Richard Nixon presidential campaign, 1968
Encyclopedia
The Richard Nixon presidential campaign of 1968 began when the former Vice President
Richard Milhous Nixon
of New York
launched his successful run for President of the United States
following a year of preparation and five years of political reorganization after defeats in the 1960 Presidential election
, and the 1962 California Gubernatorial race
.
En route to the Republican Party
nomination, Nixon faced challenges from Michigan
Governor
George Romney
, New York Governor
Nelson Rockefeller
, California
Governor
Ronald Reagan
, and Illinois
Senator Charles Percy
. Nixon won most of the state primaries, and gained enough delegate strength to secure the nomination on the first ballot at the Republican National Convention
. He named Maryland
Governor
Spiro Agnew
as his running mate
.
In the general election, Nixon emphasized "law and order
" and hoped to position himself as the champion of the silent majority
. He attempted to place less emphasis on the controversial Vietnam War
by claiming he had a "secret plan" to end it. He ran well ahead of his opponent, Vice President Hubert Humphrey
, in the polls, but slipped in the polls after refusing to take part in presidential debates
, and following an announcement from the Democratic president Lyndon B. Johnson
that a bombing halt had been achieved in Vietnam.
Nixon won in a close election on November 5, 1968, and was inaugurated as the 37th President of the United States on January 20, 1969.
Nixon served as a member of the United States Congress
representing the 12th District of California
from 1947 until his election
to the Senate
in 1950. During this time, he gained a reputation as an ardent anti-Communist
. Selected by Republican Party Presidential nominee Dwight D. Eisenhower
as his running mate in the 1952 presidential election
, Nixon was elected and served as Vice President at the height of the Cold War
. During his tenure, he traveled the world on "goodwill tours", promoting pro-American policies. He was re-elected to the position in 1956
. At the end of Eisenhower's second term in 1960, the Republican Party nominated Nixon as their presidential candidate. He lost in a close election to John F. Kennedy
, which many credited in part to his uncomfortable disposition during the first televised debate. After a defeat in the 1962 California Gubernatorial race, Nixon was labeled a "loser" by the media. This defeat was widely believed to be the end of his career; in an impromptu concession speech the morning after the election, Nixon famously blamed the media for favoring his opponent, saying, "You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore because, gentlemen, this is my last press conference." In September, the New York Post
published an article claiming that campaign donors were buying influence with Nixon by providing him with a secret cash fund for his personal expenses. He moved to New York, joined the Mudge Rose Guthrie Alexander & Ferdon
law firm, regrouped, considered, but decided against a run for president in 1964, and later began to plan for a 1968 presidential campaign.
Republican presidential nominee, Senator Barry Goldwater
of Arizona
. Although the Senator remarked that his party continued to believe that Nixon "can't be elected" due to his "loser" label. A "Nixon for President Committee" formed that month, and headquarters for the organization opened in Washington D.C. in late May.
During the spring and summer, Nixon went on international voyages to Eastern Europe
and Latin America
to tout his foreign policy credentials. He returned in August and conducted meetings with his advisors to formulate a solid campaign strategy; two days later his campaign manager
, Gaylord Parkinson, left his position to care for his ailing wife. Commentators opined that the vacancy built "an element of instability" for the campaign. The position was soon temporarily filled by former Governor
Henry Bellmon
of Oklahoma
. The next week, five staff members were fired after private investigators determined that information had been leaked to the campaigns of potential primary rivals Governor Nelson Rockefeller of New York and Governor Ronald Reagan of California. The news did not stall the progression of the campaign, and soon Nixon, Mudge, Rose, Guthrie & Alexander member Leonard Garment
assembled an advertising team that included CBS Television president Frank Shakespeare
.
By mid-September 1967, the Nixon campaign had organized headquarters in four states deemed critical to the Republican primaries. Nixon hoped the moves would increase his delegate strength and demonstrate his "ability to win." He notified the media that his decision on whether to run for president would be officially announced anytime between early December and February. Meanwhile, Nixon and his staff discussed plans for the handling of the war in Vietnam. They advised him to soften his stance on the war, and encouraged him to shift his focus from foreign affairs to domestic policy
in order to avoid the divisive war and peace issue. Observers noted that this move potentially hurt Nixon by straying from his image "as a foreign policy expert."
In October, political experts predicted that Nixon would gain delegates in the important states of New Hampshire
, Wisconsin
and Nebraska
during the primary season, scheduled to begin in March 1968. They noted that in the other critical state of Oregon
, Ronald Reagan would have an advantage due to the proximity of his home state. Like Nixon, rival George Romney began to organize in these states. Romney officially announced his candidacy in November, prompting Nixon to step up his efforts. He spent most of this period on the campaign trail in New Hampshire. Observers following Nixon noted that during this period, he seemed more relaxed and easy-going than in his past political career. One commentator examined that he was not "the drawn, tired figure who debated Jack Kennedy or the angry politician who conceded his California [Gubernatorial] defeat with such ill grace." He also began making appearances at fundraisers in his adopted home state of New York, helping to raise $300,000 for the re-election campaign of Senator Jacob K. Javits
. At the end of December, Time Magazine labeled Nixon as the "man to beat."
Nixon entered 1968 as the front-runner for the Republican nomination. However, polls suggested that in a head to head match up with incumbent President Lyndon Johnson, Nixon trailed in a 50% to 41% contest. Later in the month, Nixon embarked on a tour of Texas
. During a stop, he lampooned President Johnson's State of the Union address, asking "Can this nation afford to have four more years of Lyndon Johnson's policies that have failed at home and abroad?" At this time, reports suggested that Nixon would formally announce his bid in February.
. As a result, he began to also campaign in Wisconsin where the second primary would be held. During a stop, he briefly discussed Vietnam while not going into detail, stating that the United States "must prevent [such] confrontations"
but that the nation must also "help people in the free world fight against aggression, but not do their fighting for them." He used the dictatorships
in Latin America as an example, stating: "I am talking not about marching feet but helping hands." As military operations increased in Vietnam in mid-February, Nixon's standing against President Johnson improved. A Harris poll
showed that the candidate trailed the president 43% to 48%. Near the end of the month, Nixon's announced opponent George Romney exited the race, mostly due to comments he made about being "brainwashed" during a visit to Vietnam. The move left Nixon nearly unopposed for the upcoming primaries, and narrowed his presidential nomination opponents to Nelson Rockefeller and Ronald Reagan, neither of whom had announced their candidacy.
Because of Romney's exit, Nixon declared in early March that he would "greatly expand [his] efforts in the non-primary states." Time Magazine observed that Nixon could now focus his political attacks solely on President Johnson. However, the void also caused problems for Nixon. Time argued that the prospect of soundly defeating second tier candidates such as former Governor of Minnesota
Harold Stassen
in the primaries, would not "electrify the voters." The Nixon campaign countered this claim stating that Romney's withdrawal was a "TKO
" at the hands of Nixon. Meanwhile, Rockefeller began to be viewed more as a candidate, articulating that he did not want to split the party but was "willing to serve...if called." As talks of other candidates persisted, Nixon continued to campaign and discussed the issues. He made a pledge
to end the war in Vietnam, but would not go into detail, drawing some criticism. Nixon easily won the New Hampshire primary on March 12, pulling in 80% of the vote with a write-in campaign
for Rockefeller receiving 11%. At the end of March, Rockefeller announced that he would not campaign for the presidency, but would be open to being drafted
. Nixon doubted a draft stating that it would only be likely if "I make some rather serious mistake." Reports suggested that the decision caused "Nixon's political stock [to] skyrocket." Gallup polls at this time revealed that Nixon led President Johnson 41% to 39% in a three way race with American Independent Party
candidate and former Governor George Wallace
of Alabama
.
