NationStates Jolt Archive

Election of 1860?

Election of John Adams?

Election of 2004?

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I'd have to say the election of 1864. Lincoln's opposition wanted to stop the war, didn't he? Stop the war, lose the C.S.A. Lose the C.S.A., lose pride. Lose pride, lose power.

1933 Plebiscite on whether or not to allow Hitler to have the 'Enabling Act', giving him dictatorial rights for a 'trial period' of four years.

1933 Plebiscite on whether or not to allow Hitler to have the 'Enabling Act', giving him dictatorial rights for a 'trial period' of four years.
Damn, I meant to say the most important U.S. election of all time...

hell, I'll leave it like that

although people are going to wonder why I put an AMERICAN election...of all elections...there.

Most important American vote was probably to declare independance in 1776

1776 may perhaps be one of the most important American votes, but it was not an election, since the current American system wasn't set up until the late 1780s.

I would have to agree that 1864 was probably the most important American election for the reasons given.

Right after that, IMHO, would be the election of John Adams, but only because of George Washington voluntarily giving up the position of President and setting the 2 term precedent that was only broken by FDR (after which it became law). Had Washington, as the first President, not set the tradition of American Presidents voluntarily giving up power after a few years, the US may have quickly disintigrated into what effectively would have been a bunch of Banana Republics run by tin-pot dictators.

the vote to declare american indepence from great britain in 1776.

1789: george washington, picked the right man to start running and set up our government in the usa. another choice would have prooved fatal and a disastor to human kind.

The most important British Prime Minister of the 20th Century was Winston Churchill, in his first term during WWII but he was not then elected (Chamberlain had won the election). The most important PM after Churchill in the 20th Century was Margaret Thatcher and I would argue that her victory in 1979 was the most important election in the UK in the 20th Century.

Like her or loathe her, Thatcher was a unique and powerful lady guided by incredibly strong principles. Contrast the UK in 1989 with the UK in 1979 and there is a world of difference, she achieved more changes than many other PM's combined could - I believe for very good reasons but even those who dislike her should acknowledge that the UK was transformed (for better or worse) by her.

Furthermore the changes she brought in have dramatically transformed the country even still, 25 years after she gained office and 15 years after she lost it. The UK was incredibly statist before she came to power, with top tax rates exceeding 90%, more than twice what the Labour Party today has put in place. The Conservative Party under its prior leaders were far more statist than any party today would dare be.

Most politicians go for the centre-ground and often in elections there is little in reality to mark out the main choices, but after electing Thatcher she bulldozed the existing political structures, demolished the Unions etc that had such a grip on the system and re-drew the centre far more to the right than it had been. Indeed after seven years in office, the Labour Party has not raised income tax above the levels that they were when Thatcher left office, let alone more than doubled them to where they were before it!

The election of Abraham Lincoln. I am unsure of the date. If Lincoln was not elected, then the secession would have had a higher probability of success.

The election of 1864? Really?

I don't remember it being that close at all. Wasn't it just against *George McClellan*? Yikes!

Anyway, I'd chose probably election of 1860 over 64 anyway. It really said that there's no turning back.

*agrees with previous poster*

Had Robert Taft had been nominated, I'd say 1952 would have been an important election year. Likewise, 1912, 1916, 1932, 1940, 1964, and 1972 (if Wallace had not been shot and had been nominated).