 |
Ronald Wilson Reagan
b. 6 Feb 1911, Tampico, Illinois
d. 5 Jun 2004, Los Angeles, California |
| Title: |
President of the United States |
| Term: |
20 Jan 1981 - 20 Jan 1985 |
| Chronology: |
6 Jan 1981,
election to the office of President of the United States is declared upon counting electoral votes (cast 15 Dec 1980),
joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives, House Chamber, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. [1] |
|
20 Jan 1981,
commencement of term |
|
20 Jan 1981,
took an oath of office as President of the United States, inaugural ceremony, West Front, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. [2] |
|
20 Jan 1985,
expiration of term |
| Term: |
20 Jan 1985 - 20 Jan 1989 |
| Chronology: |
7 Jan 1985,
election to the office of President of the United States is declared upon counting electoral votes (cast 17 Dec 1984),
joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives, House Chamber, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. [3] |
|
20 Jan 1985,
commencement of term |
|
20 Jan 1985,
took an oath of office as President of the United States, private ceremony, North Entrance Hall, White House, Washington, D.C. [4] |
|
21 Jan 1985,
took an oath of office as President of the United States, inaugural ceremony, Great Rotunda, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. [5][6] |
|
20 Jan 1989,
expiration of term |
| Biography: |
| Born in the family of a shoe salesman; graduated from Eureka College, Eureka, Illinois (1932) with a bachelor's degree in economics and sociology; radio announcer at WOC, Davenport, Iowa, and then WHO, Des Moines (1932-1937); debuted in the movie "Love Is on the Air" (1937); appeared in more than 50 films, notably including "Knute Rockne-All American" (1940), "Kings Row" (1942), and "The Hasty Heart" (1950); produced air force training films (1942-1945); president of the Screen Actors Guild (1947-1952); campaigned for Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Nixon in the presidential elections of 1952, 1956, 1960; formally switched to Republican Party in 1962; host and performer on General Electric Theater; toured as speaker for General Electric Company (1954-1962); elected governor of California (2 Jan 1967 - 6 Jan 1975); made unsuccessful bid for Republican presidential nomination in 1968; reelected governor of California 1970; unsuccessfully challenged President Gerald Ford in the Republican primaries (1976); elected President of the United States (1980); fell victim for assassination attempt (30 Mar 1981) in Washington, D.C.; proposed to greatly increase military expenditures and sharply reduce nondefense spending; fired more than 11,000 air-traffic controllers after they go out on strike against the Federal Aviation Administration (1981); proposed the construction of a strategic defense system under a program known as the Strategic Defense Initiative (1983); U.S. troops invaded island of Grenada after a leftist coup (25 Oct 1983); reelected president in 1984; signed legislation making cuts in government spending (1985); met with Soviet leader Mihail Gorbačëv in Geneva (1985); authorized an air raid against Libya (25 Oct 1986); summit in Reykjavik, Iceland, on arms reduction and U.S. Strategic Defense Initiative (1986); involved in the Iran-Contra affair selling arms to Iran in an apparent effort to release American hostages in Beirut, Lebanon (1986-1987); signed with Gorbachev treaty to eliminate intermediate-range nuclear forces at a summit in Washington (1987); returned to California after the expiration of presidential term; published memoir, "An American Life" (1990); diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (1994).
|
| Biographical sources: "President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime", by Lou Cannon (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1991). |
| Elections: |
| Candidate |
Electoral vote (15 Dec 1980) |
| Ronald Wilson Reagan |
489 |
| James Earl Carter, Jr. |
49 |
| total number of electors appointed |
538 |
| number of votes for a majority |
270 |
| Candidate |
Electoral vote (17 Dec 1984) |
| Ronald Wilson Reagan |
525 |
| Walter Frederick Mondale |
13 |
| total number of electors appointed |
538 |
| number of votes for a majority |
270 |
|
| Source of electoral results: Congressional Record, 97th Congress, 1st Session, 193; Congressional Record, 99th Congress, 1st Session, 588. |
| |
| [1] |
Congressional Record, 97th Congress, 1st Session, 192-193. |
| [2] |
Congressional Record, 97th Congress, 1st Session, 540-543. |
| [3] |
Congressional Record, 99th Congress, 1st Session, 588. |
| [4] |
The New York Times, New York, Monday, January 21, 1985, vol. CXXXIV, No. 46,296, pp. A1, A15. |
| [5] |
Congressional Record, 99th Congress, 1st Session, 630-633. |
| [6] |
Public ceremony of inauguration was postponed as 20 Jan 1985 fell on a Sunday. |
|
Image: photograph (1981). |