As the Wisconsin Primary
loomed in early April, Nixon's only obstacle seemed to be preventing his supporters from voting in the Democratic primary for Senator Eugene McCarthy
of Minnesota
as a protest to President Johnson. However, Johnson withdrew from the race before the primary. Ronald Reagan's name was on the ballot in Wisconsin but he did not campaign in the state and was still not a declared candidate. Nixon won the primary with 80% followed by Reagan with 11% and Stassen with 6%. With Johnson removed from the race, Nixon fell behind Democratic candidates Eugene McCarthy, Hubert Humphrey and Robert Kennedy in head to head match-ups. At the end of April, Nixon called for a moratorium on criticism of the Johnson policy in Vietnam as negotiations were underway: "The one man who can do anything about peace is Lyndon Johnson, and I'm not going to do anything to undercut him". However, the Democratic candidates for president remained fair game for criticism. He argued that "A divided Democratic Party cannot unite a divided country; a united Republican Party can." He also began to discuss economics
more frequently, announcing that he planned to cut spending while criticizing the Democratic policy of raising taxes
. During a question and answer session with the American Society of Newspaper Editors
, Nixon spoke extemporaneously and received numerous interruptions of applause. The largest came when he addressed the issue of crime, proclaiming that "there cannot be order in a free society without progress, and there cannot be progress without order."
On the last day of April, Rockefeller announced that he would campaign for the presidency despite his previous statement that he would not run. Immediately following his entrance, he defeated Nixon in the Massachusetts
primary 30% to 26%. New Harris polls found that Rockefeller fared better against Democratic candidates than Nixon. But the outlook started to look better for Nixon after he won the Indiana
primary over Rockefeller. Off the victory, Nixon campaigned in Nebraska where he criticized the three leading Democratic candidates as "three peas in a pod, prisoners of the policies of the past." He then proposed a plan to tackle crime that included wiretapping, legislation to counter previous Supreme Court
decisions, the forming of a congressional committee
targeting crime and reforms to the criminal justice system
. He did not connect crime to racial rioting
, drawing praise from Civil Rights
leaders. Nixon won the primary in Nebraska, defeating the non-candidate Reagan 71% to 22%. At the next primary, in Oregon, Reagan seemed more willing to compete with Nixon, and Rockefeller sat out. But Nixon won with 72%, fifty points ahead of Reagan.
In early June, Nixon continued to be regarded as the favorite to win the nomination, but observers noted that he had not yet "locked up" the nomination. He still faced challenges from Nelson Rockefeller and Ronald Reagan, and was not on the ballot in California, where Reagan won a large slate of delegates. Behind the scenes, Nixon workers lobbied for delegates from "favorite son
" candidates. As a result, Nixon received the backing of Senator Howard Baker
of Tennessee
, and the 28 delegates he had amassed, as well as the 58 delegates belonging to Senator Charles Percy
of Illinois
. After the assassination of Robert Kennedy
, like the other candidates, Nixon took a break from campaigning. Reports suggested that the assassination all but assured his nomination. Upon returning to the trail, Nixon found that Rockefeller began to attack him. Rockefeller described Nixon as a man "of the old politics" who has "great natural capacity not to do the right thing, especially under pressure." Nixon refused to respond to the remarks, stating that he would not participate in attacks. As he edged closer to the nomination, discussions about his running mate arose. Republicans in the mid-west pushed for New York Mayor John Lindsay
to be selected. The endorsement of Nixon by Senator Mark Hatfield
of Oregon raised speculation that he might be chosen. Congressman George Bush of Texas and Charles Percy were also mentioned as possible selections. At the end of the month, Nixon had two thirds of the required 667 delegates necessary to win the nomination.
On July 1, Nixon received the endorsement of Senator John G. Tower of Texas, handing him at least 40 delegates. With his nomination all but assured, Nixon's ad team began preparing for the general election. A series of advertisements featuring panel question and answer sessions with Nixon and friends of campaign staffers were filmed in New York. The tapes were sent to the swing states of Ohio, Michigan and Illinois, giving Nixon the advantage of advertising long before the Democratic Party settled on a candidate. At this time, Nixon decided with a group of legislators that "crime and disorder" would be presented as the number one issue in the nation. This continued to be a major theme of the Nixon campaign, and would continue to be used extensively during the general election. Nixon publicly announced his opposition to the military draft
, proposing to replace the current system with a volunteer army
incentivized with higher pay. Former President Dwight Eisenhower gave Nixon his endorsement in mid-July, breaking his tradition of waiting until after the primary, because of the election's importance. By the end of July, reports circulated that Nixon had 691 probable delegates for the convention, placing him over the 667 delegate threshold. However, Rockefeller disputed these numbers. Sources within Washington reported that Reagan caused greater concern for the Nixon campaign than Rockefeller. A possible scenario surfaced where Nixon's southern delegates would drop their support to back the more conservative Reagan. However, Nixon staffers believed that if such a scenario occurred, liberal Rockefeller delegates in the Northeast would support Nixon to prevent a Reagan nomination.
in Miami Beach, Florida
. At the convention, Richard Nixon won the nomination for President on the first ballot with 692 delegates. Rockefeller finished in second with 277 delegates followed by Ronald Reagan, who had just entered the race, and compiled 182 delegates. Nixon's early nomination occurred partly because he held on to delegates in the South largely influenced by Senator Strom Thurmond
of South Carolina
and delegate Charlton Lyons
of Louisiana
. After the nomination, Nixon held his hands in the air with two "v" signs
of victory and delivered the acceptance speech he had been writing for the past two weeks. In the speech, he remarked: "Tonight I do not promise the millennium in the morning. I don't promise that we can eradicate poverty and end discrimination in the space of four or even eight years. But I do promise action. And a new policy for peace abroad, a new policy for peace and progress and justice at home." He called for a new era of negotiation with communist nations, a strengthening of the criminal justice system to fight crime, and marked himself as a champion of the American Dream
. Nixon also discussed economics, articulating his opposition to social welfare, and advocating programs designed to help African Americans start their own small business
es. By the end of the address, he promised that "the long dark night for America is about to end." Following the speech, Nixon selected Governor Spiro Agnew of Maryland as his running mate. Agnew was relatively unknown nationally, and was selected due to his alleged appeal to African Americans, and work for the Nixon campaign after an embarrassing experience as the head of the Draft Rockefeller movement. Agnew was nominated at the convention without much opposition. Observers later noted that the convention had featured Nixon as the centrist
candidate with Rockefeller to his left and Reagan to his right. The same analysis applied to the general campaign, as commentators noted that Nixon would stand to the right of the still undecided Democratic nominee but would fall to the left of American Independent Party candidate George Wallace.
, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania and New York. He tapped Roger Ailes
to produce one hour television programs to advertise the campaign to strategically chosen regions. The campaign also continued to use panel segments throughout the general election, opting to air live, using real citizens whom they instructed to ask tough questions because the campaign believed that Nixon responded well to such questions. He started his ground campaign for the general election with a tour of the mid-west. While on his first stop in Springfield, Illinois
, he discussed the importance of unity, stating that "America [now] needs to be united more than any time since Lincoln
." He then traveled to Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania before returning to New York for a meeting with former rival Nelson Rockefeller. In the latest Gallup polls following the convention, Nixon led Humphrey 45% to 29% and topped McCarthy 42% to 37%. At the end of the month, Hubert Humphrey narrowly won Democratic presidential nominee over McCarthy at a protest filled convention
. Pundits argued that the split party and lack of "law and order" at the convention placed Nixon in a good position. Around this time, Nixon began regularly receiving briefings about the Vietnam War from President Johnson. Johnson also explained to Nixon that he did not want the war to be politicized, and Nixon agreed but questioned whether Humphrey would also comply.
Following the Democratic convention, Nixon continued to be labeled as the front-runner for the presidency and was described as "relaxed [and] confident," counter to his "unsure" self from 1960. Observers also wondered if even the Democratic President Johnson favored Nixon over Humphrey. Nixon traveled to Chicago to campaign and was greeted by a large crowd, estimated at several hundred thousand. In the city, he used his campaign tactic of televised town hall meeting
s before a citizen panel, to speak to audiences throughout the state of Illinois. Prior to his visit, he called upon Senator Edward Brooke
of Massachusetts, the highest ranking African American in the U.S. government, to campaign with him on trips to Illinois and California. Nixon referred to Brooke as "one of my top advisers" while in Chicago and during a visit to San Francisco
. Observers described this as an attempt by Nixon to further gain favor with the African American community. In mid-September, Nixon's running mate Spiro Agnew went on the offensive against Humphrey, acting in a role assigned by Nixon advisers. He referred to the Vice President as being "soft on Communism
" as well as inflation
and "law and order," and compared him to former British Prime Minister
Neville Chamberlain
. At this time, Nixon sent advisor and former Governor of Pennsylvania William Scranton
on an overseas fact finding trip in Europe to gain intelligence on the Western alliance and Soviet
issues. In response to Humphrey's calls for a face to face debate, Nixon remarked: "Before we can have a debate between Nixon and Humphrey, Humphrey's got to settle his debate with himself." Nixon campaigned in San Francisco, in front of 10,000 supporters amidst an array of protests. The candidate took on the protesters first hand, and delivered his "forgotten American" speech, declaring that election day would be "a day of protest for the forgotten American" which included those that "obey the law, pay their taxes, go to church, send their children to school, love their country and demand new leadership." By the end of the month, many in the Nixon campaign believed his election was guaranteed and began to prepare for the transition period
, despite Nixon's warning that "the one thing that can beat us now is overconfidence." Gallup polls showed Nixon leading Humphrey 43% to 28% at the end of September.
In early October, commentators weighed in on Nixon's advantage, explaining that he could legitimately blame the Johnson administration for the Vietnam War, and use campaign advertisements with images of dead American soldiers while avoiding discussion about the war with the excuse that he did not want to disrupt the peace talks in Paris. However, anti-war protesters
heckled Nixon repeatedly on the campaign trail. Nixon addressed the American Conservative Union
on October 9, and argued that George Wallace's American Independent Party candidacy could split the anti-Administration vote, and help the Democrats. The Union decided to back Nixon over Wallace, labeling the third party candidate's beliefs as "Populist
." As Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Edmund Muskie
criticized Nixon for his connections to Strom Thurmond, Nixon continued to oppose a possible debate with Humphrey and Wallace as well as a debate between the running mates on the basis that he did not want to give Wallace any more exposure. Observers argued that Nixon also opposed debates due to his experience during the 1960 encounter with John F. Kennedy, which many cited as a factor in his defeat. In another lesson learned from 1960, the campaign employed 100,000 workers to oversee Election day
polling sites to prevent a recurrence of what many Republicans viewed as 1960's stolen election. Nixon went on a train campaign tour of Ohio near the end of October. From the back of the "Nixon Victory Special" car, he bashed Vice President Humphrey as well as the Secretary of Agriculture
and Attorney General of the Johnson cabinet, for farmer's debt and the rising crime rate. At this time, the campaign released two controversial television advertisements juxtaposing a smiling Humphrey with images of the Vietnam War and the chaos at the 1968 Democratic National Convention; the advertisements aroused protests from the Humphrey campaign. By the end of October, Nixon began to lose his edge over Humphrey; he led only 44% to 36% in Gallup polls, down five points from a few weeks earlier. Observers noted that the decline was related to Nixon's refusal to debate.
At the beginning of November, President Johnson announced that a bombing halt had been achieved in Vietnam. Observers noted that the development significantly helped Humphrey, although Nixon had given his support to the talks. At this time, Nixon operative Anna Chennault secretly spoke with the South Vietnamese and explained that they could receive a better deal under Nixon. This charge, along with remarks from Nixon supporter and future Defense Secretary
Melvin Laird that Johnson deliberately misinformed Nixon during briefs, angered the President. He spoke with the Nixon supporters Senate Minority Leader
Everett Dirkson and Senator George Smathers
of Florida, who informed Nixon of Johnson's frustration. Two days before the election, Nixon went on Meet the Press
and explained that he would cooperate completely with Johnson. He then phoned the President after the appearance and personally reassured him. The final Harris poll before the election showed Nixon trailing Humphrey 43% to 40%, but Gallup's final poll showed Nixon leading 42% to 40%. On the eve of the election, Nixon and Humphrey bought time on rival television networks to make their final pleas to the American people. Nixon appeared on NBC
, while his Democratic challenger went on ABC
. Nixon used this appearance to counter the surge given to Humphrey by the bombing halt, claiming that he had just received "a very disturbing report" that tons of supplies were being moved into South Vietnam
by the North
. Humphrey labeled this charge as "irresponsible", causing Nixon to counter that Humphrey "doesn't know what's going on." Overall, Nixon spent $6,270,000 on television advertising, most of which was judged to have only reinforced supporters.
. He won re-election in 1972
, and thereafter brought an end to the American involvement in Vietnam. He resigned the presidency in 1974, following the discovery of his role in the cover-up of the Watergate Scandal
. Nixon retired from public life and served as an elder statesman until his death in 1994.
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
Richard Milhous Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
launched his successful run for President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
following a year of preparation and five years of political reorganization after defeats in the 1960 Presidential election
United States presidential election, 1960
The United States presidential election of 1960 was the 44th American presidential election, held on November 8, 1960, for the term beginning January 20, 1961, and ending January 20, 1965. The incumbent president, Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower, was not eligible to run again. The Republican Party...
, and the 1962 California Gubernatorial race
California gubernatorial election, 1962
The California gubernatorial election, 1962 was held on November 6, 1962. The Democratic incumbent, Pat Brown, ran for re-election against former Vice President Richard Nixon...
.
En route to the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
nomination, Nixon faced challenges from Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
Governor
Governor of Michigan
The Governor of Michigan is the chief executive of the U.S. State of Michigan. The current Governor is Rick Snyder, a member of the Republican Party.-Gubernatorial elections and term of office:...
George Romney
George W. Romney
George Wilcken Romney was an American businessman and Republican Party politician. He was chairman and CEO of American Motors Corporation from 1954 to 1962, the 43rd Governor of Michigan from 1963 to 1969, and the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 1969 to 1973...
, New York Governor
Governor of New York
The Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...
Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller was the 41st Vice President of the United States , serving under President Gerald Ford, and the 49th Governor of New York , as well as serving the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower administrations in a variety of positions...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
Governor
Governor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
, and Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
Senator Charles Percy
Charles H. Percy
Charles Harting "Chuck" Percy was president of the Bell & Howell Corporation from 1949 to 1964. He was elected United States Senator from Illinois in 1966, re-elected through his term ending in 1985; he concentrated on business and foreign relations...
