John McCain was a presidential nominee in 2008.
He secured the nomination in 2008 after coming back from early reversals , but was defeated by Democratic candidate Barack Obama in the general election , losing by a 365 -- 173 electoral college margin and by 53 -- 46 % in the popular vote .	nomination in 2008	John McCain presidential campaign, 2008	Democratic	Democratic Party (United States)	Barack Obama	Barack Obama	the general election	United States presidential election, 2008	electoral college margin	Electoral College (United States)
The 2008 presidential campaign of John McCain , the longtime senior U.S. Senator from Arizona , was launched with an informal announcement on February 28 , 2007 during a live taping of the Late Show with David Letterman , and formally launched at an event on April 25 , 2007 .	John McCain	John McCain	Arizona	Arizona	U.S. Senator	United States Senate	Late Show with David Letterman	Late Show with David Letterman
