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Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and George H. W. Bush were all defeated for reelection. What shared characteristic do they have?

A) They all experienced approval ratings of less than 50 percent when they ran for reelection.
B) They were all Republicans.
C) They had been vice presidents before becoming president.
D) All of the above

User Indiantroy
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1 Answer

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Final answer:

Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and George H. W. Bush were all vice presidents before becoming president, and they experienced low approval ratings during their presidency. Jimmy Carter was a Democrat, which means they were not all Republicans.

Step-by-step explanation:

Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and George H. W. Bush all shared the characteristic that they had been vice presidents before becoming president, which is answer C. Additionally, these presidents also experienced periods of low approval ratings during their time in office, which, as in the case of Ford and Carter, were devastating to their prospects for reelection. Ford took over after Nixon’s resignation and faced backlash for pardoning Nixon. Carter struggled with economic issues and his outsider status eventually wasn’t enough to secure reelection. Bush saw high approval during the Gulf War, but it significantly dropped due to various factors including the economy and criticism from social conservatives. However, the statement that all of them were Republicans is incorrect, as Jimmy Carter was a Democrat.

User Shawnna
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