ELECTION #53, 1996. The NASTY-METER is 4.

This will be a short one.

The CANDIDATES in 1996.

DEMOCRAT: BILL CLINTON and REPUBLICAN: BOB DOLE

The Republicans would keep up their attack on Clinton during his first term. They attacked him on Travelgate, Filegate, the Whitewater real estate deal in Arkansas, Vince Foster's suicide, and the Paula Jones' accusation of sexual harassment. Hillary called these attacks part of a "vast right-wing conspiracy," and there's plenty of evidence to back that up - including one conservative tycoon who spent years funding efforts to discredit Clinton, to the tune of two million dollars of his own dollars.

But Clinton wasn't called "Slick Willie" for nothing. Clinton turned back the challenge of right-wing Republican congressmen by expertly moving to the center on most issues - from balancing the budget to revamping welfare. When Clinton took on Bob Dole in 1996 he was an incumbent at the helm of a robust economy. He was going to be hard to beat.

The CAMPAIGN in 1996.

Bob Dole had been around Washington D.C. for thirty-five years. He was 72 years old, a wounded WWII veteran, had a dry sense of humor, and had been Gerald Ford's VP choice in 1976. Dole was too moderate for the mood of the Republican Pary in 1996 and never quite convincingly endorsed the party's positions on abortion, crime, or state's rights. He even called Clinton "my opponent, not my enemy," a stance that did not endear him to Clinton haters (and there were a lot of them).

The WINNER was BILL CLINTON and he continued as the 42nd president of the United States.

Clinton got 47,402,357 popular and 379 electoral.

Dole got 39,198,755 popular and 159 electoral.

Perot got 8,085,402 popular and 0 electoral.