2000, Gore. I still remember hanging out with my friends in someone’s dorm room, watching the election returns come in, and the radical swing between joy and crushing disappointment as the commentators put forward and retracted the election calls for Florida.
McGovern. 1972. Campaigned on campus for him. Well, “campaign” might be a little too strong of a word. I handed out leaflets and had a sign in my dorm room.
The Democratic party? The Republicans passed the bill? 
In '80 I was too young to vote, but backed Jimmy Carter, because I thought he was a good guy and doing his best. I was part of a tiny pro-Carter committee at my conservative prep school. In '84 I supported Hart in the Democratic primaries and Mondale as the eventual nominee. Not the most auspicious beginning.
1976 for Carter was the first year I could vote. Before that I had backed McGovern, Humphrey, and Johnson (remember he was running against Goldwater who was going to drop hydrogen bombs on little girls playing with flowers). I was supposed to be happy that Kennedy won for some reason I was too young to comprehend.
I was old enough in 1996, but voting is a logistical headache for college students, especially if they’re going to school in a different state from their home.
By 2000, I was in grad school, and we were strongly encouraged to officially gain Montana residency anyway, part of which was registering to vote. I wasn’t too enthused about Gore (I wasn’t sure how much I trusted him), but I voted for him, partly on the advice of folks here.
2004 was Kerry, and 2008 was Obama in both the primary and the general.
The earliest election in my memory was being upset and crying that Nixon lost to Kennedy in 1960 (in my defense, I was seven years old).
My first vote was 1972, and I voted for Nixon on the basis that I didn’t think McGovern could do as good a job as President. Since then it has been pretty much steady Democratic voting.
Hillary in the primary in 2008, Obama in the general.
Carter in 1976. I considered voting for Ford–he was a good man and a capable President–but couldn’t overcome his pardon of Nixon.
- Dole in the primary, Dukakis in the general. Winning!
1988 - George HW Bush. I was more conservative in my ill-tempered youth, but it could have been worse.
The Democratic party? The Republicans passed the bill?
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Both houses of Congress were majority-Democrat. Whatever bill it was was passed by Congress and handed to Carter who vetoed it.
I had no illusion that a Republican president would have signed it instead. My reaction was “so what’s the damn difference, aside from Carter making it sound like he’ll enact this kind of stuff while the Republican is honest about the fact that he won’t?”
It was an anti-Carter vote, not an anti-Democratic party vote. (After all the Democratic Congress had passed the bill).
It’s so weird to now look back at George the First and consider him conservative. He’s a freakin’ commie by modern GOP standards.
Clinton, '96.
My mother, who has voted in every presidential election since she came of age in '64, has vowed she will sit this election out if it is Trump vs. Clinton. She even voted for Goldwater.
Carter, 1976.
Bush in 2000. I’ve been atoning for my sins (and voting for the Democratic presidential candidate) ever since.
Ford, 1976.
Didn’t get around to voting for a Democrat until 1992, for Clinton. Though I voted for Anderson in 1980 and skipped 1984 due in part to a dislike of Reagan and Mondale (plus I was on call that election day, the only presidential vote I sat out). Bush 1988 was the last Republican I voted for, for national office.
1988, and I voted for Dukakis.
I realized then that I was not in step with anyone in my home state. Weirdly, it took me 20 years to say “screw it” and move.
1980 - John Anderson
Mondale.
I missed being able to vote in the 1980 election by a couple of months, but had I cast a ballot, it would have been for Carter. With one exception, I have always voted Democratic in presidential elections. I voted for Nader in 2000. :smack: