From Herbert Hoover to Hillary Clinton, concessions by presidential candidates are among the high watermarks of American democratic discourse and reverence for institutional continuity. Nothing in law or the Constitution requires concession speeches, notes to candidates or even explicit, public acknowledgements of the results. But candidates and incumbents have been delivering them without fail, their gestures a window into their character at their most vulnerable times.
In what may have been the last time the New York Times used an exclamation mark in an election headline, the newspaper announced Franklin Roosevelt’s win on Nov. 9, 1932, “in a landslide!” He’d carried 42 states, 472 electoral votes and a 57-39 majority to defeat the beleaguered Herbert Hoover, one of the more decent losers and the first to lose a bid for re-election since the corpulent and soon-to-be Chief Justice William Howard Taft in 1912.
It was 15 minutes after midnight in the east when the Associated Press dispatch from Palo Alto, Calif., read: “Hoover concedes defeat.” In his message to Roosevelt, Hoover offered his “felicitations” and pledged his every “opportunity to be of service to the country,” dedicating himself to “every possible helpful effort in the common purpose of us all.”
There wouldn’t be another concession for 20 years. Roosevelt was re-elected three times and Truman became president when Roosevelt died in 1945.
Polls and prognosticators had predicted a record turnout of 50 million voters and a Republican landslide for Thomas Dewey in 1948, defeating incumbent Harry Truman. Truman had all but conceded. “You know, the president is the most important prisoner in the world. The White House is the finest jail in the world,” he said fatalistically the evening of Election Day at a dinner before Shriners in Kansas City. “People have been wondering how I could take this 31,000-mile campaign and make 280 or 290 appearances and shake hands with 150,000 people and still be able to take them on. The reason is that I am out of that great white jail and am enjoying myself. Tonight is tops, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the courtesies you have shown me.”
The polls were wrong. Catastrophically wrong. So were the columnists. So was Truman. It wasn’t even close. He won by more than 2 million votes and 303 electoral votes, though it wasn’t until late Wednesday that Ohio tipped Truman over and Thursday that headlines showed him the winner. Dewey congratulated Truman, urged his supporters to get behind the president, and said he would not try a third run at the presidency. He had every reason to feel crushed and betrayed, if not to doubt the outcome. But there was never a hint of doubt in his acceptance and congratulations–not from him or from the Republican party.
“My heartiest congratulations to you on your election and every good wish for a successful administration,” Dewey wired Truman that Wednesday at 11:14 a.m. “I urge all Americans to unite behind you in support of every effort to keep our nation strong and free and establish peace in the world,” Dewey wired Truman.
“Thus,” The New York Times reported, Dewey “maintained his campaign theme of national unity to the end.”
Adlai Stevenson had to do it twice to the same man–in 1952 and 1956, to Dwight Eisenhower. Stevenson, one of the sharpest and wittiest candidates to run for the presidency, set the tone of post-war concessions as he “gladly” accepted voters’ verdict. “It is traditionally American to fight hard before an election,” he said after his first loss, a 55-44 drubbing. “It is equally traditional to close ranks as soon as the people have spoken. From the depth of my heart, I thank all of my party, and all those independents and Republicans who supported Senator Sparkman and me. That which unites us as American citizens is far greater than that which divides us as political parties. I urge you all to give General Eisenhower the support he will need.” And he noted: “We vote as many. We pray as one.”
In the excruciatingly close 1960 presidential race–Kennedy won it by 113,000 votes–Nixon went before his supporters at the Ambassador Hotel ballroom in Los Angeles at 20 minutes after midnight local time (3:30 in Kennedyland) to chants of “We want Nixon!” and “You’re the best man,” and to Pat Nixon’s tears. He didn’t officially concede just yet. Too many ballots were still getting counted. But he knew. He spoke to the crowd of his “deepest humility” and said that he’d “tried to leave nothing undone.” Eisenhower’s vice president at the time, Nixon had actually crossed into Mexico to have lunch with the mayor of Tijuana during balloting (imagine how that would have gone if either candidate in 2020 had been so daring). Hours later, Eisenhower wired Kennedy his congratulations from the White House and told him he’d ordered all federal agencies to “cooperate fully” with his transition team. Then Eisenhower did what he did almost as much as Trump. He hopped on a plane to go play golf at the Augusta National Golf Club.
