List of Alternate Presidents 2.0.

[McGarnagle]

2016 - If Hillary Clinton Won

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton defeats Donald Trump narrowly on Election Night, keeping Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan in the Democratic column by under 2%.

45 - President Hillary Clinton (D-NY)
January 20, 2017 - January 20, 2021

President Clinton breaks the ultimate glass ceiling, but her agenda is stymied by constant investigations by House Republicans which lead nowhere but eat up a lot of news coverage.

Democrats do not lose the 2018 midterms as badly as 2010, but they lose a few seats - the blow cushioned from voters' reluctance to back what is seen as a leaderless GOP, unless you count Mitch McConnell, who people don't like.

Despite a lackluster midterm performance for the GOP, former Governor John Kasich defeats President Clinton by a respectable margin amid a slowing economy in 2020, and is re-elected with a narrow majority in 2024, defeating Senator Kamala Harris. Though the Clinton years aren't regarded as horrible, little gets done and voters became tired after twelve years of Democrats in the White House.

46 - President John Kasich (R-OH)
January 20, 2021 - January 20, 2029

President Kasich governs as a centrist conservative, largely downplaying social issues while focusing on the economy and immigration reform, emphasizing what he sees as a need for bipartisanship. The GOP as a whole is still struggling to find its identity, leading to Democrats winning big in the 2022 and 2026 midterms.

Kasich is generally regarded positively, with his approval rating never dipping below 45% during his first six years in office. However, the economy is in recession by his last year in office, and Vice President Marco Rubio loses in a landslide to Senator Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who rises to prominence in 2022 in this timeline.

47 - President Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY)
January 20, 2029 - January 20, 2037

President Ocasio-Cortez reverses Kasich's tax cuts during her first hundred days. Large Democratic Congressional majorities pass Medicare for All in 2030, and most U.S. troops have left the middle east by the end of her Presidency over the course of several years in a planned exit discussed and agreed to by allies.

After Ocasio-Cortez is easily re-elected over Senator Tom Cotton in 2032, Congress passes a student loan relief bill in 2033 and raises the federal minimum wage to $22/hr in 2034. Ocasio-Cortez is a popular President who seldom has approvals below 50%. Clinton was the last hurrah for 90s-style centrism, as Ocasio-Cortez moves the party more firmly towards democratic socialism.

[McGarnagle]

Alternate 2016 - Clinton defeats Trump
45 - President Hillary Clinton (D-NY) - January 20, 2017 - January 20, 2021
46 - President John Kasich (R-OH) - January 20, 2021 - January 20, 2029
47 - President Brian Sandoval (R-NV) - January 20, 2029 - January 20, 2033
48 - President Joe Kennedy III (D-MA) - January 20, 2033 - January 20, 2041
49 - President Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) - January 20, 2041 - January 20, 2045
50 - President Meghan McCain (R-AZ) - January 20, 2045 - January 20, 2049
51 - President Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) - January 20, 2049 - January 20, 2053

Clinton wins MI, PA and WI on Election Night 2016, narrowly defeating Donald Trump in a closer-than-expected election.

Due to high unemployment resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Clinton is defeated by Former Governor John Kasich in 2020, who serves two terms. His VP, Brian Sandoval, serves one. In 2033, Joe Kennedy III takes office and serves two terms, surviving an assassination attempt during his re-election campaign in 2036. His VP declines to run, and Senator Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wins the nomination after a long primary battle, narrowly winning the election. Meghan McCain, Governor of Arizona, narrowly defeats President Ocasio-Cortez in 2044, but AOC comes back and defeats President McCain in 2048, becoming the first President since Governor Cleveland to win two non-consecutive terms.

[McGarnagle]

38 - President Gerald Ford (R-MI), 1974-1981
President Ford defeats Former Governor Carter in 1976.

39 - President Gary Hart (D-CO), 1981-1989
Senator Hart defeats Vice President Dole in 1980.
President Hart defeats Bush Sr. in 1984.

40 - President Lloyd Bentsen (D-TX), 1989-1993
Vice President Bentsen defeats Senator Quayle in 1980.

41 - President Howard Baker (R-TN), 1993-2001
Former Senator Baker defeats President Bentsen in 1992.
President Baker defeats Senator Gore in 1996.

42 - President John F. Kennedy Jr. (D-MA), 2001-2001
John F. Kennedy Jr. enters politics in the early 1990s.
Ted Kennedy suffers a heart attack and survives it, but retires in 1994.
JFK Jr. takes his place, and is elected to the U.S. Senate.
JFK Jr. defeats Governor Bush in 2000, and like his father's election in 1960, it is very close.
Tragically, President Kennedy is assassinated on 9/11 outside a hotel where had been staying before a planned speech. Vice President Graham succeeds him that day, and vows revenge against the terrorists responsible for the attacks on New York and Washington that day as well as Kennedy's assassination.

43 - President Bob Graham (D-FL), 2001-2009
President Graham defeats Senator Brownback in 2004, a month after the announcement of Osama bin Laden's capture in Pakistan. However, Graham becomes less popular during his second term due to a recession.

44 - President John McCain (R-AZ), 2009-2017
Senator McCain defeats Vice President Kerry in 2008 amid a recession.
President McCain is re-elected in 2012 over Senator Gillibrand.

