And the Winning Candidate Is...
It is a privilege to present Ann E. Parkerís work on Declinations and the Presidency, a research study that began in the late 1980s. This article may be the last of Annís work and it explains how to use a declination aspect to determine which candidate has the best chance of winning an election and what may result from the aspect after the election.
The declination aspect for the 2008 election season is found in the article, The Presidents and the Controlled Release of Power where the candidates Obama and McCain plus a number of contenders (including Joe Biden) are explored.
Is Hillary Clinton going to run for President in 2008? Could the winner of the close race between Gore and Bush have been predicted? Astrologer Charles Jayne thought so, and that was enough for me to begin an expanding research study of Presidential elections.
Jayne said he had found that Presidents were often elected when transiting Saturn by declination was parallel or contra-parallel the birth Sun's declination. (Declination is measured north and south of the Earth's equator and aspects are parallel or contra-parallel). To this we can add Saturn approaching parallel and contra-parallel, Saturn separating from parallel and contra-parallel and perhaps those Presidents who had no aspects as all.
I am not suggesting that we eliminate the tools of transits and progressions in longitude. This is a special study of five aspect relationships in declination.
Approaching Parallels to the Birth Sun
These represent the controlled use of power which can create change – both nationally and internationally. Examples are George Washington, Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman.
Contra-parallels seem to time disagreements both internal and international. We often get wars with Congress and wars with other countries. The Civil War comes under this heading. Examples are: Abraham Lincoln, John Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton.
Separating from Parallels and Contra-Parallels
Presidents with less focus, power and accomplishment; power has often peaked and passed. Examples: Ulysses Grant and Gerald Ford.
The President brought no significant changes of direction for the country. He may have faced extreme opposition or been out of touch with the country's true needs and viewpoints. Examples are Andrew Johnson, Herbert Hoover, and Jimmy Carter. The President may also have operated above the Saturn level – a visionary leader, inspirational, but without toughness and practicality. A possible example is James Madison.
Here are some examples of the aspects at work. (Detailed data in Figure 1)
Franklin D. Roosevelt's four terms in office represent the first two relationships (approaching parallel and contra-parallel). In 1932, Saturn by declination was approaching a parallel to his birth Sun, an aspect which became exact in 1933 when he began his first term. The country was in deep depression with 13 million unemployed. Within months, he was proposing and Congress was enacting sweeping programs to bring recovery to business and agriculture, relief to the unemployed and those in danger of losing farms and homes. Other reforms included Social Security, heavier taxes on the wealthy, new controls over banks and public utilities, plus an enormous work relief program. A period of intense, directed power from Saturn was released as it approached parallel to his birth Sun. But the energy is also cooperative (parallel), marking the support from Congress.
FDR began his third term in 1941, the year of Pearl Harbor and the exact contra-parallel of transiting Saturn to his natal Sun. It was the beginning of a period of power and conflict. When England came under siege, Roosevelt sent Great Britain all possible and short of actual military involvement. After Pearl Harbor, he directed the organization of the country's manpower and later helped to plan the United Nations.
Abraham Lincoln was another wartime President who had transiting Saturn contra-parallel his birth Sun – an aspect which was exact in 1859, the year before his election. For some time the issue of slavery had created rising tension between the northern and southern states, and Lincoln had been a powerful advocate for the freedom of the slaves. At the time of his election in 1860, transiting Saturn was 4 degrees past contra-parallel plunging Lincoln immediately unto the conflict. Lincoln believed secession from the Union was illegal, and when Confederate batteries forced the surrender of Fort Sumter. Lincoln called on the states for 75,000 volunteers.
John F. Kennedy and Richard NixonThe 1960 election of Kennedy over Nixon was one of the closest and most questionable in history. Both candidates had Saturn approaching contra-parallel (the battle) within a few minutes of arc.
Bill Clinton and George Bush (father)In November 1992, when Clinton defeated George Bush, Saturn was approaching a contra-parallel to Clinton's birth Sun. At the same time, Saturn was separating from a contra-parallel to Bush's Sun.
