From 17 Republican candidates to a political revolution, a look back at how we ended up with Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump as our presidential nominees

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

12 April – Hillary Clinton launches campaign

Hillary Clinton officially launches her much-anticipated bid for the presidency with a sleek rollout video and a road trip to Iowa in her “Scooby Doo” van.

Americans have come back from some pretty tough economic times. Our economy and our country are much better off because American families have basically done whatever it took to make it work. But I think it’s fair to say that as you look across the country, the deck is still stacked in favor of those already at the top. And there’s something wrong with that.



Facebook Twitter Pinterest I want to be that champion.

30 April – Bernie Sanders launches his campaign and promises a revolution

Today, with your support and the support of millions of people throughout this country, we begin a political revolution to transform our country economically, politically, socially and environmentally. Today, we stand here and say loudly and clearly that: ‘Enough is enough. This great nation and its government belong to all of the people and not to a handful of billionaires, their Super Pacs and their lobbyists.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest What we need is a political revolution.

15 June – Jeb Bush launches campaign, supported by mega-donors

Former Florida governor Jeb Bush, the brother of former president George W Bush and son of former president George HW Bush, announces his bid for the presidency at a rally in Miami with a massive $100m war chest that promises to “shock and awe”.

16 June – Donald Trump launches campaign by calling Mexicans rapists

His speech is long and rambling, memorable mostly for calling Mexicans “rapists” and criminals who bring drugs across the border. He did add that he assumes some are good people. Pundits and political observers aren’t yet taking his candidacy seriously.

His odd grand escalator descent began a presidential bid that his critics believed wouldn’t go very far.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest We’ll see who has the last laugh.

6 August – first Republican debate – Megyn Kelly gets tough with Trump

Sixteen Republicans. Two debates. What could go wrong?

The 10 candidates duked it out at the Fox debate, but Trump stole the show. He lost his temper over Megyn Kelly’s grilling over his misogynistic commentary. He also proposed a wall with a “beautiful door” and refused to rule out a third-party bid if he didn’t win the nomination.

Mr Trump, one of the things people love about you is you speak your mind and you don’t use a politician’s filter. However, that is not without its downsides, in particular, when it comes to women. You’ve called women you don’t like ‘fat pigs’, ‘dogs’, ‘slobs’ and ‘disgusting animals’.



In a later interview, Trump insinuates Kelly’s tough line of questioning was because she had “blood coming out of her wherever”.

8 September – Clinton apologizes for her emails

After the New York Times reported Clinton used a private email server back in early March of 2015, the former secretary of state makes her first formal apology on ABC News.

As I look back at it now, even though it was allowed, I should have used two accounts. That was a mistake. I’m sorry about that. I take responsibility.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Too late to apologize?

13 October – Democratic debate in Las Vegas. Clinton and Sanders spar

Clinton puts in a strong performance, dueling with Sanders on gun control and foreign policy.

The senator from Vermont refuses to lambast Clinton over her emails: “The American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn emails.”

Instead, he went to town on capitalism.

Do I consider myself part of the casino capitalist process by which so few have so much and so many have so little, by which Wall Street’s greed and recklessness wrecked this economy? No, I don’t.

22 October – Clinton survives the Benghazi committee

Clinton testifies before the Benghazi committee for 11 hours. She faces questions over her role in failing to prevent an attack against US government facilities that led to the deaths of four Americans.

She survives the marathon grilling and fiery exchanges with Republican congressmen. She ba lks over the suggestion that she needs extra time to read her notes – “I can do more than one thing at a time.”

7 December – Trump’s campaign calls for a Muslim ban



Donald J Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on

Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) Just put out a very important policy statement on the extraordinary influx of hatred & danger coming into our country. We must be vigilant!

19 December – third Democratic debate; Goffstown, New Hampshire – Sanders apologizes

Sanders apologizes to Clinton directly for staffers who accessed private voter data belonging to his rival’s campaign.

Not only do I apologize, I want to apologize to my supporters. This is not the kind of campaign that we run. If I find anybody else involved in this, they will be fired.

2016

14 January – sixth Republican debate. The battle over birthright

Ted Cruz tries to knock Trump over his “New York values”, setting off a stream of internet memes defending the city – and Trump.

Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) Just this once, Trump's right: New Yorkers value hard work, diversity, tolerance, resilience, and building better lives for our families. -H

Trump accuses Cruz of being born in Canada and therefore ineligible to run for president. Birther issues – challenging a candidate’s American birth – is a favorite line of attack for Trump.

28 January – seventh Republican debate; Des Moines, Iowa. Trump is a no-show.

Trump cancels his appearance in Iowa after a feud with Kelly and Fox News. He holds an alternative event for veterans in the city.

The debate with the seven remaining Republican candidates, with fewer personal insults, focuses on policy – and immigration.

1 February – Iowa caucuses. The first state to vote goes for Cruz; Clinton and Sanders results end in a ‘virtual tie’

Cruz deals a blow to Trump with his win in Iowa. Cruz’s campaign sends an email before the caucuses that hints at Ben Carson suspending his campaign.

Trump fumes after his loss.

Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) Based on the fraud committed by Senator Ted Cruz during the Iowa Caucus, either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified.

Meanwhile, Clinton wins the Democratic caucus in Iowa by the smallest margin recorded in history: 49.9% to 49.6%.

4 February – fifth Democratic debate; Durham, New Hampshire. Sanders’ ‘artful smear’

Clinton shows anger over suggestions that her campaign contributions were bought.

If you’ve got something to say, say it directly, but you will not find that I ever changed a view or a vote because of any donation I ever received, and I have stood up and I have represented my constituents to the best of my ability.

6 February – eighth Republican debate; Goffstown, New Hampshire. Robot Rubio.

Marco Rubio malfunctions under fire and repeats the same line three times.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie pounces. He instructs the audience to listen for the senator’s pre-programmed “memorized 25-second speech”.

When it arrives, he points his finger at the senator: “There it is. There it is, everybody.”

Marco Rubio Glitch (@RubioGlitch) My closing statement:



Citizens, this notion that Barack Obama doesn't know what he's doing is fiction.



He knows exactly what he's doing.

The exchange earns him the online nickname Robot Rubio.

9 February – New Hampshire primary. Sanders’ big win.

New Hampshire selects Sanders and Trump by wide margins in a stunning rebuke of establishment politics.

Sanders tells an ecstatic crowd:

Together we have sent a message that will resonate from Wall Street to Washington ... that government belongs to all of the people.”

13 February – ninth Republican debate; Greenville, South Carolina. Name-calling under the shadow of Justice Scalia

Justice Antonin Scalia, the leading conservative voice on the supreme court, dies at a west Texas ranch, throwing a wrench into the presidential election.

The debate begins with a tribute to the conservative justice – but any consensus quickly evaporates and devolves into an all-out brawl.

Adults learn not to interrupt each other.



18 February – Trump feuds with Pope Francis

The pope questions Trump’s Christianity on a visit to Mexico.

A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian.

Trump has a quick response for the pontiff:

No leader, especially a religious leader, has the right to question another man’s religion or faith.”

During a later press conference, the pope insists he did not mean to sway any Americans with his comments.

20 February – Bush drops out after the South Carolina primary

Bush suspends his presidential campaign following a bruising loss in the South Carolina primary.

I’m proud of the campaign we won to unify our country, and to advocate conservative solutions ... But the people of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina have spoken.

25 February – 10th Republican debate; Houston. Senators get under Trump’s skin

Rubio mocks him gleefully a number of times:

You say the same thing every night ... everyone’s dumb, I’m going to make America great again, I’m winning in the polls, lines around the states, every night.

Cruz makes his own pointed jabs at Trump:

I really find it amazing that Donald believes that he is the one who discovered the issue of illegal immigration. I can tell you, when I ran for Senate here in the state of Texas, I ran promising to lead the fight against amnesty, promising to fight to build a wall.

1 March – Super Tuesday

It was a truly super night for Clinton and a little less so for Trump.

Super Tuesday results: track the votes live, state by state Read more

3 March – 11th Republican debate; Detroit. Little hands, big ...

The debate kicks off with a boast by Trump about the size of his penis – “I guarantee you, there’s no problem.”

He notes that Rubio had accused him of having small hands and had implied that Trump’s penis was similarly small.