. Nixon won most of the state primaries, and gained enough delegate strength to secure the nomination on the first ballot at the Republican National Convention
1968 Republican National Convention
The 1968 National Convention of the Republican Party of the United States was held in at the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami Beach, Dade County, Florida, from August 5 to August 8, 1968....
. He named Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
Governor
Governor of Maryland
The Governor of Maryland heads the executive branch of the government of Maryland, and he is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The Governor is the highest-ranking official in the state, and he has a broad range of appointive powers in both the State and local governments,...
Spiro Agnew
Spiro Agnew
Spiro Theodore Agnew was the 39th Vice President of the United States , serving under President Richard Nixon, and the 55th Governor of Maryland...
as his running mate
Running mate
A running mate is a person running together with another person on a joint ticket during an election. The term is most often used in reference to the person in the subordinate position but can also properly be used when referring to both candidates, such as "Michael Dukakis and Lloyd Bentsen were...
.
In the general election, Nixon emphasized "law and order
Law and order (politics)
In politics, law and order refers to demands for a strict criminal justice system, especially in relation to violent and property crime, through harsher criminal penalties...
" and hoped to position himself as the champion of the silent majority
Silent majority
The silent majority is an unspecified large majority of people in a country or group who do not express their opinions publicly. The term was popularized by U.S...
. He attempted to place less emphasis on the controversial Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
by claiming he had a "secret plan" to end it. He ran well ahead of his opponent, Vice President Hubert Humphrey
Hubert Humphrey
Hubert Horatio Humphrey, Jr. , served under President Lyndon B. Johnson as the 38th Vice President of the United States. Humphrey twice served as a United States Senator from Minnesota, and served as Democratic Majority Whip. He was a founder of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party and...
, in the polls, but slipped in the polls after refusing to take part in presidential debates
United States presidential election debates
During presidential elections in the United States, it has become customary for the main candidates to engage in a debate...
, and following an announcement from the Democratic president Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
that a bombing halt had been achieved in Vietnam.
Nixon won in a close election on November 5, 1968, and was inaugurated as the 37th President of the United States on January 20, 1969.
Background
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
representing the 12th District of California
California's 12th congressional district
California's 12th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California that spans from the southwestern portions of San Francisco in the north down to San Mateo in the south, and from Moss Beach in the west to the edge of San Mateo in the east, where it borders...
from 1947 until his election
United States Senate election in California, 1950
The 1950 United States Senate election in California followed a campaign characterized by accusations and name-calling. Republican Richard Nixon defeated Democrat Helen Gahagan Douglas, after Democratic incumbent Sheridan Downey withdrew during the primary election campaign...
to the Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
in 1950. During this time, he gained a reputation as an ardent anti-Communist
Anti-communism
Anti-communism is opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed in reaction to the rise of communism, especially after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia and the beginning of the Cold War in 1947.-Objections to communist theory:...
. Selected by Republican Party Presidential nominee Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
as his running mate in the 1952 presidential election
United States presidential election, 1952
The United States presidential election of 1952 took place in an era when Cold War tension between the United States and the Soviet Union was escalating rapidly. In the United States Senate, Republican Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin had become a national figure after chairing congressional...
, Nixon was elected and served as Vice President at the height of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. During his tenure, he traveled the world on "goodwill tours", promoting pro-American policies. He was re-elected to the position in 1956
United States presidential election, 1956
The United States presidential election of 1956 saw a popular Dwight D. Eisenhower successfully run for re-election. The 1956 election was a rematch of 1952, as Eisenhower's opponent in 1956 was Democrat Adlai Stevenson, whom Eisenhower had defeated four years earlier.Incumbent President Eisenhower...
. At the end of Eisenhower's second term in 1960, the Republican Party nominated Nixon as their presidential candidate. He lost in a close election to John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
, which many credited in part to his uncomfortable disposition during the first televised debate. After a defeat in the 1962 California Gubernatorial race, Nixon was labeled a "loser" by the media. This defeat was widely believed to be the end of his career; in an impromptu concession speech the morning after the election, Nixon famously blamed the media for favoring his opponent, saying, "You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore because, gentlemen, this is my last press conference." In September, the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
published an article claiming that campaign donors were buying influence with Nixon by providing him with a secret cash fund for his personal expenses. He moved to New York, joined the Mudge Rose Guthrie Alexander & Ferdon
Mudge Rose Guthrie Alexander & Ferdon
Mudge Rose Guthrie Alexander & Ferdon was a prominent New York City law firm tracing its origin back to 1869. The firm is known best as the legal launching pad of Richard M. Nixon. For the period during which Nixon was a senior partner, the firm was renamed to Nixon, Mudge, Rose, Guthrie &...
law firm, regrouped, considered, but decided against a run for president in 1964, and later began to plan for a 1968 presidential campaign.
Early stages
On January 8, 1967, Nixon held a secret meeting with his closest advisers to discuss a potential campaign and brainstorm strategies to obtain enough delegates to win the Republican presidential nomination. He asked the attendees to not discuss the meeting with anyone, but to subtly spread word that he would run for president. The next month, during an interview with the Saturday Evening Post, Nixon flatly denied that he was running for president. Polls from this period suggested that he was the front-runner for the Republican nomination. A February Gallup poll showed Nixon leading Michigan Governor George Romney, his closest rival, 52% to 40%. At this time, he quietly began efforts to organize in New Hampshire, Wisconsin, Indiana, Nebraska and Oregon in order to secure victories in those state's primaries for the following year. In March, he gained the support of the 1964United States presidential election, 1964
The United States presidential election of 1964 was held on November 3, 1964. Incumbent President Lyndon B. Johnson had come to office less than a year earlier following the assassination of his predecessor, John F. Kennedy. Johnson, who had successfully associated himself with Kennedy's...
Republican presidential nominee, Senator Barry Goldwater
Barry Goldwater
Barry Morris Goldwater was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona and the Republican Party's nominee for President in the 1964 election. An articulate and charismatic figure during the first half of the 1960s, he was known as "Mr...
of Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. Although the Senator remarked that his party continued to believe that Nixon "can't be elected" due to his "loser" label. A "Nixon for President Committee" formed that month, and headquarters for the organization opened in Washington D.C. in late May.
During the spring and summer, Nixon went on international voyages to Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
and Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
to tout his foreign policy credentials. He returned in August and conducted meetings with his advisors to formulate a solid campaign strategy; two days later his campaign manager
Campaign manager
A campaign manager is a paid or volunteer individual, whose role is to coordinate the campaign's operations such as fundraising, advertising, polling, getting out the vote , and other activities supporting the effort, directly.Apart from the candidate, they are often a campaign's most visible leader...
, Gaylord Parkinson, left his position to care for his ailing wife. Commentators opined that the vacancy built "an element of instability" for the campaign. The position was soon temporarily filled by former Governor
Governor of Oklahoma
The governor of the state of Oklahoma is the head of state for the state of Oklahoma, United States. Under the Oklahoma Constitution, the governor is also the head of government, serving as the chief executive of the Oklahoma executive branch, of the government of Oklahoma...
