Politics Events

1532 'The Prince' is Published
In 1512, Pope Julius II attacked Florence, because of events going on in Pisa. After the war, Soderini was removed from office and the prominent Medici family took control of Florence. Ma...
1832 Mar Lincoln Becomes a Candidate for Illinois General Assembly
Lincoln began his political career in 1832 at age 23 with an unsuccessful campaign for the Illinois General Assembly as a member of the Whig Party. The centerpiece of his platform was the...
1875 Dec 4 William Marcy "Boss" Tweed Escapes From Prison
On December 4, 1875, William Marcy "Boss" Tweed, notorious leader of New York City's Democratic political machine, escaped from prison and fled to Europe. Between 1865 and 1871, Boss Twee...
1884 Jun Theodore Roosevelt Attends Republican National Convention
Roosevelt was a Republican activist during his years in the Assembly, writing more bills than any other New York state legislator. Already a major player in state politics, he attended th...
1964 Oct 27 Ronald Reagan Delivers "A Time for Choosing" Speech
Reagan joined the campaign of conservative presidential contender Barry Goldwater in 1964. Speaking on Goldwater's behalf, Reagan stressed his belief in the importance of smaller governme...
1966 Jan 1 Ronald Reagan Announces Candidacy for Governor of California
Reagan moved immediately to capitalize on the momentum of the Goldwater speech and began appearing before Republican gatherings in California and elsewhere within weeks of the 1964 electi...
1984 Feb First TED Conference Held
TED was founded by Richard Saul Wurman and Harry Marks in 1984, and has been held annually since 1990. Wurman left after the 2002 conference; the event is now hosted by Chris Anderson and...
1986 Nov 25 Ronald Reagan Establishes the "Tower Commission" to Investigate Iran-Contra Scandal
In 1986, a scandal shook the administration stemming from the use of proceeds from covert arms sales to Iran to fund the Contras in Nicaragua, which had been specifically outlawed by an a...
2005 Nov 23 Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is Elected President of Liberia, Becoming the Only Female Head of State in Africa
Sirleaf once again stood for president as the candidate of the Unity Party in the 2005 general election. She placed second in the first round of voting behind footballer George Weah. In t...
2008 Dec 4 Michaëlle Jean Prorogues the Canadian Parliament
The 2008-2009 Canadian parliamentary dispute began when the opposition parties attempted to form a coalition and support a vote of non-confidence, which would have brought down the govern...
2009 May 26 Barack Obama Nominates Sonia Sotomayor to the US Supreme Court
President Obama on Tuesday nominated federal appellate Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court. President Obama on Tuesday introduces Judge Sonia Sotomayor as his choice for the ...
2009 Jun 23 Four Members of the Iranian National Soccer Team "Retired" For Refusing to Remove Protest Armbands
(CNN) - Four Iranian footballers have been "retired" from the national side after protesting against the contested election result in the country during a match against South Korea, accor...
2009 Jun 24 Governor Mark Sanford (R-SC) Admits to Extramarital Affair
"As I mentioned in our last visit, while I did not need love fifteen years ago — as the battle scars of life and aging and politics have worn on this has become a real need of mine. You ha..." —Mark Sanford
2009 Jun 30 Minnesota's Supreme Court Declares Al Franken the Winner of the Minnesota Senate Race
(CNN) -- Minnesota's Supreme Court has dismissed former Sen. Norm Coleman's challenge to the state's November election results and declared Democratic challenger Al Franken the winner. ...
2009 Jun 30 Norm Coleman Abandons His Challenge of the Minnesota Senate Election Results
(CNN) -- Former Sen. Norm Coleman gave up his challenge to the November election results Tuesday, clearing the way for satirist Al Franken to take the state's remaining U.S. Senate seat a...
2009 Aug 20 Representative Barney Frank Criticizes a Protester for Comparing Obama to Hitler
A town hall session held by Representative Barney Frank has joined the pantheon of straight-to-video moments from the rowdy face-offs on health care this month. But instead of a critic...
2009 Sep 24 Paul G. Kirk, a Longtime Kennedy Ally, Chosen as Kennedy's Interim Successor
Paul Kirk is expected to get the immediate attention of top Democrats in Washington looking for all the troops they can find for the upcoming battle over legislation to overhaul the natio...
2009 Sep 25 Paul G. Kirk is Appointed Interim Senator to Fill Late Edward Kennedy's Seat
A Massachusetts judge on Friday rejected a Republican request to delay the swearing in of Edward M. Kennedy's temporary replacement in the Senate. The state GOP had argued that Gov. Deva...
2010 Jan 11 Former Alaska Governor and Vice-Presidential Candidate, Sarah Palin, Signs Deal with Fox News to Work as Contributer
Sarah Palin, who regularly rips the media, is becoming a television pundit at a place where she's likely to feel at home. A Fox News executive says the network will shortly announce th...
2010 Feb 5
to 2010 Feb 6
 Tea Party Movement Holds a Convention in Nashville, Tennessee
With conservative firebrand Sarah Palin headlining, it’s been billed as an event to fuse and celebrate the tenets of the disparate “tea party” movement that has rocked American politics o...
2010 Feb 8 John Murtha Dies
Rep. John Murtha of Pennsylvania, a longtime fixture on the House subcommittee that oversees Pentagon spending, died after complications from gallbladder surgery, according to his office....
2010 Apr 10 Crash of Polish Air Force Tu-154M Kills 96 Including Polish President Lech Kaczyński.
A plane carrying the Polish president and dozens of the country’s top political and military leaders to the site of a Soviet massacre of Polish officers in World War II crashed in western...
