history of African Americans that ran for president

Despite the intense coverage of Illinois Senator Barack Obama’s run for the highest office—President of the United States—the reports that he is the “first” African-American to try for that office are simply false. According to the Chicago Tribune, Senator Obama’s gracious response to an unfortunate remark by a fellow senator, gave credit to some of those who came before him. He’s quoted in that newspaper as saying, “African-American presidential candidates like Jesse Jackson, Shirley Chisholm, Carol Moseley Braun and Al Sharpton gave a voice to many important issues through their campaigns…”

During this politically charged African-American History Month, a look at the African-American presidential candidates of the last 40 years and related books might be in order.

New Yorker Shirley Chisholm (1924-2005), a Democrat, was the first African-American woman to be elected to Congress in 1968. She ran for president in 1972. (Note that neither Ms. Chisholm nor Hillary Clinton was the first woman to run for this office.Victoria Claflin Woodhull was the Equal Rights Party’s presidential candidate in 1872—and famous former slave, Frederick Douglass, was nominated, but did not accept, the place as her vice presidential running mate.)

Unbought and Unbossed by Shirley Chisholm

The Good Fight by Shirley Chisholm

In 1984 and 1988, the Baptist minister and civil rights activist Jesse Jackson (1941-) ran for president as a Democrat. Although he lost his party’s nomination in both years, his liberal platform resonated with many voters in the primaries.

Jesse Jackson's 1984 Presidential Campaign: Challenge and Change in American Politics

by Lucius J Barker and Ronald W. Walters (editors)

Keep Hope Alive: Jesse Jackson's 1988 Presidential Campaign by Frank Clemente (editor)

Dr. Lenora Fulani (1950-), a psychologist and social activist, ran as an Independent in 1988 and 1992 . In 1988 she was the first woman and the first African American to get on the ballot for president in all 50 states.

The Making of a Fringe Candidate 1992 by Lenora B. Fulani

Alan Keyes (1950-) had been a diplomat and public speaker when he ran for president as a Republican in 1996 and 2000. Mr. Keyes, known for his conservative views, also ran for the U.S. Senate against Barack Obama in 2004.

Our Character, Our Future by Alan L. Keyes

Before he ran for president as a Democrat in 2004, activist and Pentecostal minister (Alfred) Al Sharpton, Jr., (1954-) ran for U.S. Senate and mayor of New York. He has also been a television personality and tour manager for the late singer, James Brown.

Al On America by Reverend Al Sharpton

In 1993, Democrat Carol Moseley Braun (1947-) became the first and, so far, only African-American woman elected to the U.S. Senate. In 2004, as a former senator from Illinois, Ms. Braun became a candidate for president.

Carol Moseley-Braun (African-American Leaders) by Wayne D'Orio

Now another African-American senator from Illinois, Barack Obama (1961-), is a candidate running as a Democrat for president in the 2008 election. Mr. Obama was previously a member of the Illinois state senate.

The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream by Barack Obama

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama