaranteed none could win the presidency
20:07outright. John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, William H. Crawford, and Speaker of the House,
20:13Henry Clay, fought for domination. Andrew Jackson won the popular vote and secured the
20:18most electoral votes, but did not achieve a majority. The election was ultimately decided
20:32in the House of Representatives. Henry Clay chose to endorse Adams, whipping the votes in Adams'
20:38favor. After Adams was inaugurated, he appointed Clay his Secretary of State. Jackson called the
20:46deal a corrupt bargain. This backroom deal enraged Jackson's supporters and set the stage
20:58for a bitter rematch four years later. 2. STAND BACK AND STAND BY
21:05Trump's instructions to the Proud Boys during a 2020 presidential debate
21:09became a rallying cry for extremist groups.
21:17Following his loss, Trump attempted to interfere with state election outcomes by pressuring
21:23officials to overturn results. They refused. He lobbied the Department of Justice to support his
21:29unfounded claims of widespread fraud. They too refused. So Trump asked his supporters to attend
21:36a rally on January 6th. When the day arrived, he urged them to march on the Capitol and quote,
21:42fight like hell. And after this, we're going to walk down and I'll be there with you.
21:47We're going to walk down. We're going to walk down anyone you want. But I think right here,
21:54we're going to walk down to the Capitol. This rhetoric galvanized a violent mob, including
22:00far-right militias, that breached the Capitol, aiming to disrupt the certification of the
22:05Electoral College results. Five people died, and four officers took their own lives in the months
22:11that followed. Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to
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22:25notifications. Number one, the election couldn't prevent civil war. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of
22:341854 established the territories of Kansas and Nebraska and allowed the territories to decide
22:39for themselves whether to permit slavery. Pierce signed into law the Kansas-Nebraska Act, allowing
22:46voters in the Kansas and Nebraska territories to decide whether to allow slavery within their
22:52borders, negating the earlier Missouri Compromise. Instead of easing tensions as intended, this
22:58legislation ignited violent conflicts and laid the groundwork for the Civil War. The subsequent
23:03debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas established Lincoln's national prominence.
23:08He eloquently articulated the moral and political implications of slavery, appealing to a growing
23:14abolitionist sentiment. Though he lost his Senate race, his newfound popularity earned him the
23:19Republican nomination for president. He ran as a moderate, aiming to contain slavery rather than
23:25abolishing it outright. The South still
23:44saw him as a threat to the peculiar institution. War broke out mere months after Lincoln took office.
23:51Those who ignore the past are destined to repeat it. Do you know of contentious moments from past
23:57elections that can teach us how to be more excellent to one another? Let us know in the
24:02comments below. Did you enjoy this video? Check out these other clips from WatchMojo,
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