Where major-party presidential candidates landed after loss
2004: John F. Kerry - Returned to the US Senate and is now seeking reelection to his seat.
2000: Al Gore - Retreated to Europe for several weeks and later began an effort to address global climate change, which resulted in a Nobel Peace Prize.
1996: Bob Dole - Resigned his US Senate seat to run for president. Has been active in campaigning for other Republican candidates. His wife, Elizabeth, is now a US senator from North Carolina.
1992: George H. W. Bush - Retired with his wife to Houston and Kennebunkport, Maine, and continues to make public appearances.
1988: Michael Dukakis - Returned to Massachusetts to complete the remaining two years in his term as governor. He did not run for reelection and instead began teaching. He is now a visiting professor at Northeastern University's political science department.
1984: Walter Mondale - Returned to private law practice, taught college courses, and was US ambassador to Japan. In 2002, after US Senator Paul Wellstone died in a plane crash 11 days before the election, Mondale replaced Wellstone on the ballot. But he lost that race to Norm Coleman.
1980: Jimmy Carter - Returned to his home in Plains, Ga., and taught at Emory University in Atlanta. He has been on humanitarian and conflict mediation missions across the world, and received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.
1976: Gerald Ford - Considered running for president in 1980, and was mentioned as a possible running mate for Ronald Reagan. Participated in conferences and opened a presidential library. He died in 2006.
1972: George McGovern - Returned to the US Senate and was reelected in 1974. He was defeated in 1980, and unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for president in 1984.
1968: Hubert Humphrey - Returned to Minnesota, where he taught several college courses. The former vice president won a race for US Senate in 1970, and held the seat until his death in 1978. 