# The greatest Americans (Discovery Channel poll)

The ranking from The Greatest American, the 2005 Discovery Channel and AOL show in which about 2.4 million votes were cast. Ronald Reagan won ahead of Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr.

- 405 votes · 21 items
- Nov 5, 2022 · Amber Holmes
- https://even.best/en/l/1033/the-greatest-americans-discovery-channel-poll

## Top 20

1. **Ronald Reagan** (34 · ▲44 ▼10) — 1911-2004. Actor and 40th president; the winner.
2. **Martin Luther King Jr.** (31 · ▲31 ▼0) — 1929-1968. Minister and civil rights leader.
3. **Abraham Lincoln** (28 · ▲32 ▼4) — 1809-1865. 16th president.
4. **Benjamin Franklin** (26 · ▲30 ▼4) — 1706-1790. Author, printer, scientist and politician.
5. **George Washington** (25 · ▲27 ▼2) — 1732-1799. General and first president.
6. **George W. Bush** (19 · ▲22 ▼3) — Born 1946. 43rd president, in office during the poll.
7. **Thomas Edison** (14 · ▲18 ▼4) — 1847-1931. Inventor.
8. **Bill Clinton** (14 · ▲14 ▼0) — Born 1946. 42nd president.
9. **Albert Einstein** (12 · ▲15 ▼3) — 1879-1955. Physicist.
10. **Elvis Presley** (11 · ▲14 ▼3) — 1935-1977. Musician and actor, the King of Rock and Roll.
11. **Billy Graham** (9 · ▲12 ▼3) — 1918-2018. Evangelist minister.
12. **Oprah Winfrey** (8 · ▲13 ▼5) — Born 1954. Talk show host and actress.
13. **Franklin D. Roosevelt** (8 · ▲11 ▼3) — 1882-1945. 32nd president.
14. **Rosa Parks** (7 · ▲10 ▼3) — 1913-2005. Civil rights activist; 22nd.
15. **Eleanor Roosevelt** (7 · ▲7 ▼0) — 1884-1962. First lady, activist and diplomat.
16. **John F. Kennedy** (5 · ▲7 ▼2) — 1917-1963. 35th president.
17. **Bill Gates** (5 · ▲7 ▼2) — Born 1955. Co-founder of Microsoft.
18. **Muhammad Ali** (5 · ▲7 ▼2) — 1942-2016. Boxer; 21st.
19. **Walt Disney** (4 · ▲8 ▼4) — 1901-1966. Animator and film producer.
20. **Bob Hope** (4 · ▲5 ▼1) — 1903-2003. Actor and comedian.
21. **Thomas Jefferson** (3 · ▲8 ▼5) — 1743-1826. Writer and 3rd president.

How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.