George W. Bush and Al GoreOn election night 2000, Saturn had reached +17:33 declination moving away from Al Gore's birth Sun at +4:10. Saturn will not parallel his Sun again until 2008. Meanwhile, Saturn continues to approach Bush's birth at +22:44 until it becomes exact in May 2004.
Hillary ClintonHillary Clinton is another possible candidate for 2008. At that time, Saturn will be contra-parallel to her birth Sun – a fighting aspect.
Other Presidents with Separating AspectsUlysses Grant was a superb Union general, but he was not cut out to be a President. His directness, the logical, purposeful mind that served him in military life was overwhelmed by the subtlety, misdirection and flattery of politics.
Grant had Saturn moving away from a contra-parallel (conflict) to his Sun at the time he was elected President in 1868 – in other words, the contra-parallel had occurred three years earlier while he was masterminding the last Civil War battle and accepting the surrender of Lee at Appomattox, Virginia, on April 9, 1865.
Grover Cleveland had Saturn (+21:47) moving away from a contra-parallel to his Sun during his first term in 1884. During this time, he vetoed over 300 bills passed by Congress – more than the previous 21 presidents put together – a clear contra-parallel conflict with that body. By his second term in 1892, Saturn was moving toward a parallel to his birth Sun at -00:50. His terms in office were unremarkable, but he worked hard and did what he thought was right, whether it was popular of not.
Gerald Ford: At the time he became President on August 9, 1974, following Richard Nixon's resignation (the first President ever); Saturn was separating from parallel with his birth Sun by only 8 minutes of declination – as powerful as any approaching parallel. By 1975 Saturn was separating from his Sun and he lost the election to Jimmy Carter. Ford's integrity and openness were the necessary ingredients during this time of distrust and betrayal, but he was not a strong President.
No AspectsMore difficult to understand are those Presidents with no declination parallel or contra-parallel between transiting Saturn and the birth Sun. These are: James Madison, James Garfield, Zachary Taylor, Warren Harding, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover and Jimmy Carter. John Tyler, Millard Fillmore and Andrew Johnson were never elected, and Grover Cleveland had no aspect in his first term as President in 1884, but did in his second term in 1892. Eight of these ten Presidents served only one term. The single exception was James Madison. Three of the ten died in office.
James Madison contributed to the ratification of the Constitution by writing, with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, the Federalist essays. In 1803, when the parallel was exact, he was serving as Jefferson's Secretary of State. He protested the seizure of American ships b Britain and France. On June 1, 1812, shortly after the beginning of his second term, he asked Congress to declare war, although the nation was not prepared to fight. British troops entered Washington and set fire to the White House and Capital. Andrew Jackson's victory at New Orleans helped convince many that the war had really been a great success. Madison was a visionary whose greatest contributions occurred before becoming President.
James Garfield died from an assassin's bullet on September 19, 1881, after only 6 months in office. He had little time to effect the direction of the nation.
Calvin Coolidge was a do-nothing President. Walter Lippmann in 1926 said the political genius of Coolidge “was his talent for effective doing nothing.:” He called for isolation in foreign policy, limited aid to farms, twice vetoed farm relief bills, and killed a plan to produce cheap Federal electric power on the Tennessee River. (aspect??)
Herbert Hoover served his country abroad and at home for 50 years, but during his Presidential term beginning in 1928 he failed completely to grasp the danger to the economy. He said: “We in America today are nearer to the final triumph over poverty than ever before in the history of any land.” Within months, the stock market crashed and the national spiraled downward unto depression. In 1931 he reiterated his view that while people must not suffer from hunger and cold, caring for them must be primarily a local and voluntary responsibility.