Henry Bellmon
Henry Bellmon
Henry Louis "Harry" Bellmon was an American Republican politician from Oklahoma. He was a member of the Oklahoma Legislature, the 18th and 23rd Governor of Oklahoma , and a two-term United States Senator.-Service in World War II:Bellmon was born in Tonkawa, Oklahoma and graduated from Billings...
of Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
. The next week, five staff members were fired after private investigators determined that information had been leaked to the campaigns of potential primary rivals Governor Nelson Rockefeller of New York and Governor Ronald Reagan of California. The news did not stall the progression of the campaign, and soon Nixon, Mudge, Rose, Guthrie & Alexander member Leonard Garment
Leonard Garment
Leonard Garment was acting Special Counsel to U.S. President Richard Nixon for the last two years of his presidency.Garment was born in Brooklyn, New York. In 1949, Garment joined the law firm of Mudge, Stern, Baldwin, and Todd. He became the head of litigation and a partner in the late fifties...
assembled an advertising team that included CBS Television president Frank Shakespeare
Frank Shakespeare
Francis J. Shakespeare is a former American diplomat and media executive. He was the president of CBS Television before entering public service. He served as the United States Ambassador to Portugal from 1985 to 1986 and the United States Ambassador to the Holy See from 1986 to 1989...
.
By mid-September 1967, the Nixon campaign had organized headquarters in four states deemed critical to the Republican primaries. Nixon hoped the moves would increase his delegate strength and demonstrate his "ability to win." He notified the media that his decision on whether to run for president would be officially announced anytime between early December and February. Meanwhile, Nixon and his staff discussed plans for the handling of the war in Vietnam. They advised him to soften his stance on the war, and encouraged him to shift his focus from foreign affairs to domestic policy
Domestic policy
Domestic policy, also known as public policy, presents decisions, laws, and programs made by the government which are directly related to all issues and activity within the country....
in order to avoid the divisive war and peace issue. Observers noted that this move potentially hurt Nixon by straying from his image "as a foreign policy expert."
In October, political experts predicted that Nixon would gain delegates in the important states of New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
and Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
during the primary season, scheduled to begin in March 1968. They noted that in the other critical state of Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, Ronald Reagan would have an advantage due to the proximity of his home state. Like Nixon, rival George Romney began to organize in these states. Romney officially announced his candidacy in November, prompting Nixon to step up his efforts. He spent most of this period on the campaign trail in New Hampshire. Observers following Nixon noted that during this period, he seemed more relaxed and easy-going than in his past political career. One commentator examined that he was not "the drawn, tired figure who debated Jack Kennedy or the angry politician who conceded his California [Gubernatorial] defeat with such ill grace." He also began making appearances at fundraisers in his adopted home state of New York, helping to raise $300,000 for the re-election campaign of Senator Jacob K. Javits
Jacob K. Javits
Jacob Koppel "Jack" Javits was a politician who served as United States Senator from New York from 1957 to 1981. A liberal Republican, he was originally allied with Governor Nelson Rockefeller, fellow U.S...
. At the end of December, Time Magazine labeled Nixon as the "man to beat."
Nixon entered 1968 as the front-runner for the Republican nomination. However, polls suggested that in a head to head match up with incumbent President Lyndon Johnson, Nixon trailed in a 50% to 41% contest. Later in the month, Nixon embarked on a tour of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. During a stop, he lampooned President Johnson's State of the Union address, asking "Can this nation afford to have four more years of Lyndon Johnson's policies that have failed at home and abroad?" At this time, reports suggested that Nixon would formally announce his bid in February.
Primary campaign
On February 1 in New Hampshire, Nixon announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination, commenting that problems "beyond politics" needed to be addressed. Immediately following his entrance, the advertising team prepared for the ad campaign. They watched video of Nixon and determined that he was at his best when speaking spontaneously. The team organized a question and answer session with seven members of the New Hampshire Republican Party, and taped Nixon's responses to be edited and used in advertisements. He campaigned in the state, even though polls suggested that he would easily win its primaryNew Hampshire primary
The New Hampshire primary is the first in a series of nationwide political party primary elections held in the United States every four years , as part of the process of choosing the Democratic and Republican nominees for the presidential elections to be held the subsequent November.Although only a...
. As a result, he began to also campaign in Wisconsin where the second primary would be held. During a stop, he briefly discussed Vietnam while not going into detail, stating that the United States "must prevent [such] confrontations"
but that the nation must also "help people in the free world fight against aggression, but not do their fighting for them." He used the dictatorships
Military dictatorship
A military dictatorship is a form of government where in the political power resides with the military. It is similar but not identical to a stratocracy, a state ruled directly by the military....
in Latin America as an example, stating: "I am talking not about marching feet but helping hands." As military operations increased in Vietnam in mid-February, Nixon's standing against President Johnson improved. A Harris poll
Harris Interactive
Harris Interactive , headquartered in New York, New York, is a custom market research firm, known for the Harris Poll. Harris works in a wide range of industries...
showed that the candidate trailed the president 43% to 48%. Near the end of the month, Nixon's announced opponent George Romney exited the race, mostly due to comments he made about being "brainwashed" during a visit to Vietnam. The move left Nixon nearly unopposed for the upcoming primaries, and narrowed his presidential nomination opponents to Nelson Rockefeller and Ronald Reagan, neither of whom had announced their candidacy.
Because of Romney's exit, Nixon declared in early March that he would "greatly expand [his] efforts in the non-primary states." Time Magazine observed that Nixon could now focus his political attacks solely on President Johnson. However, the void also caused problems for Nixon. Time argued that the prospect of soundly defeating second tier candidates such as former Governor of Minnesota
Governor of Minnesota
The Governor of Minnesota is the chief executive of the U.S. state of Minnesota, leading the state's executive branch. Forty different people have been governors of the state, though historically there were also three governors of Minnesota Territory. Alexander Ramsey, the first territorial...
Harold Stassen
Harold Stassen
Harold Edward Stassen was the 25th Governor of Minnesota from 1939 to 1943. After service in World War II, from 1948 to 1953 he was president of the University of Pennsylvania...
in the primaries, would not "electrify the voters." The Nixon campaign countered this claim stating that Romney's withdrawal was a "TKO
Knockout
A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...
" at the hands of Nixon. Meanwhile, Rockefeller began to be viewed more as a candidate, articulating that he did not want to split the party but was "willing to serve...if called." As talks of other candidates persisted, Nixon continued to campaign and discussed the issues. He made a pledge
Election promise
An election promise is a promise made to the public by a politician who is trying to win an election. They have long been a central element of elections and remain so today...
to end the war in Vietnam, but would not go into detail, drawing some criticism. Nixon easily won the New Hampshire primary on March 12, pulling in 80% of the vote with a write-in campaign
Write-in candidate
A write-in candidate is a candidate in an election whose name does not appear on the ballot, but for whom voters may vote nonetheless by writing in the person's name. Some states and local jurisdictions allow a voter to affix a sticker with a write-in candidate's name on it to the ballot in lieu...
for Rockefeller receiving 11%. At the end of March, Rockefeller announced that he would not campaign for the presidency, but would be open to being drafted
Draft (politics)
In elections in the United States, political drafts are used to encourage or pressure a certain person to enter a political race, by demonstrating a significant groundswell of support for the candidate. A write-in campaign may also be considered a draft campaign.-The movement to draft Dwight D....
