U.S. Presidents and Their Election Victory Percentages: How Big Were Their Wins?

February 17, 2026

Every four years, Americans vote for their president—but how close (or how huge) were the victories? Below is a complete list of every U.S. president (from George Washington through Donald Trump's second term in 2024) with their popular vote percentage in the election that put them in office (or re-elected them). For presidents elected by the House or without a popular vote tally (pre-1824), we note it.

We’ve added a kid-friendly fun fact for each race to keep it exciting. Percentages are rounded and based on official historical records.

President	Term(s)	Election Year(s)	Popular Vote % (Winner)	Fun Fact for Kids
George Washington	1789–1797	1788–89, 1792	100% (unanimous electoral)	First and only president elected by every single elector—no one else even got a vote!
John Adams	1797–1801	1796	53.4%	Beat Thomas Jefferson by just 3 electoral votes—then Jefferson became his VP!
Thomas Jefferson	1801–1809	1800, 1804	1800: Tie, House chose; 1804: 92.4%	In 1804 he won by the biggest margin ever at the time—almost everyone voted for him!
James Madison	1809–1817	1808, 1812	1808: 64.7%; 1812: 50.4%	Won during the War of 1812 while the White House was literally on fire!
James Monroe	1817–1825	1816, 1820	1816: 68.2%; 1820: 80.6% (almost unanimous)	His second election was so one-sided only one elector voted against him—talk about popular!
John Quincy Adams	1825–1829	1824	No popular majority; House chose	Andrew Jackson won the popular vote but lost—called the “Corrupt Bargain” election!
Andrew Jackson	1829–1837	1828, 1832	1828: 55.9%; 1832: 54.2%	First president to win by a huge popular margin—crowds cheered so loud it scared the horses!
Martin Van Buren	1837–1841	1836	50.8%	His nickname was “Little Magician” because he was so good at politics!
William Henry Harrison	1841	1840	52.9%	Gave the longest inaugural speech ever—then died 31 days later!
John Tyler	1841–1845	No election (succeeded Harrison)	N/A	First VP to become president after a death—people called him “His Accidency”!
James K. Polk	1845–1849	1844	49.5%	Promised one term and kept his word—added Texas and California to the map!
Zachary Taylor	1849–1850	1848	47.3%	Never voted in his life before running—military hero who skipped the ballot box!
Franklin Pierce	1853–1857	1852	50.8%	Nicknamed “Handsome Frank”—he was voted one of the best-looking presidents!
James Buchanan	1857–1861	1856	45.3%	Only president who never married—he had a niece as First Lady!
Abraham Lincoln	1861–1865	1860, 1864	1860: 39.8%; 1864: 55.0%	Won in 1860 with the smallest popular vote % ever for a winner—four-way race!
Andrew Johnson	1865–1869	No election (succeeded Lincoln)	N/A	First president impeached (but not removed)—almost kicked out!
Ulysses S. Grant	1869–1877	1868, 1872	1868: 52.7%; 1872: 55.6%	Famous general who said “Let us have peace” after the Civil War.
Rutherford B. Hayes	1877–1881	1876	47.9% (lost popular)	Won despite losing popular vote—most disputed election until 2000!
James A. Garfield	1881	1880	48.3%	Assassinated only 6 months in—shortest full term.
Chester A. Arthur	1881–1885	No election (succeeded Garfield)	N/A	Known for fancy clothes—owned 80 pairs of pants!
Grover Cleveland	1885–1889, 1893–1897	1884, 1888, 1892	1884: 48.5%; 1888: 48.6% (lost); 1892: 46.0%	Only president to serve two non-consecutive terms—comeback king!
Benjamin Harrison	1889–1893	1888	47.8% (lost popular)	Grandson of William Henry Harrison—family business!
William McKinley	1897–1901	1896, 1900	1896: 51.0%; 1900: 51.7%	Loved red carnations so much he wore one every day!
Theodore Roosevelt	1901–1909	1904	56.4%	Biggest landslide of his era—spoke softly and carried a big stick!
William Howard Taft	1909–1913	1908	51.6%	Only president to become Chief Justice later—double duty!
Woodrow Wilson	1913–1921	1912, 1916	1912: 41.8%; 1916: 49.2%	Won with just 41.8% in 1912—three-way race split the vote!
Warren G. Harding	1921–1923	1920	60.4%	Biggest popular vote % until Reagan—promised “normalcy”!
Calvin Coolidge	1923–1929	1924	54.0%	“Silent Cal” was so quiet, a lady once bet she could get him to talk—he said “You lose”!
Herbert Hoover	1929–1933	1928	58.2%	Promised “a chicken in every pot”—then the Great Depression hit!
Franklin D. Roosevelt	1933–1945	1932, 1936, 1940, 1944	1932: 57.4%; 1936: 60.8% (biggest ever); 1940: 54.7%; 1944: 53.4%	Only president elected four times—led through Depression and WWII!
Harry S. Truman	1945–1953	1948	49.6%	Biggest upset ever—“Dewey Defeats Truman” headline was wrong!
Dwight D. Eisenhower	1953–1961	1952, 1956	1952: 55.2%; 1956: 57.4%	WWII hero who loved golf—installed a putting green at the White House!
John F. Kennedy	1961–1963	1960	49.7%	Closest popular vote ever—won by just 112,000 votes!
Lyndon B. Johnson	1963–1969	1964	61.1%	Biggest landslide since FDR—LBJ’s “Daisy” ad scared everyone!
Richard Nixon	1969–1974	1968, 1972	1968: 43.4%; 1972: 60.7%	1972 was a 49-state sweep—only lost Massachusetts!
Gerald Ford	1974–1977	No election (succeeded Nixon)	N/A	First (and only) president never elected president or VP!
Jimmy Carter	1977–1981	1976	50.1%	Peanut farmer who promised “I’ll never lie”—and kept it!
Ronald Reagan	1981–1989	1980, 1984	1980: 50.7%; 1984: 58.8%	1984 was another 49-state sweep—landslide king!
George H.W. Bush	1989–1993	1988	53.4%	WWII pilot who jumped out of planes even at age 90!
Bill Clinton	1993–2001	1992, 1996	1992: 43.0%; 1996: 49.2%	Played saxophone on TV—coolest president ever?
George W. Bush	2001–2009	2000, 2004	2000: 47.9% (lost popular); 2004: 50.7%	2000 was decided by 537 votes in Florida—super close!
Barack Obama	2009–2017	2008, 2012	2008: 52.9%; 2012: 51.1%	First African American president—“Yes We Can!”
Donald Trump	2017–2021, 2025–	2016, 2024	2016: 46.1% (lost popular); 2024: ~49.8%	Only president to win two non-consecutive terms (like Grover Cleveland)!
Joe Biden	2021–2025	2020	51.3%	Oldest president elected at 78—brought two German Shepherds to the White House!