Jimmy Carter, (one of the visionaries), was elected President in 1976. He aspired to make the Government “competent and compassionate.” But in an era of rising energy costs, mounting inflation, and continuing tensions, it was impossible to meet these high expectations. Efforts to reduce inflation and interest rates caused a short recession. In foreign affairs, he championed human rights. In 1978 he helped to bring peace between Egypt and Israel through the Camp David agreement. But contributing to his defeat in 1980 was inflation and his inability to free the 52 U.S. Embassy hostages in Iran until the day he left office.
54 Presidential Elections by Declination
|YEAR||WINNER||SATURN TRANSIT||LOSER||SATURN TRANSIT|
|1788||G. Washington||Toward parallel||John Adams||Toward parallel|
|1792||G. Washington||No aspect||John Adams||No aspect|
|1796||John Adams||No aspect||Thomas Jefferson||No aspect|
|1800||Thomas Jefferson||Toward parallel||Aaron Burr||Toward parallel|
|1804||Thomas Jefferson||No aspect||Charles Pinckney||No aspect|
|1808||James Madison||No aspect||Charles Pinckney||No aspect|
|1812||James Madison||No aspect||DeWitt Clinton||No aspect|
|1816||James Monroe||Toward contra-pl||Rufus King||No aspect|
|1820||James Monroe||No aspect||John Q. Adams||No aspect|
|1824||John Q. Adams||Toward parallel||Andrew Jackson||No aspect|
|1828||Andrew Jackson||No aspect||John Q. Adams||No aspect|
|1832||Andrew Jackson||Toward parallel||Henry Clay||No aspect|
|1836||Martin Van Buren||Toward parallel||Wm. H. Harrison||No aspect|
|1840||Wm. H. Harrison||No aspect||Martin Van Buren||Leaving parallel|
|1844||James K. Polk||Toward parallel||Henry Clay||No aspect|
|1848||Zachary Taylor||No aspect||Lewis Cass||Toward parallel|
|1852||Franklin Pierce||Toward contra-pl||Winfield Scott||No aspect|
|1856||James Buchanan||Toward parallel||John Fremont||No aspect|
|1860||Abraham Lincoln||Toward contra-pl||John Breckinridge||No aspect|
|1864||Abraham Lincoln||No aspect||George B. McClellan||No aspect|
|1866||Ulysses Grant||Leaving contra-pl||Horatio Seymour||No aspect|
|1872||Ulysses Grant||No aspect||Horace Greeley||No aspect|
|1876||Rutherford Hayes||Toward parallel||Samuel Tilden||Toward parallel|
|1880||James Garfield||No aspect||Winfield Hancock||No aspect|
|1884||Grover Cleveland||No aspect||James Blaine||No aspect|
|1888||Benjamin Harrison||Toward parallel||Grover Cleveland||No aspect|
|1892||Grover Cleveland||Leaving parallel||Benjamin Harrison||No aspect|
|1896||William McKinley||Toward parallel||William J. Bryan||No aspect|
|1900||William McKinley||No aspect||William J. Bryan||No aspect|
|1904||Theodore Roosevelt||Toward parallel||Alton B. Parker||Leaving contra-pl|
|1908||Wm. Howard Taft||Toward parallel||William J. Bryan||Leaving contra-pl|
|1912||Woodrow Wilson||No aspect||Theodore Roosevelt||No aspect|
|1916||Woodrow Wilson||Twd c-pl;notexact||Charles Hughes||No aspect|
|1920||Warren Harding||No aspect||James Cox||
|1924||Calvin Coolidge||No aspect||John Davis||
|1928||Herbert Hoover||No aspect||Al Smith||
|1932||Franklin Roosevelt||Toward parallel||Herbert Hoover||
|1936||Franklin Roosevelt||No aspect||Alfred Landon||
|1940||Franklin Roosevelt||Leaving contra-pl||Wendell Willkie||
|1944||Franklin Roosevelt||No aspect||Thomas E. Dewey||
|1948||Harry Truman||Toward parallel||Thomas E. Dewey||
|1952||Dwight Eisenhower||Toward parallel||Adlai Stevenson||
|1956||Dwight Eisenhower||No aspect||Adlai Stevenson||
|1960||John F. Kennedy||Toward contra-pl||Richard Nixon||
|1964||Lyndon Johnson||Toward contra-pl||Barry Goldwater||No aspect|
|1968||Richard Nixon||No aspect||Hubert Humphrey||
|1972||Richard Nixon||Toward contra-pl||George McGovern||
|1976||Jimmy Carter||No aspect||Gerald Ford||
|1980||Ronald Reagan||No aspect||Jimmy Carter||
|1984||Ronald Reagan||Toward contra-pl||Walter Mondale||
|1988||George Bush||Toward contra-pl||Michael Dukakis||
|1992||Bill Clinton||Toward contra-pl||George Bush||
|1996||Bill Clinton||No aspect||Robert Dole||
|2000||George W. Bush||Toward parallel||Al Gore||
Annís list ends in 2000 where she writes that 4 Presidents were not elected; they took office after the death of a President Ė John Tyler, Millard Fillmore, Andrew Johnson, and Chester Arthur.