Barry Goldwater wrote Johnson his congratulations the night of Johnson’s crushing victory in 1964: “I will help you in any way that I can toward achieving a growing and better America and a secure and dignified peace. The role of the Republican party will remain in that temper but it also remains the party of opposition when the opposition is called for.” Nixon’s victory over Humphrey in 1968 was almost as close as his loss to Kennedy–500,000 votes and a couple of electoral votes fewer, and with barely a 43 percent plurality of the vote (with Democrats, in a distant mirror of 2020, keeping control of the Senate and the House). “I haven’t mowed the lawn for some time,” Humphrey told his supporters, conceding with “release and relief” and urging everyone to be of “good cheer.” And he said: “We’ve got a president elect. He’s going to have my help. Cheers.”
Gerald Ford was no less gracious in his razor-thin loss to Jimmy Carter in 1976 (a loss made more possible by Ronald Reagan’s refusal to campaign for Ford after the Republican National Convention that year.) “Dear Jimmy,” Ford wrote Carter, “It is apparent now that you have won our long and intense struggle for the Presidency. I congratulate you on your victory. As one who has been honored to serve the people of this great land, both in Congress and as President, I believe that we must now put the divisions of the campaign behind us and unite the country once again in the common pursuit of peace and prosperity. Although there will continue to be disagreements over the best means to use in pursuing our goals, I want to assure you that you have my complete and wholehearted support as you take the oath of office this January.” Ford pledged his support during the transition, and signed his telegram: “Jerry Ford.” Carter called it “characteristically gracious.”
Four years later it was Carter’s turn to concede after his landslide loss to Reagan and a campaign that ran on the tagline and promise to “Make America Great Again.” Carter was the first incumbent president to lose a reelection bid since Herbert Hoover in 1932. He didn’t wait long on election night, calling Reagan at 8:50 p.m. to congratulate him, and appearing before supporters at the Sheraton Washington Hotel ballroom: “The people of the United States have made their choice and, of course, I accept that decision,” he said. “I can’t stand here tonight and say it doesn’t hurt.” His eyes welled up, and his last words were for his supporters in Plains, Ga.
The note the first George Bush left Bill Clinton in his Oval Office desk has become the stuff of legend. It can’t be justly excerpted:
When I walked into this office just now I felt the same sense of wonder and respect that I felt four years ago. I know you will feel that, too.
I wish you great happiness here. I never felt the loneliness some Presidents have described. here will be very tough times, made even more difficult by criticism you may not think is fair. I’m not a very good one to give advice; but just don’t let the critics discourage you or push you off course.
You will be our President when you read this note. I wish you well. I wish your family well.
Your success now is our country’s success. I am rooting hard for you.
Good luck, George
Note Bush’s underlining our president.
The Gore concession speech in 200 was understandably delayed, but when it came, it was gracious and final: “Neither he nor I anticipated this long and difficult road. Certainly neither of us wanted it to happen. Yet it came, and now it has ended, resolved, as it must be resolved, through the honored institutions of our democracy,” Gore said. “Now the U.S. Supreme Court has spoken. Let there be no doubt, while I strongly disagree with the court’s decision, I accept it. I accept the finality of this outcome, which will be ratified next Monday in the Electoral College. And tonight, for the sake of our unity as a people and the strength of our democracy, I offer my concession.”
Eight years later both John McCain and George W. Bush recognized the breadth of Barack Obama’s victory. “The American people have spoken, and they have spoken clearly,” McCain told his supporters in a speech now viral for its contrast with the acid mixture of silence and recrimination from the White House in 2020. “A little while ago, I had the honor of calling Sen. Barack Obama — to congratulate him on being elected the next president of the country that we both love. In a contest as long and difficult as this campaign has been, his success alone commands my respect for his ability and perseverance. But that he managed to do so by inspiring the hopes of so many millions of Americans, who had once wrongly believed that they had little at stake or little influence in the election of an American president, is something I deeply admire and commend him for achieving. This is an historic election, and I recognize the special significance it has for African-Americans and for the special pride that must be theirs tonight.”
McCain did not suffer the boos that greeted his mention of Obama’s name. Bush’s statement also recognized the moment:
Then came Hillary Clinton, the crumble of the Blue Wall and the stunner of 2016: “Last night, I congratulated Donald Trump and offered to work with him on behalf of our country. I hope that he will be a successful president for all Americans. This is not the outcome we wanted or we worked so hard for and I’m sorry that we did not win this election for the values we share and the vision we hold for our country.” There was applause, not boos.
