The Election of 1996 was the 53rd quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 5, 1996. The competition saw incumbent Republican Phil Gramm decisively defeat the Democratic nominee, former Astronaut and United States Senator from Ohio, John Glenn. After Ronald Reagan had resigned on March 20, 1993 due to coming down with Alzehimer's Disease, Gramm had taken over and inherited some of Reagan's popularity after keeping the booming economy and seeing the country through the final closing conflicts of the Cold War. He won another decisive victory, even though Glenn was popular as a space hero, Gramm used Reagan's techniques to help him get ahead, and received the full support of the Republican Party's conservative wing due to his actions against powerful unions. He al