11 March – Trump’s campaign manger accused of assault

Michelle Fields, a reporter for the rightwing news site Breitbart, accuses Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski of manhandling her when she attempted to ask the candidate a question. Trump accused her of “making it up”.

She eventually resigns from Breitbart. Lewandowski becomes CEO for Trump’s campaign.

Meanwhile, a Trump rally in Chicago was called off amid scenes of violence.

15 March – Super Tuesday round two. Rubio exits

Trump and Clinton celebrate big nights, while Rubio leaves the race after an embarrassing loss in his home state of Florida.

Rubio gives a prescient concession speech

The politics of resentment against other people will not just leave us a fractured party. They will leave us a fractured nation ... They are going to leave us as a nation where people literally hate each other because they have different political opinions.

30 March – Trump: women should be punished for abortions

The Republican frontrunner tells MSNBC “there has to be some form of punishment” for women who have abortions, should the procedure become outlawed under a future conservative supreme court. He reverses his statement several hours later.

16 April – Sanders heads to the Vatican to meet the pope

Sanders says he was delighted to have met him. The pope, wanting to steer clear of politics, plays down the meeting:

If someone thinks that greeting someone means getting involved in politics, I recommend that he find a psychiatrist!

Sanders later reveals more to reporters:

I conveyed to him my great admiration for the extraordinary work that he is doing all over the world in demanding that morality be part of our economy.

19 April – Clinton wins New York primary

The circus came to town, but the New Yorkers reigned in their state. Clinton of Chappaqua and Trump of Manhattan sweep the state and declare the primary races nearly finished.

Tonight, the race for the Democratic nomination is in the home stretch and victory is in sight. – Clinton from a ballroom in Midtown



It’s impossible to catch us. Nobody should take delegates and claim victory unless they get those delegates with voters and voting, and that’s what’s going to happen. And you watch because the people aren’t going to stand for it. It’s a crooked system, it’s a system that’s rigged and we’re going to go back to the old way: it’s called you vote and you win. – Trump at Trump Tower

26 April – Trump blames the ‘woman card’

Which inspires Clinton’s “woman card” line:



Jesse Lehrich (@JesseLehrich) Trump tonight: "If Hillary Clinton were a man, I don't think she'd get 5% of the vote."https://t.co/E05bEA17M4

If fighting for women’s healthcare and paid family leave and equal pay is playing the ‘woman card’, then deal me in.” – Hillary Clinton (often)

3 May – Cruz and John Kasich suspend campaigns

Trump becomes the presumptive nominee after Cruz and Kasich lose in Indiana.

From the beginning I’ve said that I would continue on as long as there was a viable path to victory. Tonight I’m sorry to say it appears that path has been foreclosed.



– Cruz in his concession speech

26 May – Trump crosses delegate threshold

Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) 1237 ✔️

2 June – House speaker Paul Ryan says he will vote for Trump

9 June – Obama endorses Clinton

Trump doesn’t react well:

Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) Obama just endorsed Crooked Hillary. He wants four more years of Obama—but nobody else does!

Clinton’s account replies with her most retweeted post of the campaign:

Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) Delete your account. https://t.co/Oa92sncRQY

20 June – Trump fires campaign manager Lewandowski

24 June – Trump visits Scotland on the morning after the Brexit vote

Britain woke up to news of the Brexit vote – and Trump. The Republican materialized on a fairway at his Turnberry golf resort in Scotland on Friday morning and hailed the British decision to leave the EU.

They took back control of their country.

5 July – FBI directorrecommends no charges for Clinton

FBI director James Comey recommends no criminal charges against Clinton for her handling of classified information while she was secretary of state but rebukes her for being “extremely careless”.

12 July – Sanders endorses Clinton

18-21 July – Republican national convention; Cleveland

Trump wins the party’s nomination to Republicans’ disbelief. Cruz refuses to endorse him and advises conservatives to “vote your conscience”. Melania Trump, a rarity on the trail, delivers a well-received speech. Later, it’s revealed key graphs were lifted from Michelle Obama’s speech in 2008.

Trump accepts the party nomination: “Nobody knows the system better than me, which is why I alone can fix it.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest ‘I alone can fix it.’ Photograph: Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images

25-28 July – Democratic national convention; Philadelphia

Protests, tears and history made. The Democratic convention was a tour de force with major speeches from the president, first lady, Bill Clinton and the Muslim parents of a Gold Star soldier.

