At her second attempt at being America’s president, Hillary Clinton became the first woman to secure the nomination of a major party when she defeated Bernie Sanders in July.
A couple of days to elections, she is becoming more likely to go ahead and become America’s president, which would see her as the first woman to achieve that.
While she has tried as much as possible to get to where she is, it is extremely hard to convince anyone that Trump has not fought too hard to win GOP only to lose to Clinton in the main elections.
Although Clinton has achieved an extreme feat, she is not the first woman to go for the White House. Below are some women who have once or twice contested.
Victoria Woodhull
Woodhull was the first woman to ever contest for the post president of America. She ran for the highest office in 1872 even before she was 35 years. Woodhull contested under the Equal Rights Party. Her candidacy was shrouded in different controversies including her support for Free Love, and a publication of obscene materials that led to her arrest few days to the elections. This made it impossible for her to vote in the elections, but she contested again in 1884 and 1892.
Gracie Allen
Trump has certainly entertained America but much better was Gracie Allen. She contested to be America’s president in 1940, an act that was believed to be a publicity stunt. Gracie who contested under the Surprise Party was a comedian. As she and her husband went round campaigning, they mixed it with comedy, making her well loved. Although she pulled out of the race shortly before the elections, she received so many write-in votes on Election Day. She once joked that she was contesting under the Surprise Party because while her mother was a democrat, her father was a republican, which made her birth a surprise.
Shirley Chisolm
Chislom contested to rule the US in 1972. She was the first African-American woman to make it to the United States Congress, where she represented New York’s 12th Congressional District for seven terms (1969 to 1983). Also, she became the First African American to contest for President in the US under a major party. She was, however, unable to secure the nomination of the Democratic Party under which she contested.
Ellen Cullen McCormack
Ellen Cullen McCormack contested for America’s president twice; in 1976 and 1980 and became popular for her pro-life stance. In 1976 she contested as a Democrat, while in 1980 she contested as a Right to Life Party candidate. As a result of pro-life campaigns, she has become influential to the pro-life movement that would continue for so many years after.
Lenora Branch Fulani
Fulani contested for the presidency in 1988 and 1992 under the New Alliance Party (NAP). Before giving a shot at the presidency, she contested for lieutenant governor of New York in 1982 and New York mayor in 1985. In the 1988 elections, Fulani became the first woman and the first black to make it to the ballots in all American states. While she pulled 0.2% of the votes in 1980, in the 1992 elections she had 0.07%.
Elizabeth Dole
Dole contested to be America’s president in 2000. She battled George W. Bush for the Republican nomination, however, she dropped out before the primaries as a result of a shortage in finances. Dole, who had had a long stay around the white house, was thought of as someone who could have made a good run. She served in the governments of Lyndon, Nixon, Ford, Reagan and Bush, making her a good candidate. Also, her husband, Bob Dole, was a Republican nominee in the 1996 presidential election.
Roseanne Barr
Barr who is an actress, a standup comedian, and TV personality, contested to be America’s president in 2012. She ran on the Green Tea party ticket but lost its nomination to Jill Stein. Soon after losing the Green Tea Party nomination, Barr criticized Stein and moved on to the Peace and Freedom Party where she won the presidential ticket with Cindy Sheehan. Bar and Sheehan soon fell apart, and Sheehan left the campaign. The sincerity of her campaign was put to question when a TV crew followed her about and recorded her campaign, which was later released as Roseanne for President!. At the elections, Barr ended Fifth while stein was at fourth.
Other women who contested include Linda Jenness (1972), Deirdre Griswold (1980), Monica Moorehead (1996), Isabell Masters (1996) Cynthia McKinney (2008), and Jill Stein (2012). These, however, are not the only women that have contested in American presidential elections. Most of them were able to contest under smaller parties.