. Nixon doubted a draft stating that it would only be likely if "I make some rather serious mistake." Reports suggested that the decision caused "Nixon's political stock [to] skyrocket." Gallup polls at this time revealed that Nixon led President Johnson 41% to 39% in a three way race with American Independent Party
American Independent Party
The American Independent Party is a right-wing political party of the United States that was established in 1967 by Bill and Eileen Shearer. In 1968, the American Independent Party nominated George C. Wallace as its presidential candidate and retired Air Force General Curtis E. LeMay as the vice...
candidate and former Governor George Wallace
George Wallace
George Corley Wallace, Jr. was the 45th Governor of Alabama, serving four terms: 1963–1967, 1971–1979 and 1983–1987. "The most influential loser" in 20th-century U.S. politics, according to biographers Dan T. Carter and Stephan Lesher, he ran for U.S...
of Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
.
|
As the Wisconsin Primary
Wisconsin Primary
The Wisconsin primary was the first presidential primary, first taking place in 1908, and continuing for at least a century. Three presidents have lost it, and it has been pivotal during most of the 20th century....
loomed in early April, Nixon's only obstacle seemed to be preventing his supporters from voting in the Democratic primary for Senator Eugene McCarthy
Eugene McCarthy
Eugene Joseph "Gene" McCarthy was an American politician, poet, and a long-time member of the United States Congress from Minnesota. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1949 to 1959 and the U.S. Senate from 1959 to 1971.In the 1968 presidential election, McCarthy was the first...
of Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
as a protest to President Johnson. However, Johnson withdrew from the race before the primary. Ronald Reagan's name was on the ballot in Wisconsin but he did not campaign in the state and was still not a declared candidate. Nixon won the primary with 80% followed by Reagan with 11% and Stassen with 6%. With Johnson removed from the race, Nixon fell behind Democratic candidates Eugene McCarthy, Hubert Humphrey and Robert Kennedy in head to head match-ups. At the end of April, Nixon called for a moratorium on criticism of the Johnson policy in Vietnam as negotiations were underway: "The one man who can do anything about peace is Lyndon Johnson, and I'm not going to do anything to undercut him". However, the Democratic candidates for president remained fair game for criticism. He argued that "A divided Democratic Party cannot unite a divided country; a united Republican Party can." He also began to discuss economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
more frequently, announcing that he planned to cut spending while criticizing the Democratic policy of raising taxes
Tax policy
Tax policy is the government's approach to taxation, both from the practical and normative side of the question.-Philosophy:Policymakers debate the nature of the tax structure they plan to implement and how they might affect individuals and businesses .The reason for such foitution effect]],...
. During a question and answer session with the American Society of Newspaper Editors
American Society of Newspaper Editors
The American Society of News Editors is a membership organization for editors, producers or directors in charge of journalistic organizations or departments, deans or faculty at university journalism schools, and leaders and faculty of media-related foundations and training organizations...
, Nixon spoke extemporaneously and received numerous interruptions of applause. The largest came when he addressed the issue of crime, proclaiming that "there cannot be order in a free society without progress, and there cannot be progress without order."
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
primary 30% to 26%. New Harris polls found that Rockefeller fared better against Democratic candidates than Nixon. But the outlook started to look better for Nixon after he won the Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
primary over Rockefeller. Off the victory, Nixon campaigned in Nebraska where he criticized the three leading Democratic candidates as "three peas in a pod, prisoners of the policies of the past." He then proposed a plan to tackle crime that included wiretapping, legislation to counter previous Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
decisions, the forming of a congressional committee
United States Congressional committee
A congressional committee is a legislative sub-organization in the United States Congress that handles a specific duty . Committee membership enables members to develop specialized knowledge of the matters under their jurisdiction...
targeting crime and reforms to the criminal justice system
Criminal justice
Criminal Justice is the system of practices and institutions of governments directed at upholding social control, deterring and mitigating crime, or sanctioning those who violate laws with criminal penalties and rehabilitation efforts...
. He did not connect crime to racial rioting
Race riot
A race riot or racial riot is an outbreak of violent civil disorder in which race is a key factor. A phenomenon frequently confused with the concept of 'race riot' is sectarian violence, which involves public mass violence or conflict over non-racial factors.-United States:The term had entered the...
, drawing praise from Civil Rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
leaders. Nixon won the primary in Nebraska, defeating the non-candidate Reagan 71% to 22%. At the next primary, in Oregon, Reagan seemed more willing to compete with Nixon, and Rockefeller sat out. But Nixon won with 72%, fifty points ahead of Reagan.
In early June, Nixon continued to be regarded as the favorite to win the nomination, but observers noted that he had not yet "locked up" the nomination. He still faced challenges from Nelson Rockefeller and Ronald Reagan, and was not on the ballot in California, where Reagan won a large slate of delegates. Behind the scenes, Nixon workers lobbied for delegates from "favorite son
Favorite son
A favorite son is a political term.*At the quadrennial American national political party conventions, a state delegation sometimes nominates and votes for a candidate from the state, or less often from the state's region, who is not a viable candidate...
" candidates. As a result, Nixon received the backing of Senator Howard Baker
Howard Baker
Howard Henry Baker, Jr. is a former Senate Majority Leader, Republican U.S. Senator from Tennessee, White House Chief of Staff, and a former United States Ambassador to Japan.Known in Washington, D.C...
of Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, and the 28 delegates he had amassed, as well as the 58 delegates belonging to Senator Charles Percy
Charles Percy
Charles Percy may refer to:*Charles H. Percy , United States Senator and businessman*Charles "Don Carlos" Percy , founder of a wealthy lineage in the southern United States...
of Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. After the assassination of Robert Kennedy
Robert F. Kennedy assassination
The assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, a United States Senator and brother of assassinated President John F. Kennedy, took place shortly after midnight on June 5, 1968, in Los Angeles, California...
, like the other candidates, Nixon took a break from campaigning. Reports suggested that the assassination all but assured his nomination. Upon returning to the trail, Nixon found that Rockefeller began to attack him. Rockefeller described Nixon as a man "of the old politics" who has "great natural capacity not to do the right thing, especially under pressure." Nixon refused to respond to the remarks, stating that he would not participate in attacks. As he edged closer to the nomination, discussions about his running mate arose. Republicans in the mid-west pushed for New York Mayor John Lindsay
John Lindsay
John Vliet Lindsay was an American politician, lawyer and broadcaster who was a U.S. Congressman, Mayor of New York City, candidate for U.S...
to be selected. The endorsement of Nixon by Senator Mark Hatfield
Mark Hatfield
Mark Odom Hatfield was an American politician and educator from the state of Oregon. A Republican, he served for 30 years as a United States Senator from Oregon, and also as chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee...
of Oregon raised speculation that he might be chosen. Congressman George Bush of Texas and Charles Percy were also mentioned as possible selections. At the end of the month, Nixon had two thirds of the required 667 delegates necessary to win the nomination.
On July 1, Nixon received the endorsement of Senator John G. Tower of Texas, handing him at least 40 delegates. With his nomination all but assured, Nixon's ad team began preparing for the general election. A series of advertisements featuring panel question and answer sessions with Nixon and friends of campaign staffers were filmed in New York. The tapes were sent to the swing states of Ohio, Michigan and Illinois, giving Nixon the advantage of advertising long before the Democratic Party settled on a candidate. At this time, Nixon decided with a group of legislators that "crime and disorder" would be presented as the number one issue in the nation. This continued to be a major theme of the Nixon campaign, and would continue to be used extensively during the general election. Nixon publicly announced his opposition to the military draft
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
, proposing to replace the current system with a volunteer army
Volunteer military
A volunteer military or all-volunteer military is one which derives its manpower from volunteers rather than conscription or mandatory service. A country may offer attractive pay and benefits through military recruitment to attract volunteers...
incentivized with higher pay. Former President Dwight Eisenhower gave Nixon his endorsement in mid-July, breaking his tradition of waiting until after the primary, because of the election's importance. By the end of July, reports circulated that Nixon had 691 probable delegates for the convention, placing him over the 667 delegate threshold. However, Rockefeller disputed these numbers. Sources within Washington reported that Reagan caused greater concern for the Nixon campaign than Rockefeller. A possible scenario surfaced where Nixon's southern delegates would drop their support to back the more conservative Reagan. However, Nixon staffers believed that if such a scenario occurred, liberal Rockefeller delegates in the Northeast would support Nixon to prevent a Reagan nomination.
