Political Slogans to Vie For

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Once the candidates from the two major parties are decided for the 2008 general election, there is opportunity to retool ad strategies and slogans. Here, Cone offers his choices for the 10 best slogans and the 10 worst from his forthcoming book as inspiration for the campaigns.

Top 10 Presidential Campaign Slogans

1. It's Morning Again in America, Ronald Reagan, 1984. "Hard to argue with the greatest landslide in modern times. Every talking point by Reagan during this campaign reinforced this theme. Plus it perfectly captured Reagan's personality, which is always powerful for a slogan to do—though rarely done."

2. Happy Days Are Here Again, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1932. "Another of the rare examples of a slogan reinforcing the candidate's personality. And, another landslide election. Boy, did Americans want happier days in 1932. Hoover, the incumbent, had no slogan and had no chance."

3. 54-40 or Fight, James Polk, 1844. "Referring to a major land dispute with Great Britain, Polk rode this issue to the White House, narrowly defeating a much better known candidate, Henry Clay." Clay's slogan tops the 10-worst list.

4. He Kept Us Out of War, Woodrow Wilson, 1916. "Running for a second term Wilson beat back a stiff challenge by the Republican Charles Hughes. Wilson barely left the White House, claiming world events demanded he stayed focused preventing the U.S. from getting dragged into World War I. This slogan probably made the difference between victory and defeat for Wilson. Interesting that just a month after taking the oath of office Wilson ignored his campaign pledge and we declared war on Germany."

5. Are You Better Off Than You Were Four Years Ago?, Reagan, 1980. "The Carter era brought dismal economic times. The joke at the time was the prime rate was higher than Carter's approval rating. What started off as a quip in a debate with Carter became Reagan's wordy but totally effective slogan."

6. Don't Swap Horses in the Middle of the Stream, Abraham Lincoln, 1864. "Lincoln was by no means a shoo-in for a second term. By 1864, many in the North were fed up with the loss of life and seemingly no end in sight to the conclusion of the Civil War. This slogan made the point that this was not the time to change leaders. Toward the last few months leading up the election Generals Grant and Sherman started winning decisive victories and the North agreed to not 'swap horses.' Notable that this was the first general election held by any country during a major conflict."

7. Cox and Cocktails, Warren Harding, 1920. "Warren Harding attacked his challenger James Cox for being in favor of lifting Prohibition—which had been enacted the year before. Cox and many others thought that Prohibition mainly served criminal interests and sparked a huge 'bootlegging' business. Cox had no slogan to reply with. Harding won handily. No matter that in his personal life Harding was a huge fan of alcohol and consumed great quantities which led to his death in office three years later."

8. Keep Cool with Coolidge, Calvin Coolidge, 1924. "Calvin 'Silent Cal' Coolidge was one of the most popular Presidents of all time. He was very low-key and in every way appeared and acted like a normal person as opposed to a calculating politician. His appeal was complete honesty, a total lack of ego, and a large dose of common sense in managing the federal government. He trounced his opponent, John W. Davis."

9. I Like Ike, Dwight Eisenhower, 1952. "When your nickname has been in the press for five years practically every day during World War II, [it] seems logical and effective to use it as your slogan. Ike did and sailed to victory, this time off the battlefield against Adlai Stevenson."

10. Ross for Boss, Ross Perot, 1992. "A line with some attitude and a clear message about how Ross Perot would run things if elected. He was ahead of Bush Senior and Bill Clinton in the polls until he dropped out of the race for several months with no explanation. Despite the disappearing act, which did not sit well with potential supporters, he still garnered 20 million votes and probably was the primary reason Clinton won."