Elections have tended to have more participation in each successive election, due to the increasing population of the United States, and, in some instances, expansion of the right to vote to larger segments of society. Prior to the election of 1824, most states did not have a popular vote. The 1824 election was the first U.S. presidential election where the popular vote was recorded. In the U.S. presidential election system, instead of the nationwide popular vote determining the outcome of the election, the president of the United States is determined by votes cast by electors of the Electoral College.
Here are the top 20 US presidential candidates with the most popular votes.
| Rank | Candidate | Year | Party | Popular vote |
| 1. | Joe Biden | 2020 | Democratic | 81,283,485 |
| 2. | Donald Trump | 2020 | Republican | 74,223,744 |
| 3. | Barack Obama | 2008 | Democratic | 69,498,516 |
| 4. | Barack Obama | 2012 | Democratic | 65,915,795 |
| 5. | Hillary Clinton | 2016 | Democratic | 65,853,514 |
| 6. | Donald Trump | 2016 | Republican | 62,984,828 |
| 7. | George W. Bush | 2004 | Republican | 62,040,610 |
| 8. | Mitt Romney | 2012 | Republican | 60,933,504 |
| 9. | John McCain | 2008 | Republican | 59,948,323 |
| 10. | John Kerry | 2004 | Democratic | 59,028,444 |
| 11. | Ronald Reagan | 1984 | Republican | 54,455,472 |
| 12. | Al Gore | 2000 | Democratic | 50,999,897 |
| 13. | George W. Bush | 2000 | Republican | 50,456,002 |
| 14. | George H. W. Bush | 1988 | Republican | 48,886,597 |
| 15. | Bill Clinton | 1996 | Democratic | 47,401,185 |
| 16. | Richard Nixon | 1972 | Republican | 47,168,710 |
| 17. | Bill Clinton | 1992 | Democratic | 44,909,889 |
| 18. | Ronald Reagan | 1980 | Republican | 43,903,230 |
| 19. | Lyndon B. Johnson | 1964 | Democratic | 43,127,041 |
| 20. | Michael Dukakis | 1988 | Democratic | 41,809,074 |