Republican National Convention
The Republican National Convention was held from August 5 to 9 at the Miami Beach Convention CenterMiami Beach Convention Center
Miami Beach Convention Center is an indoor arena in Miami Beach, Florida and it is currently the largest convention center in the Miami area. It now features 4 large rooms each holding about 12,000 people.- History :...
in Miami Beach, Florida
Miami Beach, Florida
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States, incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on a barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter which separates the Beach from Miami city proper...
. At the convention, Richard Nixon won the nomination for President on the first ballot with 692 delegates. Rockefeller finished in second with 277 delegates followed by Ronald Reagan, who had just entered the race, and compiled 182 delegates. Nixon's early nomination occurred partly because he held on to delegates in the South largely influenced by Senator Strom Thurmond
Strom Thurmond
James Strom Thurmond was an American politician who served as a United States Senator. He also ran for the Presidency of the United States in 1948 as the segregationist States Rights Democratic Party candidate, receiving 2.4% of the popular vote and 39 electoral votes...
of South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
and delegate Charlton Lyons
Charlton Lyons
Charlton Havard Lyons, Sr., also known as Big Papa Lyons , was a Shreveport oilman who in 1964 waged the first determined Republican bid for the Louisiana governorship since Reconstruction. Lyons also made a strong but losing bid for the United States House of Representatives in a special election...
of Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. After the nomination, Nixon held his hands in the air with two "v" signs
V sign
The V sign is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted, while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the cultural context and how it is presented...
of victory and delivered the acceptance speech he had been writing for the past two weeks. In the speech, he remarked: "Tonight I do not promise the millennium in the morning. I don't promise that we can eradicate poverty and end discrimination in the space of four or even eight years. But I do promise action. And a new policy for peace abroad, a new policy for peace and progress and justice at home." He called for a new era of negotiation with communist nations, a strengthening of the criminal justice system to fight crime, and marked himself as a champion of the American Dream
American Dream
The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States in which freedom includes a promise of the possibility of prosperity and success. In the definition of the American Dream by James Truslow Adams in 1931, "life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each...
. Nixon also discussed economics, articulating his opposition to social welfare, and advocating programs designed to help African Americans start their own small business
Small business
A small business is a business that is privately owned and operated, with a small number of employees and relatively low volume of sales. Small businesses are normally privately owned corporations, partnerships, or sole proprietorships...
es. By the end of the address, he promised that "the long dark night for America is about to end." Following the speech, Nixon selected Governor Spiro Agnew of Maryland as his running mate. Agnew was relatively unknown nationally, and was selected due to his alleged appeal to African Americans, and work for the Nixon campaign after an embarrassing experience as the head of the Draft Rockefeller movement. Agnew was nominated at the convention without much opposition. Observers later noted that the convention had featured Nixon as the centrist
Centrism
In politics, centrism is the ideal or the practice of promoting policies that lie different from the standard political left and political right. Most commonly, this is visualized as part of the one-dimensional political spectrum of left-right politics, with centrism landing in the middle between...
candidate with Rockefeller to his left and Reagan to his right. The same analysis applied to the general campaign, as commentators noted that Nixon would stand to the right of the still undecided Democratic nominee but would fall to the left of American Independent Party candidate George Wallace.
General election
As the general election began, Nixon decided that he would focus his efforts on the "big seven" states of California, Texas, OhioOhio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania and New York. He tapped Roger Ailes
Roger Ailes
Roger Eugene Ailes is president of Fox News Channel, chairman of the Fox Television Stations Group. Ailes was a media consultant for Republican presidents Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W...
to produce one hour television programs to advertise the campaign to strategically chosen regions. The campaign also continued to use panel segments throughout the general election, opting to air live, using real citizens whom they instructed to ask tough questions because the campaign believed that Nixon responded well to such questions. He started his ground campaign for the general election with a tour of the mid-west. While on his first stop in Springfield, Illinois
Springfield, Illinois
Springfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...
, he discussed the importance of unity, stating that "America [now] needs to be united more than any time since Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
." He then traveled to Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania before returning to New York for a meeting with former rival Nelson Rockefeller. In the latest Gallup polls following the convention, Nixon led Humphrey 45% to 29% and topped McCarthy 42% to 37%. At the end of the month, Hubert Humphrey narrowly won Democratic presidential nominee over McCarthy at a protest filled convention
1968 Democratic National Convention
The 1968 Democratic National Convention of the U.S. Democratic Party was held at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois, from August 26 to August 29, 1968. Because Democratic President Lyndon Johnson had announced he would not seek a second term, the purpose of the convention was to...
. Pundits argued that the split party and lack of "law and order" at the convention placed Nixon in a good position. Around this time, Nixon began regularly receiving briefings about the Vietnam War from President Johnson. Johnson also explained to Nixon that he did not want the war to be politicized, and Nixon agreed but questioned whether Humphrey would also comply.
Following the Democratic convention, Nixon continued to be labeled as the front-runner for the presidency and was described as "relaxed [and] confident," counter to his "unsure" self from 1960. Observers also wondered if even the Democratic President Johnson favored Nixon over Humphrey. Nixon traveled to Chicago to campaign and was greeted by a large crowd, estimated at several hundred thousand. In the city, he used his campaign tactic of televised town hall meeting
Town hall meeting
A town hall meeting is an American English term given to an informal public meeting. Everybody in a town community is invited to attend, not always to voice their opinions, but to hear the responses from public figures and elected officials about shared subjects of interest. Attendees rarely voted...
s before a citizen panel, to speak to audiences throughout the state of Illinois. Prior to his visit, he called upon Senator Edward Brooke
Edward Brooke
Edward William Brooke, III is an American politician and was elected to the United States Senate as a Republican from Massachusetts in 1966, defeating his Democratic opponent, Endicott Peabody, 60.7%–38.7%...
of Massachusetts, the highest ranking African American in the U.S. government, to campaign with him on trips to Illinois and California. Nixon referred to Brooke as "one of my top advisers" while in Chicago and during a visit to San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. Observers described this as an attempt by Nixon to further gain favor with the African American community. In mid-September, Nixon's running mate Spiro Agnew went on the offensive against Humphrey, acting in a role assigned by Nixon advisers. He referred to the Vice President as being "soft on Communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
" as well as inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...
and "law and order," and compared him to former British Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Neville Chamberlain
Neville Chamberlain
Arthur Neville Chamberlain FRS was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940. Chamberlain is best known for his appeasement foreign policy, and in particular for his signing of the Munich Agreement in 1938, conceding the...