“I know how disappointed you feel because I feel it too,” she continued, “and so do tens of millions of Americans who invested their hopes and dreams in this effort. This is painful and it will be for a long time, but I want you to remember this. Our campaign was never about one person or even one election, it was about the country we love and about building an America that’s hopeful, inclusive and big-hearted. We have seen that our nation is more deeply divided than we thought. But I still believe in America and I always will. And if you do, then we must accept this result and then look to the future. Donald Trump is going to be our president. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead.”
About 36 hours after the 2020 election was called for Joe Biden, Donald Trump tweeted: “Since when does the Lamestream Media call who our next president will be? We have all learned a lot in the last two weeks!” He had previously tweeted: “I WON THIS ELECTION, BY A LOT!”
–Pierre Tristam
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Just satin says
What about Governor Abrams of Georgia? Woops. my bad, I forgot that election was stolen from her.
https://www.ajc.com/blog/politics/stacey-abrams-will-not-concede-because-the-erosion-our-democracy-not-right/JQqttbuF09NYkMQbIYx9BM/
https://www.npr.org/2018/11/16/668737597/georgia-facing-final-deadline-for-ballot-certification-in-governors-race
Deborah Coffey says
Donald Trump is a sickening, mentally ill man. I will be so relieved to be free from his superspreading of this mental illness. Apparently, it became contagious to 70,000,000 people. I sincerely hope there is a cure because the majority of us chose Truth over Lies, Science over Fiction, Decency over Depravity, and Unity over Division. What we don’t need are more Trump superspreader rallies of any kind. Let’s get to work.
Goodriddance says
Thank you @Deborah I couldn’t have said it better myself! Get that Psycho out of here! Hopefully he will keep his promise to leave the country!
Steve says
Thats how People with class integrity and ethics handle themselves. When it comes to Class one is born with it. You cant buy it like some would think.
Ramone says
The part that amazes me about articles like this is their authors act like our last 4 years of Resistance nightmares didn’t happen. In their world, the Russian disinformation dossier, the fired and humiliated FBI agents, the fraudulent FISA application abuse, illegal emails servers, smashed blackberries and laptops, gigantic waste of money Mueller report, none of this ever happened. It’s nonsensical. But let’s leave all that unfairness in the past. Republicans are to blame. They let the Democrats get away with all of their corrupt actions. Literally no one was arrested, except one lowly FBI lawyer who took the fall for everyone else (Kevin Clinesmith). As a result, of course the Democrats were emboldened. Who’s to stop them? Now they’re demanding a concession. You know, like when the big bully is twisting your arm and demanding you say “uncle”. Even though we should all demand integrity in our elections and each and every American should fully embrace thorough examinations into fraud accusations, computer glitches and the like, Democrats say otherwise. They want Trump supporters to do exactly what they didn’t do. They want us to suck it up. Take our ball and go home. Personally, I’ve lost all faith in right versus wrong. Concepts like fairness, decency, honesty, patriotism, have no place into today’s politics. So yes, I agree. Trump should concede. We’ve made our bed. Now we all have to lie in it.
Just a thought says
More than one “lowly FBI lawyer” was arrested.
https://time.com/5556331/mueller-investigation-indictments-guilty-pleas/
Jim O says
Sad period for America. The people have voted. They would have elected a grapefruit and frankly may have. It is not about Biden and never has been. It is about not Trump. The people elected a man that is not capable of leading America. Jill Biden should be ashamed of herself for letting Joe be used. He is now a pawn for the far left and the media will have a hayday with it. That said, I am going to hope he does well. Pray for us. Pray for our democracy.
Lin says
Ramone, very good analysis of some of the coup attempts of the past more than 4 years.
I could just throw up reading all the Facebook posts asking to “be nice” and “be kind”. Does anyone remember the welcome given President Trump by boycotting the Inauguration or demonstrating in pussy hats or threatening to burn down the White House ? So classy acts like Nancy ripping up the President’s State of the Union speech.
I Just disagree with Ramone about conceding. Hillary said not to concede. And speaking of Hillary, President Trump when he gave his acceptance speech, did so after Hillary conceded and with a complimentary phrase to her.