Clinton becomes the first woman to accept the nomination of a major party in the US:

“Standing here as my mother’s daughter, and my daughter’s mother, I’m so happy this day has come.” She added: “When any barrier falls in America, for anyone, it clears the way for everyone.”





1 August – Trump attacks Gold Star family

Trump attacks Khizr and Ghazala Khan, the parents of a Muslim American soldier who was killed in Iraq.

9 August – Trump: ‘second amendment people’ could stop Clinton



At a rally in North Carolina, after referencing Clinton’s picking of supreme court judges, Trump hints at Clinton’s assassination.

29 August – Huma Abedin separates from Anthony Weiner

Top Clinton aide suspends marriage after return of sexting scandal

After long and painful consideration and work on my marriage, I have made the decision to separate from my husband. Anthony and I remain devoted to doing what is best for our son, who is the light of our life.

31 August – Trump meets with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto

Trump goes to Mexico, returns to make fiery anti-immigration speech in Arizona.

2 September – FBI releases documents on Clinton emails

There were no major revelations in the email investigation. Trump uses the event for political gain.

9 September – Clinton calls half of Trump supporters bigoted ‘deplorables’

You know, to just be grossly generalistic, you could put half of Trump’s supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables. Right?



The racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic – you name it. And unfortunately, there are people like that. And he has lifted them up.

11 September – Clinton stumbles at 9/11 memorial ceremony

Clinton campaign admits she has pneumonia after she stumbles at 9/11 memorial ceremony.

16 September – Trump walks back Obama birther claims

Hillary Clinton and her campaign of 2008 started the birther controversy. I finished it. I finished it. You know what I mean. President Barack Obama was born in the United States, period. Now we all want to go back to making America strong again.

26 September – First presidential debate; Hempstead, New York

Most watched debate in American history, with at least 80m people tuning in.

Clinton comes prepared, Trump not so much. She baited him with charges of racism, sexism and tax avoidance and he took the bait – every time.

3 October – New York attorney general sends cease and desist letter to Trump’s foundation

The New York Times reveals Trump could have avoided paying federal income tax for 18 years.

The Trump Foundation must immediately cease soliciting contributions or engaging in any other fund-raising activities in New York



– James Sheehan, the chief of the charities bureau

7 October – Trump describes sexual aggression on hot mic recording

I better use some Tic Tacs just in case I start kissing her. You know, I’m automatically attracted to beautiful women. I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. You just kiss. I don’t even wait. When you’re a star they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab ’em by the pussy. You can do anything. – Trump on 2005 Access Hollywood tape

9 October – Second presidential debate; St Louis, Missouri

It gets ugly before the debate begins. Trump holds a press conference with women who have claimed inappropriate sexual contact with Bill Clinton. He invites them to stay and watch the debate.

The debate begins with no handshake and ended with each complimenting one another – an audience member’s request.

In between, Trump lurks behind Clinton. He threatens to jail her if elected. And he denies that he had ever inappropriately touched women. Clinton holds her own, all things considered.

19 October – Third presidential debate; Las Vegas

The third and final debate is a wild spectacle. Bad hombres. Nasty woman. A flawed reproductive lesson. The debate ends with Trump refusing to say whether he’ll concede the election if he loses. “I’ll keep you in suspense,” he says.

28 October – FBI reviews new emails related to Clinton server



The FBI alerts members of Congress to the existence of a new batch of emails had been discovered on laptop belonging to Weiner, the estranged husband of longtime Clinton aide Abedin. The discovery is made during a separate investigation by federal authorities looking into the online communications between Weiner and a 15-year-old girl.

4 November – Queen B, Jay Z & Clinton share a stage



Facebook Twitter Pinterest Beyoncé and Jay Z pledge their support for Hillary Clinton at a concert in Cleveland. Photograph: AP

5 November – Trump is rushed off the stage at a Nevada rally

Paul Lewis (@PaulLewis) Here is video of the detained man being taken away. It happened minutes after Trump was rushed from stage. Video provided to me by witness. pic.twitter.com/SisR9v539H

7 November – FBI says there is no evidence of wrongdoing in Clinton emails



8 November – Election day!