On This Day - What Happened On November 7 | Britannica

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2000 Disputed U.S. presidential election On this day in 2000, the U.S. presidential election ended in a statistical tie between Democrat Al Gore and Republican George W. Bush, only to be settled on December 12 by the U.S. Supreme Court after a bitter legal dispute. Mark Wilson/Getty Images

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Marie Curie Polish-born French physicist bornNovember 7, 1867Warsaw, PolanddiedJuly 4, 1934 (aged 66)near Sallanches, FranceThe Granger Collection, New York 1943 Joni Mitchell Canadian singer-songwriter 1918 Billy Graham American evangelist 1913 Albert Camus French author 1888 C.V. Raman Indian physicist 1879 Leon Trotsky Russian revolutionary See All Biographies On This Day

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2016 American lawyer and public official Janet Reno, who was the first female attorney general (1993–2001) of the United States, died at age 78. Take our quiz about the United StatesBarry Thumma/AP Images 2016 Canadian musician Leonard Cohen—a hugely influential singer and songwriter, known for spare songs that carried an existential bite—died at age 82. Can you name the songwriters in our quiz?Istvan Bajzat/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images 2000 American politician Hillary Clinton was elected to the U.S. Senate, becoming the first first lady to win elective office. Test your knowledge of famous firsts for womenU.S. Department of State 1996 NASA launched Mars Global Surveyor, a robotic spacecraft designed to carry out a long-term study of the planet; contact with the spacecraft was lost in 2006. Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about space explorationNASA/JPL/Illustration by Corby Waste 1991 American professional basketball player Magic Johnson announced that he was HIV-positive and was immediately retiring from the sport; he later played part of the 1995–96 season. Test your knowledge of basketball© Jerry Coli/Dreamstime.com 1989 American politician Douglas Wilder was elected governor of Virginia, becoming the first African American to win a U.S. gubernatorial election. Take our quiz about U.S. history and politicsDouglas Wilder 1980 American movie star Steve McQueen, known for his portrayal of macho loners in such films as The Great Escape (1963) and Bullitt (1968), died at age 50. Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about A-list actors© Warner Brothers/Seven Arts 1967 American lawyer and politician Carl Stokes was elected mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, becoming the first African American to lead a major U.S. city.AP/Shutterstock.com 1962 After losing the governor's election in California, American politician Richard Nixon gave what he called his “last press conference,” telling reporters that “you won't have Nixon to kick around any more”; he was elected president six years later. Take our quiz about U.S. presidentsU.S. Department of Defense 1962 Eleanor Roosevelt—who was first lady of the United States and one of the world's most widely admired and powerful women, known as a diplomat and a humanitarian—died in New York City at age 78. How much do you know about U.S. first ladies?Brown Brothers 1944 Franklin D. Roosevelt defeated Thomas E. Dewey and was elected to an unprecedented fourth term as president of the United States. Take our quiz about the road to the presidencyUPI/Bettmann Archive 1940 The Tacoma Narrows Bridge connecting the Olympic Peninsula with Tacoma, Washington, broke up in a wind of about 42 miles (67 km) per hour. How much do you know about bridges?Library of Congress, Washington, DC (LC-USZ62-46682) 1917 The October Revolution (named after the dates of this event in the Julian calendar), the last phase of the Russian Revolution of 1917, ended as the Bolshevik Party seized power in Russia, inaugurating the Soviet regime. Test your knowledge of Russian history© Photos.com/Getty Images 1916 Jeannette Rankin won a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, becoming the first woman elected to Congress.Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 1913 French author Albert Camus, who received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1957 for such classic works as The Stranger (1942), was born. Take our quiz about Nobel laureates in literatureNew York World-Telegram and the Sun Newspaper Photograph Collection/Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (Negative no. LC-USZ62-108028) 1874 Harper's Weekly featured a Thomas Nast cartoon about the possibility of U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant seeking a third term, and the Republican vote was represented by an elephant; the animal, which appeared in several other Republican-related cartoons by Nast, eventually became the party's official logo. Test your knowledge of Republicans and DemocratsLibrary of Congress, Washington, D.C. 1837 Abolitionist newspaper editor Elijah P. Lovejoy was murdered by a mob in Alton, Illinois, while defending his press building.© Melinda Leonard 1811 In the Battle of Tippecanoe, a seasoned U.S. expeditionary force under Major General William Henry Harrison defeated Shawnee Indians led by Tecumseh's brother Laulewasikau (Tenskwatawa), known as the Prophet. Test your knowledge of the history of warfareLibrary of Congress, Washington, D.C. (LC-DIG-pga-01891) SIGN UP FOR History's Biggest Headlines Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors. SIGN UP Thanks for signing up for Today in History. Your first newsletter will arrive soon! SIGN UP By clicking "Sign Up" you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.