Additional information provided by C. Egan which is not included in the election totals:
|2004||George W. Bush||Leaving parallel||John Kerry||Leaving contra-pl|
|Pre2008||John McCain||Leaving parallel||n/a||n/a|
|Pre2008||Barack Obama||Leaving parallel||n/a||n/a|
|54 Election Totals|
|Approaching parallel birth Sun||18 (30%)||Toward parallel||8 (15%)|
|Approaching contra-parallel||10(18%)||Toward contra-pl||3 (8%)|
|Total:||28 (48%)||Total:||11 (21%)|
|Leaving parallel||0||Leaving parallel||1 (2%)|
|Leaving contra-pl||3 (6%)||Leaving contra-pl||4 (7%)|
|No aspect||25 (46%)||No aspect||38 (70%)|
|Aspects for 43 Presidents|
|Saturn approaching parallel birth||16 Presidents||(37.2%)|
|Saturn approaching contra-parallel Sun||11 Presidents||(25.6%)|
|Saturn approaching parallel/contra-parallel||27 Presidents||(62.8%)|
|Saturn leaving parallel Sun||2 Presidents||(4.8%)|
|Saturn leaving contra-parallel Sun||2 Presidents||(4.6%)|
|No Saturn parallel /contra-parallel||12 Presidents||(27.9%)|
From 1788 to 2000, there were 54 elections and 43 Presidents – explained by the fact that a number of Presidents were elected to more than one term. So the first thing I needed to do in my declination study was to separate the administrations from the elections. The administrations would show the relative power of the Presidency; the elections would show the flow of energy from the people/electors, the changing attitudes of the country (Figure 2).
Approaching Parallels and Contra-Parallels
Sixteen Presidents (37.2%) had Saturn approaching parallel the birth Sun. Eleven more (25.6%) had Saturn approaching contra-parallel. Combining these two factors, we have a powerful 62.8% of the Presidents – 27 of them taking office under the approaching phase. The same trend appeared in the 54 winning election totals, the approaching parallels and contra-parallels reached 48%. Transiting Saturn closing on a parallel or contra-parallel turned out to be the strongest indicator of election to office.
Only four Presidents had Saturn separating from a parallel or contra-parallel to the birth Sun and another three separations appeared among the winners in the election totals. So separating aspects don’t help either winners or losers. No aspects between Saturn and the Sun doesn’t help much either. In the election totals, 70% of the losers and 28% of the Presidents had no aspect. In 18 elections, both candidates had no aspects. The winners had 46%. They might still sneak through if there were a few positive indicators.
Much remains to be done in this study – perhaps a more thorough study of the lives of both Presidents and losers. But, I think we have established that transiting Saturn, parallel or contra-parallel to the birth Sun does seem to affect the outcome of presidential elections.
©copyright 2002, Ann E. Parker
Reprinted by Carolyn Egan with permission from Barbara Junceau, present copyright holder.
August 22, 2008