2010 Apr 23 Arizona Governor Jan Brewer Signs Controversial Anti-Immigration Bill 'Arizona SB 1070'
Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer on Friday signed into law a divisive measure intended to curb illegal immigration, but the fight over the legislation is far from over. Thousands of demonstrato...
2010 May 11 David Cameron Becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Mr Cameron, 43, becomes the youngest premier since Lord Liverpool almost 200 years ago, and the first Conservative in No 10 since John Major departed 13 years ago. He promised there wo...
2010 Jul 21 The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act Is Signed Into Law
At 5:08 a.m. Friday morning, just before dawn on Capitol Hill and minutes before lawmakers were expected to make a historic agreement on new financial regulations, Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D....
2010 Aug 7 Elena Kagan Is Sworn In As Associate Justice Of The Supreme Court Of The United States
Elena Kagan was sworn in as the 112th U.S. Supreme Court justice and its fourth woman ever, taking the oath of office at the high court two days after the Senate confirmed her. Kagan, ...
2010 Aug 9 Former Alaskan Senator Ted Stevens Dies In A Plane Crash
Former Senator Ted Stevens, who for several years played a leading role in controlling the nation's purse strings, died with four other people in a small plane crash in his home state of ...
2010 Sep 7 Mayor Daley Announces He Will Not Seek Seventh Term
"The truth is I have been thinking about this for the past several months," said the mayor at his 5-minute news conference. "In the end this is a personal decision, no more, no less." He ...
2010 Sep 10 Barack Obama Holds Open News Conference with Focus on Economic Recovery
In his first press conference since May, President Obama assailed Republicans for opposing his economic agenda and spoke out passionately about Pastor Terry Jones' threat to burn Korans a...
2010 Oct 1 Rahm Emanuel Resigns As White House Chief Of Staff To Run For Mayor of Chicago
Although no final decision has been made because of family considerations, ABC News has learned that White House officials are preparing for Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel to announce on Fri...
2010 Oct 27 Néstor Kirchner Dies
Néstor Kirchner, the former president of Argentina who led his country out of a crippling economic crisis before being succeeded by his wife, died unexpectedly early Wednesday, apparently...
2010 Nov
to 2010 Dec
UK Student Protests
A mass protest against tuition fees by more than 45,000 students turned violent as a huge procession to the House of Commons passed David Cameron's campaign headquarters. Trouble-maker...
2010 Nov 2 Massachussetts Gubernatorial Election
The Massachusetts gubernatorial election of 2010 was held on November 2, 2010. Incumbent Democratic Governor Deval Patrick was re-elected to a second term.[2] Also competing were the Repu...
2010 Nov 3 Viktor Chernomyrdin Dies
Viktor Chernomyrdin, former prime minister of Russia and a titan of the country's turbulent first decade after the fall of communism, has died at the age of 72. A big, bluff factory wo...
2010 Nov 28 United States Diplomatic Cables Leak
An innocuous-looking memory stick, no longer than a couple of fingernails, came into the hands of a Guardian reporter earlier this year. The device is so small it will hang easily on a ke...
2010 Dec 7 Elizabeth Edwards Dies
"You all know that I have been sustained throughout my life by three saving graces – my family, my friends, and a faith in the power of resilience and hope. These graces have carried me th..." —Elizabeth Edwards
2010 Dec 7 Julian Assange Is Arrested By London Metropolitan Police
The founder of whistle-blowing website Wikileaks, Julian Assange, has been refused bail by a court in London but vowed to fight extradition to Sweden. Mr Assange denies sexually assaul...
2010 Dec 13 Richard Holbrooke Dies
Richard C. Holbrooke, the high-octane diplomat who spearheaded the end of the Bosnian war and most recently served as the Obama administration's point man in the volatile Afghan-Pakistani...
2010 Dec 21 David Nolan Dies
David Nolan, whose opposition to the Vietnam War and President Richard M. Nixon’s wage and price controls impelled him in 1971 to join with a few friends to found the Libertarian Party to...
2010 Dec 25 Carlos Andrés Pérez Dies
Former Venezuelan President Carlos Andres Perez, whose popularity soared with his country's oil-based economy but who later faced riots, a severe economic downturn and impeachment in his ...
2011 Oct 14 Wisconsin Labor Activists and Democrats Begin Campaign to Recall Governor Walker
At midnight Monday night, Wisconsin Democrats and labor activists kicked off their campaign to recall Gov. Scott Walker (R). Petitions were also filed to recall the lieutenant governor...
2011 Nov 24 Maggie Daley Dies
Maggie Daley, the wife of longtime Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley, died Thursday at the age of 68 after suffering for years from breast cancer. Daley was considered the driving force for ...
2011 Nov 28 Rep. Barney Frank Announces He Will Not Seek Re-election
Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) will not seek reelection in 2012, according to WBZ News Radio. CNN has confirmed the news with the Democratic congressman's office. Frank addressed his deci...
2012 Jan 3 Iowa Republican Caucus a Virtual Tie for Romney and Santorum
The Republican nomination process to choose a candidate to run against President Barack Obama began with a virtual tie in the Iowa caucus. The race was originally called in favor of fo...
2012 Jan 10 Mitt Romney Wins New Hampshire Republican Primary
Former Massachusetts Governor, Mitt Romney, won the New Hampshire Republican Primary for the 2012 Presidential Nomination. Texas Congressman, Ron Paul - considered a long-shot and a prote...
2012 Jan 21 Newt Gingrich Wins South Carolina Republican Primary
Former Georgia Congressman and Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich, won the South Carolina Republican Primary, beating out presumed front-runner, former Massachusetts Governor, Mitt Romne...