And with all the frauds through paper ballots and computer algorithms, let’s do this right and count all the legal ballots and see who the winner in the contest is before Biden moves in. What’s the hurry?
Schumer is going to “change everything”, Obama was the Hope & Change President. Tradition and continuity be damned. Let’s pack the Supreme Court because the libs don’t like the odds. Let’s add 2 more states so we get more lib Senators. Let’s let the progressives pull Joe Biden’s strings. But the libs don’t get to win every time. The Constitution was followed and Amy was voted in. But the media doesn’t get to concede for President Trump try as they may. Hahaha, they sure have Biden convinced he’s the President.
Skibum says
Reading this article, I realize what a significant loss Sen. John McCain’s death is to our country. I am saddened that his reasoned and impassioned voice in defense of democracy over ideology will forever be silenced, but my hope is that there are others in the GOP who will step forward, try stepping into Sen. McCain’s very large shoes, and put country over party. As a Democrat, although I admired Sen. McCain and honored his long and devoted service to this country, both in the military as well as in the U. S. Senate, I still had disagreements with some of his policies and did not vote for him when he ran for president. But he was always an honorable man, and I have to wonder thinking about him… what happened to the Republican Party that he loved and represented. What the GOP has become bears no resemblance whatsoever to the party and policies he represented. I hope that common sense and decency, ethics and honesty will somehow find their way back into what has become the trashy party of one man who has never been decent, ethical or honest in his entire adult life. The last four years has been sickening to watch, and I am especially horrified at how the world’s leaders have mocked and sidelined the U. S. because of the terrible choice American voters made in 2016. I really didn’t expect this man in our White House to do the honorable thing and concede the election, even though the election result shows virtually no path for him to win with the number of electoral votes Biden received. But what has happened since and is still going on is nonsense and further eroding our tradition of democracy as well as the unworthy suspicion or uncertainty by other countries about our own election processes here in the USA. This whole nightmare must end so this country can return to what we are known for, honest and secure elections, the decency of the loser gracefully conceding defeat and pledging to ensure the peaceful transfer of power to the incoming president. Without that, the U. S. will never again attain our rightful place as the pinnacle of democracy in the world.
jim says
If McCain was soooooo good HOW COME HE LOST ????? RINO!!!!
Sherry says
This Email Sent to My Friends Yesterday. . .
Take a moment darling friends. Breathe! Biden WON and trump eventually will need to accept that!
OK. . . while I personally think we need to get ALL $$$ out of politics. . . that can maybe happen in the future., Right Now though, if we don’t do all we can to get Democrats elected to the Senate . . . Joe Biden will have Mitch McConnell and his (in lock step) Republican majority blocking “ALL” the changes we desperately need.
We have ONE LAST CHANCE to get TWO new Democratic Senators elected this term. There is a “run off” election in the state of Georgia on about Jan. 6th. While we cannot vote without living in Georgia, we can donate to their campaigns. I did that just now by clicking on this link:
https://secure.actblue.com/donate/gsvf_nov16?refcode=bbarnes
Even if you cannot donate. . . please pass this email along to anyone you know who may be so inclined.
So looking forward to life with a “sane” president. Let’s help him all we can.
Joy, Peace and Love! Stay Safe and Healthy!
oldtimer says
[Warning: the commenter is spreading a falsehood. Clinton conceded the night of the election to Trump, and the next day–or about 18 hours after polls closed on Election Day–conceded publicly.–FL]
Hillary never conceded , she spent 3 years doing a book tour “Why I lost” she never realized she lost because she was a lousy candidate
oldtimer says
To FL I was being sarcastic, she conceded then went on her tour explaining the loss
Jane Gentile-Youd says
I remember many Presidential elections, from the time I wore an ‘Adlai ‘ button and some of my friends wore their ” I like Ike’ buttons. I remember also that there was no such convenience of early voting nor voting by mail. I remember when I registered to vote I did so in PERSON, with my Birth Certificate and current utility bill receipts to PROVE I am an American citizen and that I live where I say I live to make sure my vote is 100% legal .
Comparing any election from Harry Truman to the election 4 years ago with last week’s election is like trying to claim there is no difference between a lizard and an alligator.
Unfortunately our democracy is on its way out the door if we continue to allow registering on-line and free for all voting by mail ( unless physically unable and milirary).
