For me, 1936. However I practiced law at two NYC firms for a total of 5 years after law school and Thomas Dewey’s (1944) last name was the first word on my paycheck for three of those years, Wendall Willkie’s (1940) for the other two. Otherwise, I doubt that I would have remembered either of them.
True, but only two were “major party presidential candidates” by any reasonable standard. Everyone at the time understood that the parties wanted Adams or Jefferson for President, respectively, and Pinckney or Burr for Vice President, with John Jay being a throwaway vote. The cockeyed electoral system just made it difficult to translate those preferences into reality.
For purposes of the OP, I would accept Washington as running unopposed in 1789 and 1792, Adams defeating Jefferson in 1796, and the reverse in 1800.
Now if we’re going to start naming every person who received an electoral vote . . . then we have to remember such luminaries as Harry Byrd, for whom 15 segregationist electors voted in 1960, and the immortal Walter B. Jones, for whom one segregationist voted in 1956. 
Probably 1972’s. 'Course, I was all of FIVE that year so I think with most people I can be forgiven on that count.
I can’t even remember the last one.
My mind is an attic, and I can’t be filling it with just any old data.
Kind of ashamed, but 1972. At least I know who won that election, though I was a bit fuzzy on who he’d beaten. The name I came up with was the loser of the 1968 election.
The interesting thing about the 1920 election is that three of the four candidates on the ballots were eventually elected President. Only one of the presidential candidates in that election never made it to the White House.
True also in 1960 and 1980. There’s something about those zero years . . .
Thinking backwards election-by-election, the first one I stumbled over was 1948. I couldn’t remember whether the headline was “Willkie Wins!” or “Dewey Wins!”
I can never keep straight who lost to FDR in which year. So that’s how far back my memory goes.
I couldn’t name '68 or '72, but could name the rest back to Eisenhower vs. Stevenson. Then I’m at a loss.
For '68 and '72, I knew there were McGovern and Humphrey and Wallace, but couldn’t sort out who went where.
FYI, I’m a 40 year-old.
I failed at 1944, not knowing that Dewey’s famous loss in 1948 was his second bite of the apple. Eisenhower’s wins against Adlai Stevenson were kind of vague, I just knew Stevenson had run for president and lost several times, so it must have been against Eisenhower.
I agree now that I have read the convoluted details in the Wiki article.
That still leaves the 1824 and 1860 elections as being somewhat ambiguous.
Also, in 1912 3rd party Progressive Roosevelt beat out Republican Taft for 2nd place in both the popular and electoral votes. However, the Progressives fielded a presidential candidate only one other time (1924) so there is some doubt as to whether they should be considered a major party, thus leaving the 1912 open for Taft after all.
No harm including extra inforamation for education purposes.
Same here. For me, everything back to 1960 was stuff I remembered from at the time, and I was also aware of Adlai Stevenson’s two losses to Ike. And of course the 1948 un-outcome gave rise to one of the most famous newspaper headlines ever.
But though I didn’t remember 1944’s loser, I could have told you who lost in 1940, 1936, 1932 (OK, that one’s obvious) and 1928 before faltering again at 1924. (Even now that I’ve looked it up, my reaction to the 1924 loser is “who?”)
And three other Presidents were involved in that year’s race. Woodrow Wilson had wanted to run for a third term but he was too ill. Theodore Roosevelt wanted to run again and was an early favorite but died unexpectedly. (Trivia note: Not counting Presidents who were assassinated, the five Presidents who died at the youngest age are - in order - Polk, Arthur, Harding, Theodore Roosevelt, and Coolidge.) And Herbert Hoover was a rising star in the Republican party and got some votes at the convention.
Boy, the one who would have fooled me on that list was Coolidge. I knew he died not too long after he left office, but I just assumed he was old. He looked old, I guess. He was the Abe Vigoda of Presidents.
1944 for me too. Although I should have remembered that one, seeing as I read the Truman biography not all that long ago.
I have no idea who G.H.W. Bush went up against the first time. In fairness, I was 3 at the time.
And more intelligent and mature than both candidates as well. 
The Democratic supporters had made plans in 1800. They knew it was going to be a close election but they had designated one elector who was supposed to throw away his second vote so that Burr would come in one vote behind Jefferson. (The same way that the Federalists had made plans for one elector to throw away his second vote on Jay so Adams would come ahead of Pinckney.)
The problem was the state unexpectedly went to the Federalists instead so this elector didn’t get a chance to vote. Nobody was able to make arrangements for a different elector to throw a vote so all of the Democratic electors cast their two votes for both Jefferson and Burr and they ended up tied.
I couldn’t remember who lost to Calvin Coolidge in 1924… but then I remembered the previous few elections, and wasn’t stumped again until 1904 (didn’t know who lost to Teddy Roosevelt).
In all of US history, there are exactly eight elections in which I couldn’t name the runner-up.
I couldn’t tell you who Nixon beat in 72, but that’s because I didn’t even exist yet so I had a hard time paying attention to who was running.