Birthplaces of U.S. presidents as of July 2026

[JManc]

Originally Posted by Crawford

That was 27 years ago. They have lived in NY far longer than anywhere else.

Also LOL at "only". That sounds like a pretty good reason.

But as president, he was/ is associated with Little Rock, not New York. By the time he ended up in Westchester, his political career was over. Even with Hillary, Moynihan's open senate seat was a springboard to the presidency and she had no ties to the state which was a source of controversy at the time. Chelsea is definitely more New York than Arkansas though.

[jmecklenborg]

Originally Posted by JManc

But as president, he was/ is associated with Little Rock,

He claimed to be from HOPE, Arkansas, which he moved away from as a small child before he likely had any memories of it:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_...n_Birthplace_Home_National_Historic_Site

Obviously, if you are building an inspirational backstory, it sounds a lot better to say you're from a place called HOPE rather than Hot Springs, since Hot Springs sounds unserious. It's like saying you grew up in Las Vegas or Myrtle Beach or some other party-sounding place.

[craigs]

Originally Posted by jmecklenborg

He claimed to be from HOPE, Arkansas, which he moved away from as a small child before he likely had any memories of it:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_...n_Birthplace_Home_National_Historic_Site

Obviously, if you are building an inspirational backstory, it sounds a lot better to say you're from a place called HOPE rather than Hot Springs, since Hot Springs sounds unserious. It's like saying you grew up in Las Vegas or Myrtle Beach or some other party-sounding place.

What does the "JD" in JD Vance stand for, anyway? And how many times did he change his name? Talk about an inspirational back story!

[jmecklenborg]

Originally Posted by craigs

What does the "JD" in JD Vance stand for, anyway? And how many times did he change his name? Talk about an inspirational back story!

I don't know, I didn't read his book or watch the movie.

Middletown is a no-joke rough place. Lots of vacant homes, vacant overgrown lots, and drug zombies roaming around.

That county has a historically more notorious small city called Hamilton, but in the last 10 years that place has turned around and started getting yuppie stuff like microbreweries and maybe a gym. I went to Middletown for a wedding last summer and there is no hint of any yuppie anything. Tons of empty storefronts. I bet when the national media descended on the place they literally couldn't believe that somebody got out of there.

[ocman_]

Originally Posted by Comrade

I think the craziest thing is how little California has played in not just elected presidents but presidential nominees. In 2024, Kamala Harris was the first Democratic nominee from California.

Only one president, Richard Nixon, was born in California.

Not if you consider where politicians held office or were associated with, rather than where they were born. California then has 4 with Nixon, Reagan, Hoover and Harris.

Birthplace is utterly meaningless compared to which state they eventually called home and built their political career.