. At this time, Nixon sent advisor and former Governor of Pennsylvania William Scranton
William Scranton
William Warren Scranton is a former U.S. Republican Party politician. Scranton served as the 38th Governor of Pennsylvania from 1963 to 1967. From 1976 to 1977, he served as United States Ambassador to the United Nations.-Early life:...
on an overseas fact finding trip in Europe to gain intelligence on the Western alliance and Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
issues. In response to Humphrey's calls for a face to face debate, Nixon remarked: "Before we can have a debate between Nixon and Humphrey, Humphrey's got to settle his debate with himself." Nixon campaigned in San Francisco, in front of 10,000 supporters amidst an array of protests. The candidate took on the protesters first hand, and delivered his "forgotten American" speech, declaring that election day would be "a day of protest for the forgotten American" which included those that "obey the law, pay their taxes, go to church, send their children to school, love their country and demand new leadership." By the end of the month, many in the Nixon campaign believed his election was guaranteed and began to prepare for the transition period
United States presidential transition
A presidential transition or presidential interregnum refers to the period of time between the end of a presidential election and the inauguration of a new President of a country...
, despite Nixon's warning that "the one thing that can beat us now is overconfidence." Gallup polls showed Nixon leading Humphrey 43% to 28% at the end of September.
In early October, commentators weighed in on Nixon's advantage, explaining that he could legitimately blame the Johnson administration for the Vietnam War, and use campaign advertisements with images of dead American soldiers while avoiding discussion about the war with the excuse that he did not want to disrupt the peace talks in Paris. However, anti-war protesters
Anti-war
An anti-war movement is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conflicts. Many...
heckled Nixon repeatedly on the campaign trail. Nixon addressed the American Conservative Union
American Conservative Union
The American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
on October 9, and argued that George Wallace's American Independent Party candidacy could split the anti-Administration vote, and help the Democrats. The Union decided to back Nixon over Wallace, labeling the third party candidate's beliefs as "Populist
Populism
Populism can be defined as an ideology, political philosophy, or type of discourse. Generally, a common theme compares "the people" against "the elite", and urges social and political system changes. It can also be defined as a rhetorical style employed by members of various political or social...
." As Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Edmund Muskie
Edmund Muskie
Edmund Sixtus "Ed" Muskie was an American politician from Rumford, Maine. He served as Governor of Maine from 1955 to 1959, as a member of the United States Senate from 1959 to 1980, and as Secretary of State under Jimmy Carter from 1980 to 1981...
criticized Nixon for his connections to Strom Thurmond, Nixon continued to oppose a possible debate with Humphrey and Wallace as well as a debate between the running mates on the basis that he did not want to give Wallace any more exposure. Observers argued that Nixon also opposed debates due to his experience during the 1960 encounter with John F. Kennedy, which many cited as a factor in his defeat. In another lesson learned from 1960, the campaign employed 100,000 workers to oversee Election day
Election Day (politics)
Election Day refers to the day when general elections are held. In many countries, general elections are always held on a Sunday, to enable as many voters as possible to participate, while in other countries elections are always held on a weekday...
polling sites to prevent a recurrence of what many Republicans viewed as 1960's stolen election. Nixon went on a train campaign tour of Ohio near the end of October. From the back of the "Nixon Victory Special" car, he bashed Vice President Humphrey as well as the Secretary of Agriculture
United States Secretary of Agriculture
The United States Secretary of Agriculture is the head of the United States Department of Agriculture. The current secretary is Tom Vilsack, who was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on 20 January 2009. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other...
and Attorney General of the Johnson cabinet, for farmer's debt and the rising crime rate. At this time, the campaign released two controversial television advertisements juxtaposing a smiling Humphrey with images of the Vietnam War and the chaos at the 1968 Democratic National Convention; the advertisements aroused protests from the Humphrey campaign. By the end of October, Nixon began to lose his edge over Humphrey; he led only 44% to 36% in Gallup polls, down five points from a few weeks earlier. Observers noted that the decline was related to Nixon's refusal to debate.
At the beginning of November, President Johnson announced that a bombing halt had been achieved in Vietnam. Observers noted that the development significantly helped Humphrey, although Nixon had given his support to the talks. At this time, Nixon operative Anna Chennault secretly spoke with the South Vietnamese and explained that they could receive a better deal under Nixon. This charge, along with remarks from Nixon supporter and future Defense Secretary
United States Secretary of Defense
The Secretary of Defense is the head and chief executive officer of the Department of Defense of the United States of America. This position corresponds to what is generally known as a Defense Minister in other countries...
Melvin Laird that Johnson deliberately misinformed Nixon during briefs, angered the President. He spoke with the Nixon supporters Senate Minority Leader
Party leaders of the United States Senate
The Senate Majority and Minority Leaders are two United States Senators who are elected by the party conferences that hold the majority and the minority respectively. These leaders serve as the chief Senate spokespeople for their parties and manage and schedule the legislative and executive...
Everett Dirkson and Senator George Smathers
George Smathers
George Armistead Smathers was an American lawyer and politician who represented the state of Florida in the United States Senate for eighteen years, from 1951 until 1969, as a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life:...
of Florida, who informed Nixon of Johnson's frustration. Two days before the election, Nixon went on Meet the Press
Meet the Press
Meet the Press is a weekly American television news/interview program produced by NBC. It is the longest-running television series in American broadcasting history, despite bearing little resemblance to the original format of the program seen in its television debut on November 6, 1947. It has been...
and explained that he would cooperate completely with Johnson. He then phoned the President after the appearance and personally reassured him. The final Harris poll before the election showed Nixon trailing Humphrey 43% to 40%, but Gallup's final poll showed Nixon leading 42% to 40%. On the eve of the election, Nixon and Humphrey bought time on rival television networks to make their final pleas to the American people. Nixon appeared on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, while his Democratic challenger went on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
. Nixon used this appearance to counter the surge given to Humphrey by the bombing halt, claiming that he had just received "a very disturbing report" that tons of supplies were being moved into South Vietnam
South Vietnam
South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
by the North
North Vietnam
The Democratic Republic of Vietnam , was a communist state that ruled the northern half of Vietnam from 1954 until 1976 following the Geneva Conference and laid claim to all of Vietnam from 1945 to 1954 during the First Indochina War, during which they controlled pockets of territory throughout...
. Humphrey labeled this charge as "irresponsible", causing Nixon to counter that Humphrey "doesn't know what's going on." Overall, Nixon spent $6,270,000 on television advertising, most of which was judged to have only reinforced supporters.
Election Day
On November 5, Election Day, Nixon defeated Humphrey by a margin of 301 to 191 in the Electoral College, with 46 going to George Wallace. Nixon edged Humphrey in the popular vote, 43.42% to 42.72%, by an extreme close margin of approximately 500,000 votes. Nixon won most of the West and mid-West but lost parts of the Northeast and Texas to Humphrey and lost the deep South to Wallace.Aftermath
Nixon was sworn in as the 37th President of the United States on January 20, 1969. In his first term, he passed anti-crime legislation and nominated conservative judges to the bench. He also ended the military draft, and is credited with improving United States relations with ChinaChina
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. He won re-election in 1972
United States presidential election, 1972
The United States presidential election of 1972 was the 47th quadrennial United States presidential election. It was held on November 7, 1972. The Democratic Party's nomination was eventually won by Senator George McGovern, who ran an anti-war campaign against incumbent Republican President Richard...
, and thereafter brought an end to the American involvement in Vietnam. He resigned the presidency in 1974, following the discovery of his role in the cover-up of the Watergate Scandal
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
. Nixon retired from public life and served as an elder statesman until his death in 1994.