Who Were The US Presidents That Won All 50 States?

Since the United States of America was founded in 1776, no U.S. president has ever won all 50 states in a single election. However, there have been presidents who won every state in the country at the time, just not all 50. This is because the United States did not have 50 states until 1959, with the first presidential election featuring all 50 taking place in 1960. Before then, only two presidents achieved complete nationwide victories: James Monroe, who carried all 24 states in 1820, and George Washington, who received unanimous electoral votes in both 1789 and 1792.

While these leaders enjoyed immense public support, winning every state has become far more difficult in the modern era. This is due to the expansion to 50 states, the winner-take-all nature of the Electoral College in most states, and increasingly entrenched regional and partisan voting patterns. Still, many leaders have amassed landslide victories, and this article delves into some of the most successful U.S. presidential elections.

Presidents Who Won All States

The two United States Presidents who won all states in the country did not actually win 50 states. As explained, these wins occurred before the nation had its current 50 states, with Hawaii being the last state to be included. Both of these strong victories showed immense public support, and they are as follows:

James Monroe (1820)

James Monroe was one of America’s “Founding Fathers” and the fifth president of the United States. He held the position from 1817 to 1825, with a strong first election in 1816, in which he carried 16 out of 19 states at the time. The Federalist Party had largely collapsed in 1820, and another election was held in the United States. Taking place in November and December, this was during the “Era of Good Feelings,” and President James Monroe won without any major opposition. Thanks to the circumstances and public support, he won all 24 states at the time, making it the most recent presidential election wherein a candidate has won all states. President James Monroe also won 231 electoral votes, but had one vote against him cast by William Plumer, one of New Hampshire's Electoral College members.

George Washington (1789, 1792)

George Washington was the first president of the United States and remains the only president to receive unanimous support in the Electoral College. In the nation’s first presidential election in 1789, Washington won every electoral vote cast, reflecting his central role in the American Revolution and his broad acceptance across the newly formed states. At the time, the United States consisted of 11 participating states, as North Carolina and Rhode Island had not yet ratified the Constitution.

Washington repeated this achievement in 1792, again receiving unanimous electoral support, this time from all fifteen states in the Union. These elections took place before the development of a formal party system, and Washington ran unopposed, deliberately positioning himself above factional politics. His unanimous victories remain unique in U.S. history, as both elections were held before the formation of political parties, and Washington received 69 electoral votes in 1789 and 132 in 1792.

The Most Successful Elections With 50 States

Since all 50 states first participated in a presidential election in 1960, no candidate has won every state, but several presidents have come close with overwhelming nationwide victories. Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and Lyndon B. Johnson had some of the most landslide elections in the country’s history, with victories in nearly 50 states. The most successful elections with 50 states are:

Richard Nixon (1972)

Richard Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, winning with one of the largest margins since 1960, when America had 50 states. Formerly winning the 1968 United States presidential election, the president's most successful election was in 1972. With a strong economy and a robust foreign policy, Nixon had prominent backing and a substantial lead throughout the polls. He ended up winning 49 out of 50 states and 520 electoral votes, one of the largest landslide election victories in American history. The president won over 60 percent of the popular vote, defeating George McGovern, who won only one state.

Ronald Reagan (1984)

Ronald Reagan secured one of the most dominant victories in modern U.S. history during the 1984 presidential election. After first winning the presidency in 1980, Reagan ran for reelection amid a period of economic recovery, declining inflation, and strong national confidence, largely due to the success of his administration’s policies. Reagan went on to win 49 states, losing only Minnesota, the home state of his opponent, Walter Mondale, as well as Washington, D.C. In total, he received 525 electoral votes, one of the highest totals ever recorded, and captured nearly 59 percent of the popular vote.

Lyndon B. Johnson (1964)

While Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan had won a presidential election before their landslide victories, Lyndon B. Johnson became president due to the tragic assassination of John F. Kennedy. He won his first election as the elected president in 1964 and had one of the highest popular vote percentages of any candidate since 1824. Johnson’s focus on anti-poverty programs and continuing Kennedy’s policies garnered massive support, and he carried 44 states and D.C. in the election. He also won 486 electoral votes, defeating his opponent, Barry Goldwater, who only won 6 states and 52 electoral votes. This was the last time before 1984 that a candidate carried more than 40 states, and the closest since was George H. W. Bush, who carried 40 states.

What Is the Fifty-State Strategy?

The fifty-state strategy is an approach in which a presidential candidate attempts to compete in all 50 states rather than focusing only on traditional battlegrounds. Instead of writing off states that usually vote for the opposing party, the campaign makes an effort to appeal to voters everywhere, even in places where victory is unlikely. Small gains across multiple states can accumulate over time and contribute to building long-term party support.

In practice, this strategy is challenging to maintain. Campaign resources such as time, money, and staff are limited, and modern elections are often decided by narrow margins in a small number of swing states. As a result, most candidates eventually shift their focus to states where winning electoral votes is easier. Spending heavily in states that are already leaning strongly toward the opponent can also reduce a campaign’s effectiveness elsewhere. While the fifty-state strategy is ambitious and broad in scope, it is rarely employed throughout an entire presidential campaign. It is more commonly used as an early-stage or long-term party-building approach rather than an election-winning plan.

Why a Fifty-State Win Is Unlikely Today

While winning a majority is a common occurrence in many elections, winning all fifty states is nearly impossible as of the 2020s. This is due to a variety of reasons, including strong regional voting patterns. Many states tend to lean toward the same party when voting, due to historical, regional, and cultural reasons. Thus, it is challenging for opposing candidates to sway their votes. Moreover, as campaign resources are limited, candidates tend to focus on electoral votes rather than the state count.

In recent elections, the focus on electoral votes has been clear, as most candidates have won with many fewer states carried. In 2008, Barack Obama won 28 states, while Donald Trump carried 30 states in 2016. More recently, Joe Biden won the 2020 election with 25 states and Washington, D.C., despite a clear Electoral College victory. These outcomes indicate that modern elections are often decided by narrow margins in a limited number of competitive states, rather than by broad nationwide dominance.