Final answer:
In the presidential election of 1984, Walter F. Mondale was the candidate who lost to Ronald Reagan in a significant landslide in the Electoral College. The subdued voter turnout hinted at some public disinterest, despite Reagan's overwhelming victory in terms of electoral votes. The enduring peculiarity of the Electoral College system and its impact on presidential elections remain a discussion point in American politics.
Step-by-step explanation:
The U.S. presidential election of 1984 is known for being one of the most significant landslides in the Electoral College history. In that election, Walter F. Mondale was the candidate who lost. Ronald Reagan was re-elected for a second term, winning an unprecedented number of electoral votes against Mondale.
Mondale's defeat was remarkable; he secured only 13 electoral votes, while Reagan achieved a massive victory with 525 electoral votes. Mondale's running mate, Geraldine Ferraro, also made history as the first female vice-presidential candidate representing a major American political party. The landslide victory for Reagan and his vice president, George H. W. Bush, was influenced by various factors including economic recovery, Reagan's appeal to voters, and the political climate favoring conservative policies. Despite the overwhelming victory in the Electoral College, it should be noted that voter turnout was relatively low, indicating a degree of voter apathy.
The election highlighted that while Reagan had a formidable win in the Electoral College, the system itself can produce outcomes where a candidate can win the presidency without securing the most popular votes, as has happened in other elections. This characteristic of the Electoral College continues to be a point of debate in the United States.