Some history that may help here

You certainly know who Donald John Trump is, but how about Stephen Grover Cleveland? The native of New York state won the presidency in 1884 as a bachelor and married Francis Folsom Cleveland, a 21 year-old woman who was 28 years younger than him, on June 2, 1886. For perspective, Donald Trump was born on June 14, 1946. First Lady Melania Trump was born on April 26, 1970. President Trump is nearly 24 years older than his wife.

Following the electoral college victory of Benjamin Harrison in 1888 and with Harrison's inauguration approaching on March 4, 1889, Mrs. Cleveland assured the White House staff that the Cleveland family would return four years later. Call it women's intuition or, perhaps, just a great sense of what was going on in our great nation. The outgoing first lady turned out to be right, and the youngest first lady in our history came back into the role with her husband on March 4, 1893.

Grover Cleveland was the first Democrat to be elected following the Civil War and twenty-four years of Republican rule. President Andrew Johnson, Democratic military governor of Tennessee, was named as running mate for Republican Abraham Lincoln in 1864. Johnson assumed the presidency following the assassination of Lincoln in April of 1865 and left office upon the inauguration of Ulysses S. Grant on March 4, 1869.

Cleveland is the only Democrat to hold the presidency between Andrew Johnson and Woodrow Wilson, who was elected president in 1912 and took office on March 4, 1913. Cleveland was the first Democrat elected president since James Buchanan in 1856.

Per Wikipedia, Cleveland was elected as mayor of Buffalo, New York, in 1881 and elected governor of the state of New York in 1882. Wikipedia goes on to describe him as such: A "Bourbon Democrat", Cleveland was for business and against high tariffs and subsidies to businesses, farmers, and Civil War veterans. Ironically, he was an icon for American conservatives during his era of time.

Cleveland was always known for honesty, self-reliance, and integrity. He was dubbed a "classic liberal" by his colleagues.

But Cleveland's record was not spotless. At issue in 1884 was his alleged fatherhood of Oscar Folsom Cleveland, a child he allegedly conceived with Maria Crofts Halpin. Cleveland admitted to paying child support to Ms. Halpin.

The Republican chant: "Ma. Ma. Where's my Pa?" After Cleveland's election, the Democratic response: "Gone to the White House. HA HA HA."

After his defeat to Benjamin Harrison in 1888, Cleveland, a member of the New York bar since 1859, returned to New York city, where he practiced law. Fishing also became a passion for the former (and future) president.

The 1892 Democratic National Convention was held in Chicago (this event was also held in Chicago in this year of 2024). After securing the nomination of his party, Cleveland headed to a rematch with President Benjamin Harrison of Indiana.

As election day 1892 approached, another, more personal, issue arose: President Harrison's wife, Caroline, was diagnosed with tuberculosis and died on October 25, 1892. Campaigning was suspended for a time during this illness. It is believed that the first lady died from a combination of tuberculosis, typhoid, and influenza.

A calm election ended with a Cleveland victory, 277-145 over Harrison. Populist party candidate James B. Weaver won 22 electoral votes in western states.

Any political honeymoon following President Cleveland's second inauguration on March 4, 1893, was short-lived. The stock market crash and economic Panic of 1893 caused labor unrest, business failures, farm mortgage foreclosures, and unemployment. The issue of currency backed by gold or silver was major at the time. Cleveland's strong stance against railroad strikers inspired Americans, but the Democratic party became dominated by activists and office holders who favored a silver standard over Cleveland's pro-gold stance.

Republican William McKinley easily defeated Democratic nominee William Jennings Bryan in 1896. Following McKinley's inauguration on March 4, 1897, Cleveland retired to his estate in New Jersey. He was a trustee of Princeton University for a time and stayed active in politics until his death in 1908.

Since Donald Trump's re-election, some media outlets are finally mentioning President Cleveland. The heated campaigns of the late 19th century are similar in some ways to what our country is experiencing now. Cleveland was number 22 and number 24. Trump will be number 45 and number 47.

History will always provide lessons from the past that help us as we move toward the future.

Credit to the White House website and to Wikipedia for some great information for this article.