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US President National Vote

RACE DETAILS

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> United States > U.S. Executive > Popular Vote

Office

President

Type

General Election

Filing Deadline

June 01, 1960 - 12:00pm

Polls Open

November 08, 1960 - 06:00am

Polls Close

November 08, 1960 - 08:00pm

Term Start

January 20, 1961 - 12:00pm

Term End

January 20, 1965 - 12:00pm

Contributor

Wishful Thinking

Last Modified

Chronicler November 09, 2008 04:34pm

Data Sources

Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U. S. Elections, second edition

Description

Dwight Eisenhower, like many of the Presidents, found his second term much more of a challenge than his first. His proposed “Eisenhower Doctrine” to contain Communism by sending money for economic development helped to rescue some nations from the lure of Communism, but it was also costly. The President’s insistence on enforcing desegregation of the schools was criticized by advocates of lily white school districts in the South. When the Soviets launched the satellite Sputnik into orbit, many Americans were astounded that their nation had failed to reach that goal sooner; it was the first indication that the Soviet Union was just as much a modern technological nation as the USA. The economy was slipping, and in the midterm elections the Democrats gained 15 Senators and 49 Representatives. Communism flared in Asia, Africa, and Cuba.

The Democrats saw their gains in 1958 as the first step in retaking the White House in 1960. Among the contenders were Sens. John F. Kennedy of MA, Lyndon Johnson of TX, and Hubert Humphrey of MN. Adlai Stevenson and Stuart Symington were other major contenders. Kennedy and Humphrey squared off in Wisconsin, where Kennedy won a narrow victory. The two then faced off in West Virginia, where Kennedy won 48 of the 55 counties; Humphrey withdrew from the race. Kennedy then defeated Sen. Wayne Morse in Morse’s home state of Oregon. When the Democratic National Convention met, Kennedy won a first ballot victory, although the South voted for Sen. Johnson. In an unexpected move, Kennedy recommended Sen. Johnson as his choice for vice president.

The Republican nomination was never in doubt. Vice President Richard M. Nixon won 90% of the votes in primary states. When Gov. Nelson Rockefeller of New York declared his intentions of challenging Nixon in the convention, Nixon paid him a visit. They approved a written agreement on fourteen policy issues, which became part of the Republican platform. The party’s choice for vice president was Henry Cabot Lodge of Massachusetts.

The campaign of 1960 was waged between two candidates who agreed on most issues. Nixon stressed the inexperience of Kennedy and Johnson compared to himself and Lodge; Kennedy criticized Eisenhower and Nixon for allowing the American military to fall behind the Soviets in preparedness. The two participated in televised debates in the final weeks of the campaign. During the debates Kennedy’s performance impressed the voters, and he erased Nixon’s lead in the polls. Over 100 million people watched the debates, which was far more than the 69 million people who cast votes on election day.

John F. Kennedy was narrowly elected President in 1960. He had a mere 115,000 plurality of the popular votes, but he won a clear majority in the electoral votes of 303–219.