United States presidential election of 1960

One of the closest presidential elections in U.S. history. It was especially significant because of the youth and Catholicism of the winning Democratic candidate, John F. Kennedy, and his very narrow margin of victory in popular votes.

Origins and History

Dwight D. Eisenhower, a Republican, won the 1952 and 1956 presidential elections by wide margins. In order for the Democratic Party to win the presidential election of 1960, it needed to nominate presidential and vice presidential candidates who could attract many of the independents and Democrats who had voted for Eisenhower, especially Catholics and southern whites. Encouraged by his landslide reelection to the Senate in 1958, Democratic Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts continued to develop a campaign organization and a national network of supporters for his presidential candidacy. By 1960, Kennedy was the front-runner for his party’s presidential nomination, although he still had to compete with Democratic Senators Hubert H. Humphrey of Minnesota, Wayne Morse of Oregon, Stuart Symington of Missouri, and Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas. Kennedy’s decisive victories in the West Virginia and Wisconsin primaries made his receipt of the presidential nomination more likely. Meanwhile, Vice President Richard M. Nixon faced no significant opposition for the Republican presidential nomination, especially after Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller of New York announced that he would not run for president.

The 1960’s

After being nominated for president at the Democratic National Convention, Kennedy chose Johnson as his vice presidential candidate in order to attract the votes of southern whites and unite his party. Kennedy’s campaign theme, called the New Frontier, stressed that the United States must improve its economy and domestic and foreign policies to compete better against the Soviet Union in the Cold War. Nixon stressed his experience as vice president and his identification with the popular Eisenhower. Public opinion polls often showed that Kennedy and Nixon were roughly even in their voter appeal until the first of four nationally televised debates between them was held. To many viewers, Kennedy appeared confident and articulate while Nixon seemed uneasy and uncertain at times. Kennedy won the election by receiving 303 electoral votes and a popular vote margin of approximately 120,000 votes over Nixon.

Impact

The narrowness of Kennedy’s victory margin, the Republican gain of twenty seats in the House of Representatives, and Kennedy’s focus on foreign policy crises made him initially cautious and selective about introducing liberal, controversial legislation, especially his civil rights bill.

Subsequent Events

President Kennedy was assassinated in Texas in 1963 during a trip to raise campaign funds for the 1964 election. After becoming president and during the 1964 presidential campaign, Johnson emphasized continuity with Kennedy’s ideas and policies.

Presidential Elections of 1960, 1964, 1968

^*Votes cast for president as a percentage of all the U.S. residents of voting age, including noncitizens.

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1996 (116th edition). Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1996.

Additional Information

The most thorough and best-known book about the 1960 election is The Making of the President: 1960 (1961), by Theodore White.