Cleveland is the only president in American history to serve two non-consecutive terms in office.[b] He won the popular vote for three presidential elections—in 1884, 1888, and 1892—and was one of two Democrats (followed by Woodrow Wilson in 1912) to be elected president during the era of Republican presidential domination dating from 1861 to 1933.
In 1881, Cleveland was elected mayor of Buffalo, and in 1882, he was elected governor of New York. He was the leader of the pro-business Bourbon Democrats who opposed high tariffs, free silver, inflation, imperialism, and subsidies to business, farmers, or veterans. His crusade for political reform and fiscal conservatism made him an icon for American conservatives of the era.[1] Cleveland won praise for his honesty, self-reliance, integrity, and commitment to the principles of classical liberalism.[2] He fought political corruption, patronage, and bossism. As a reformer, Cleveland had such prestige that the like-minded Republicans, called "Mugwumps", largely bolted the Republican Party's presidential ticket and swung to his support in the 1884 election.[3] As his second administration began, disaster hit the nation when the Panic of 1893 produced a severe national depression. 