45 - President Barack Obama (D-IL), 2017-Present
Senator Obama defeats Vice President Allard in 2016
President Obama is running for re-election in 2020, facing off against Senator Cruz

[McGarnagle]

Dewey defeats Truman

1948 - Dewey/Warren (R) defeats Truman/Barkley (D)
1952 - Stevenson/Kefauver (D) defeats Dewey/Warren (R)
1956 - Stevenson/Kefauver (D) defeats Warren/Stassen (R)
1960 - Nixon/Lodge (R) defeats Kefauver/Symington (D)
1964 - Johnson/Kennedy (D) defeats Nixon/Lodge (R)
1968 - Kennedy/Humphrey (D) defeats Goldwater/Miller (R)
1972 - Reagan/Dole (R) defeats Humphrey/Muskie (D)
1976 - Reagan/Dole (R) defeats Muskie/Carter (D)
1980 - Kennedy/Mondale (D) defeats Dole/Bush (R)
1984 - Kennedy/Mondale (D) defeats Laxalt/Baker (R)
1988 - Mondale/Bentsen (D) defeats Lugar/Gramm (R)
1992 - Wilson/Alexander (R) defeats Mondale/Bentsen (D)
1996 - Gore/Clinton (D) defeats Wilson/Alexander (R)
2000 - Gore/Clinton (D) defeats Bush/Cheney (R)
2004 - McCain/Ridge (R) defeats Clinton/Edwards (D)
2008 - Kerry/Richardson (D) defeats McCain/Ridge (R)
2012 - Romney/Ryan (R) defeats Kerry/Richardson (D)
2016 - Obama/Warren (D) defeats Romney/Ryan (R)
2020 - Obama/Warren (D) defeats Paul/Pence (R)

33 - President Harry S. Truman (D-MO)
April 12, 1945 - January 20, 1949

34 - President Thomas E. Dewey (R-NY)
January 20, 1949 - January 20, 1953

35 - President Adlai Stevenson II
January 20, 1953 - January 20, 1961

36 - President Richard Nixon (R-CA)
January 20, 1961 - January 20, 1965

37 - President Lyndon B. Johnson (D-TX)
January 20, 1965 - June 6, 1966**

President Johnson is assassinated while giving a speech in Boston on June 6, 1966. He is succeeded by Vice President Kennedy.

38 - President John F. Kennedy (D-MA)
June 6, 1966 - January 20, 1973

39 - President Ronald Reagan (R-CA)
January 20, 1973 - January 20, 1981

40 - President Ted Kennedy (D-MA)
January 20, 1981 - January 20, 1989

41 - President Walter Mondale (D-MN)
January 20, 1989 - January 20, 1993

42 - President Pete Wilson (R-CA)
January 20, 1993 - January 20, 1997

43 - President Al Gore (D-TN)
January 20, 1997 - January 20, 2005

44 - President John McCain
January 20, 2005 - January 20, 2009

45 - President John Kerry
January 20, 2009 - January 20, 2013

46 - President Mitt Romney (R-MA)
January 20, 2013 - January 20, 2017

47 - President Barack Obama (D-IL)
January 20, 2017 - January 20, 2025

[McGarnagle]

Gore defeats Bush in 2000

43 - President Al Gore (D-TN), 2001-2009
2000 - Gore/Graham defeats Bush/Cheney
2004 - Gore/Graham defeats Huckabee/Brownback

Vice President Gore narrowly defeated Governor Bush in 2000, winning Florida by 0.5% thanks in part to his running mate, Senator Bob Graham. In response to the 9/11 attacks, President Gore launched military operations in Afghanistan, which resulted in the capture of Osama bin Laden in December 2001 at the battle of Tora Bora. Gore did not invade Iraq, but kept Clinton's sanctions in place. Gore was re-elected with a majority of the popular vote against Mike Huckabee, who voters viewed as too socially conservative.

44 - President John McCain (R-AZ), 2009-2017
2008 - McCain/Pawlenty defeats Graham/Lieberman
2012 - McCain/Pawlenty defeats Kerry/O'Malley

Amidst the 2008 Recession, Senator McCain defeated Vice President Graham. McCain passed tax cuts and campaign finance reform while persuing a more hawkish foreign policy than President Gore that included airstrikes against Iraq, Iran and Hamas. McCain was narrowly re-elected, defeating fellow Vietnam veteran John Kerry in 2012.

45 - President Hillary Clinton (D-NY), 2017-2021
2016 - Clinton/Kaine defeats Pawlenty/Ryan

Donald Trump decides to forgo running for President and remains host of The Apprentice. After sweeping the Democratic Primary with little opposition, Senator Hillary Clinton narrowly defeated Vice President Pawlenty in an upset. Clinton had difficult working with a Republican Congress, and her last year in office was consumed by the COVID-19 pandemic, which dented her approvals. A more coordinated federal response results in fewer deaths but is met with widespread opposition from Republicans, who limit the stimulus to a one time $500 check. Kasich promises $1000 relief checks and lower taxes if he is elected, and goes on to defeat President Clinton.

46 - President John Kasich (R-OH), 2021-Present
2020 - Kasich/Romney defeats Clinton/Kaine

President Kasich lowers taxes in his first hundred days in office, and signs the 2021 Recovery Act distributing $750 checks while overseeing the federal distribution of vaccines. Three-term Senator Barack Obama is considered the Democratic frontrunner for 2024 - Obama criticizes Kasich for promising $1000 checks and delivering $750 ones, and advocates for $1500 checks.