Leap Into New Rankings
A new year means a new edition of rankings!
We are about a month away from celebrating Year Three of Okay History, and what a milestone that will be! In the past, I began rankings for the year on OKH’s anniversary (Presidents Day weekend), but this year’s rankings are coming out now because it will take all year for us to get through them. Fortunately, 2024 gives us an extra day, so it will work out okay.
An extra day means it’s another presidential election, and I know everyone looks forward to seeing who will win. Come November, the country will be happy regardless of the outcome and united behind its leader. I can’t wait!
Since we have ranked the presidents, then the states, and last year we ranked the Constitutional Amendments, it’s only fitting we dive into the chaos of presidential elections and look at each one to see which election was indeed the best. You can’t wait!
The 2024 presidential election will be the 60th since the first in 1788. Happy 60th birthday, Electoral College! You don’t look a day over 25.
What will be the criteria for each ranking? Who knows. It’s whatever I can come up with. By now, you should know there is no objective metric when thinking about this stuff. That’s why you are here!
I was born during an election year when the incumbent lost. In the following election, the first one I remember, the country voted out that incumbent. Over the next ten elections, I have only experienced that twice. Will I see it again this year – goodness, I hope not. But the twelve elections I have been alive for will be ranked somewhere!
There are plenty of intriguing elections that have shaped our country’s trajectory. Where will the 1824, 1876, 1960, 2008, and 2020 elections rank? Who knows. I’m open to suggestions.
What I do know is that we begin a journey of education that you neither asked for nor probably wanted. Nevertheless, here we are.
To paraphrase a presidential campaign slogan: We are in this together.
This brings us to the upcoming election. Let’s dive in.
NR: The Presidential Election of 2024
Election Date: November 5, 2024
The Candidates:
President Joe Biden seeks reelection at the ripe old age of 206, making him the oldest living president to pursue another term.
His most likely opponent will be the guy he beat in the last election, President Donald Trump, who is slightly younger at 113. Trump still hasn’t accepted the outcome of the 2020 election, and I’m confident he will continue to remind everyone he still thinks this way.
Who isn’t excited about this matchup? One old guy against another old guy. It’s not the first time this has happened; we've taken the old guy theme to new levels, and the fact it’s a rematch of the last election – oh boy, aren’t we lucky!
Major Issue of the Day:
Where to begin? There’s immigration, climate change, inflation, fake news, the Cleveland Browns still haven’t won the Super Bowl, and I’ve read five books over the past 18 months.
The country is a mess.
But I don’t think the mess we are in now is any more dangerous than the messes of our past. The Cleveland Guardians haven’t won the World Series in 75 years, immigration has always been an issue, and reading books has been a challenge for decades for plenty of people, not just me.
The Winner:
It has yet to be determined, but fingers crossed that the guy who was impeached twice the last time he held the job doesn’t get it back.
It will be fun explaining the winners that didn’t win the majority of the popular vote because it happened more than you think. I don’t think we will see it here because it would mean Trump overcame a seven million vote deficit. I’ve never been wrong about Trump, except in 2016.
The 2021 OKH Presidential Ranking:
Biden was unranked, and Trump was last, and I’m pretty confident Trump will stay right where I put him until the next round of rankings, which could be in 2025. How about that?!
The States in the Electoral College:
All 50, including the District of Columbia.
The winner will need to secure 270 electoral votes. In this rematch, Trump will need to flip 38 votes to win.
Why Did I Rank it Here:
It’s not ranked, but you know this will be the section where I justify my thinking that will probably leave you scratching your head.
Okay, so what do you think about the new rankings? Are you excited? Are you nervous? Are you okay?
Are there sections I need to add? Or need to remove?
Please leave me some comments!
I got up early and took Anonymous to the airport. She is undoubtedly off to do some spy stuff, which means it’s a guy’s weekend for Blue and me. Unfortunately, my left eye is all jacked up with a bacterial infection, so it will have to be low-key. No late nights staying up past 9:00 p.m.
Plus, my computer seems to be infected as well, and I have been working with the wonderful people at Dell to figure out how a computer that is less than a year old isn’t working correctly. All around, things are going okay here in DC.
Do not worry; I’ll be back on Monday with another Maundy Newsletter, despite the injuries to me and my technology. Just like a presidential campaign, I must overcome some obstacles to deliver the content you deserve. I will not suspend my campaign even though I’m the 209th most popular history newsletter on Substack. I will keep fighting for your United States History knowledge.
Until then, I hope you have a wonderful weekend and can see clearly in everything you do.
Okay,
Chris
