The 50 Craziest Political Smear Ads

When an election is on the line, sometimes you have to vote "Yes" for mud-slinging.

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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Political campaigns are like car accidents—we know what's happening, we know nothing good can come of them, and yet we all stop and stare. The only difference, in fact, is that America's political campaigns run for months. Months and months of sclerotic, uninspired sniping that culminate in elections that often resemble, at best, a carnival of somewhat intelligent men and women acting like clowns in the hopes that they'll trip on something, anything, that will stir the American public to the polls.

So how do they do it? Campaign ads, of course. Whether they're painting their opponents as coroners thirsting for organs or demon sheep, politicians vying for positions of power spend millions of dollars vying for your eyeballs and attention. With the most outlandish campaigns in mind, we did the unthinkable, so you don't even have to think about it: We sifted through decades of vicious smear ads and found the 50 most outrageous, effective, ridiculous, confusing, and ill-inspired TV spots of all time. Here are the results.

Written by Alex Suskind (@ClassicSource) and Kia Makarechi (@Kia_Mak)

50. Uncovered

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49. Plastic Men

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48. John McCain = George W. Bush

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47. Tank Ride

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46. Charlie Wheelen's Here!

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45. Welcome To Nevada

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44. Corrupt

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43. Oval Office

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42. McGovern Defense

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41. #1 v. #47

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40. Weathervane

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39. Platform Double Talk

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38. The Unofficial Department Of Peace

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37. Windsurfing

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36. Kick in the Pants

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35. Visual Aid

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34. Traditional American Values

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33. Convention

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32. McCain's Disabilities

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31. The Governor's Race

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30. Joe & O

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29. The Threat

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28. Susie

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27. Obama And Wright: He Never Complained Once

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26. San Francisco Values

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25. Who Is Buying Ronnie Musgrove?

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24. Politicians Are A Lot Like Diapers

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23. KKK

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22. FCINY: Fiscal Conservative In Name Only

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21. Godless Americans

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20. Innocent Animals Are Even Fair Game

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19. Forgotten Crimes

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18. A Bump In The Road

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17. "Harold, Call Me!"

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16. Don't Protect Rapists

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15. Laughing At Spiro T. Agnew

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14. Copying The Governator

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13. Was He A Muslim?

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12. "Gather. Your. Armies."

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11. Finish The Job

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10. John McCain And Cancer

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9. From Bad To Bizarre

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8. What Is David Price Afraid Of?

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7. We Are Better Than That

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6. "Daisy"

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5. Comprehensive Sex Education

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4. Trickle Down Economics

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3. Willie Horton

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2. Coroners Taking Organs!

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1. License

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