Which election loosers were "sacrificial lambs"?

[morgankingsley]

Could Goldwater in 1964 count? Everybody knew he wouldn't win

[morgankingsley]

Interesting how you list Thurmond as one since he was actually meant to be a legitimate candidate to throw the election

[morgankingsley]

I wonder if Carter 1980 was one as well

[morgankingsley]

It was initially thought that the 1992 Democratic nominee would be a sacrificial lamb, but that turned out not to be the case.

I was 2 at the time but did the thought not cross anyone’s mind that 4 straight terms in the modern era is virtually impossible? They were sick of GOP rule of the White House, look at some of the states he won: Arkansas (2), Louisiana (2), Tennessee (2), Kentucky (2), Montana (1), Arizona (1), Georgia (1)....

The Gulf War had given Bush 90% approval ratings, and 1988 made many Democrats think that the Presidency was unwinnable for them. They thought a tough-on-crime Democrat wouldn’t be able to get through the primaries.

How early in 1992 did it become clear Bill could be the nominee