Early voting would have been a blessing to single parents like my mom who took time off from work to vote, as did I many times in my adult life.
If Trump had ‘won’ outright instead of Biden I would not blame Biden for challenging votes in the states that couldn’t or wouldn’t count all votes by midnight on election day and those that sent absentee ballots to ALL VOTERS which is the first time in the history of our democracy such election nightmares have existed.
Whether you are happy or unhappy with the results is NOT the issue.
The issue ( in my opinion) is the apparent apathy of a growing number of Americans who don’t seem to care about preserving integrity of the voting system which ( my opinion) is just about gone.
It took less time 51 years ago to get to the moon – and land- than it does today to count LEGAL ballots.
Whether you voted for Trump or Biden is not the issue in my opinion; it is the total degradation of our standards and requirements for guaranteeing the sanctity and validity of all of our votes which concerns me more than who ‘won’. How do you all see it?
Jane Gentile-Youd says
P.S. I campaigned for Gore in 2000. My hubby and I were at the Democratic Headquarters in Miami when we rejoiced that Gore won and then 10 minutes later, not two weeks later, and cried that he lost. No early voting, no barrage of mail in ballots ( just hanging chad).
Deborah Coffey says
I do think that the entire election system should be standardized with the same voting machines that have a paper trail, same number of early voting days, voting places proportional to populations!!!!, etc. We cannot have 50 states “doing their own thing.” But, I completely disagree that we can’t have mail-in ballots and still have votes counted the night of the election or certainly by the next morning. Yes, we can! Just set an earlier date for them to have to arrive to be counted.
Skibum says
I hear you; however, the U. S. Constitution specifies that the individual states are given the responsibility for conducting elections so unless you could somehow get 50 different governors and each states’ legislatures on board with consistent rules as well as the processes and purchases of election equipment, I think that is likely to be an impossible thing to accomplish. The other thing I would point out is that by leaving it up to the states and having so many different voting machines and processing equipment, that in itself helps to make our nation’s elections much more secure and harder to hack by outsiders intent on attempting to interfere with America’s election results.
Deborah Coffey says
Yes, but the Consitution can be amended, especially if enough Americans are in favor of fair elections. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-vulnerabilities-of-our-voting-machines/
Skibum says
I don’t disagree with all of the points you made, but I do disagree with your position about the length of time it is taking to count all of the votes. That has nothing to do with a degradation of election integrity. I have often thought how much simpler and faster it would be to have electronic voting in all states so each individual voter could just go online, cast their vote, and with the speed of technology, PRESTO! In no time at all, that same day America could know who won and who lost any election. Well, then a reality check woke me up. It is exactly because of having paper ballots and differing voting machines in each state instead of a connected electronic intra-state voting system that makes our nation’s election system so secure and very difficult to hack. I say take all the time needed to manually process and count each ballot in all 50 states, no matter how long it takes or whether or not a recount is warranted. Technology is not always the answer to a problem, and in many cases, such as our national elections, would open us up to the danger of being hacked or otherwise interfered with by those who do not have our democratic values as their core interest.
Pogo says
@All the chin music about “…I remember when…”
and other wastes of time replaying trump’s (and the GOP’s) cloud of nonsense and lies:
Q: Why do we vote on Tuesdays? And no, it’s not a divine order.
why we vote on tuesdays
A: https://www.google.com/search?d&q=why+we+vote+on+tuesdays
Q:When does the rest of the human race vote?
election day by country
A: https://www.google.com/search?d&q=election+day+by+country
The most perfunctory scrutiny of trump’s and the GOP’s nonsense and lies about voting by mail can not withstand any specific question. Consider this:
voting by mail by country
https://www.google.com/search?d&q=voting+by+mail+by+country
If WE don’t stop passively accepting lies we are – truly – lost.
Sherry says
Thanks so much, Pierre, for FACT CHECKING and pointing out lies and misinformation right inside the comments. Wonderful!
Uh. . . regarding the “I was just being sarcastic” excuse. . . “Lame” . . . just like when trump gets caught in his multitude of lies. Words matter, character matters, facts matter!!!
Now if only all social media would do the same. Plenty of new American jobs. . . . ’cause it would take an army.
Stay safe and healthy all! Wear your masks! Keep the Faith! Joy, Peace and Love!