1988: BUSH RIDING ON REAGAN'S LEGACY

	VS
G.Bush 53.4 %		M. Dukakis

Riding on Ronald Reagan's legacy, George Herbert Walker Bush swept 40 of 50 states and snapped up the presidency, and with that, he became the first sitting vice president to get elected to the highest office in more than 150 years.

In fact, when he began his campaign, Bush vowed to be a "follow-on President." Bush knew he could reap the rewards of Reagan's successful eight-year term, including the economic recovery, but he also inherited several crises: The savings-and-loan debacle and the Iran-Contra affair. His Democratic opponent, Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis began molding himself as a modern-day John F. Kennedy.

The campaign quickly sunk into what is considered one of the most negative to date. Bush assailed Dukakis on his gubernatorial record for everything from releasing convicted felons who would go on to repeat their crimes (the now infamous Willie Horton campaign ad) to the dinginess of the Boston Harbor. Bush, along with his often-mocked Vice President Dan Quayle, took 426 electoral votes.

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