<P> William Howard Taft Republican </P> <P> Woodrow Wilson Democratic </P> <P> The United States presidential election of 1912 was the 32nd quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 5, 1912 . Democratic Governor Woodrow Wilson of New Jersey unseated incumbent Republican President William Howard Taft and defeated Former President Theodore Roosevelt, who ran as the Progressive Party ("Bull Moose") nominee . Roosevelt remains the only third party presidential candidate in U.S. history to finish better than third in the popular or electoral vote . </P> <P> Roosevelt had served as president from 1901 to 1909, and Taft had won the 1908 Republican president nomination with Roosevelt's support . Displeased with Taft's actions as president, Roosevelt challenged Taft at the 1912 Republican National Convention . After Taft and his conservative allies narrowly prevailed at the Republican convention, Roosevelt rallied his progressive supporters and launched a third party bid . Backed by William Jennings Bryan and other progressives, Wilson won the Democratic Party's presidential nomination on the 46th ballot, defeating Speaker of the House Champ Clark and several other candidates . Meanwhile, the Socialist Party renominated its perennial standard - bearer, Eugene V. Debs . </P>

Who ran in the presidential election of 1912 how were the candidates different
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