Picking A President: The Republican Race in 1968
Three weeks before the Democrats met for what would be their disastrous convention in Chicago in 1968, the Republicans held their convention in Miami Beach, Florida from August 5th to the 8th at the Miami Beach Convention Center. It was a much more restrained affair. News reports were about what happened at the convention and not in the streets.
The front-runner for the Republican nomination was former Vice President Richard Nixon. He formally began campaigning in January of 1968, but by then he had already worked tirelessly behind the scenes working to get Republicans elected in Congress and as Governors in the 1966 midterm elections. Many of these new congressmen and governors supported him as a result. But there was hesitation in the Republican ranks over Nixon, who had lost the 1960 election and then lost the 1962 California gubernatorial election (telling a post-election news conference that the media would no longer have "Nixon to kick around" anymore, incorrectly as it turned out). Sensing vulnerability in the Democratic party, and remembering their crushing defeat in 1964, many Republicans hoped that a more "electable" candidate would emerge. But as the 1968 Republican primary campaign progressed, one Nixon opponent after another would enter the race and then drop out. Nixon was always the front runner because of his superior organization.
Nixon's first challenger was Michigan Governor George W. Romney. A Gallup poll of who Republicans supported for their presidential candidate, taken in mid-1967, showed Nixon with 39%, followed by Romney with 25%. But when Romney, misspoke after a fact finding trip to Vietnam, telling Detroit talk show host Lou Gordon that he had been "brainwashed" by the military and the diplomatic corps into supporting the Vietnam War, his remark was followed by weeks of ridicule in the national news media. Romney had changed his mind and was now opposed to American involvement in Vietnam. He planned to run as the anti-war Republican candidate, much like the role Eugene McCarthy was playing in the Democratic Party. Following his "brainwashing" comment, Romney's support dropped steadily. With polls showing him far behind Nixon he withdrew from the race on February 28, 1968.
Senator Charles Percy of Illinois was courted as another possible alternative to Nixon. He too had planned on running an active campaign after first contemplating running as Illinois's favorite son in the state primary. ("Favorite sons" were local candidates that a state would nominate in the hope that, if no candidate was chosen on the first ballot, that candidate might attract support from delegates released from other candidates.) Percy reconsidered and chose not to have his name put on the ballot for the Illinois presidential primary. He coyly said that he was no longer seeking the presidential nomination, but would not refuse it either.
Nixon won a strong victory in the important New Hampshire primary on March 12, winning 78% of the vote. Anti-war Republicans wrote in the name of New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller, the leader of the Republican Party's liberal wing, and Rockefeller received 11% of the vote, making him Nixon's new challenger. Rockefeller had originally not intended to run. He planned to make Senator Jacob Javits as New York's favorite son, and broker him the second spot on the ticket. But with Romney and Percy not running, Rockefeller reconsidered the idea of entering the race again. Javits decided to focus on winning a third term in the Senate. Nixon led Rockefeller in the polls throughout the primary campaign. Rockefeller defeated Nixon in the Massachusetts primary on April 30, but that was his only victory. He fared poorly in other state primaries and conventions. He had declared his candidacy too late to place his name on many state ballots.
By early spring, California Governor Ronald Reagan, the leader of the Republican Party's conservative wing, and the heir apparent to Barry Goldwater, had become Nixon's chief rival. In the Nebraska primary on May 14, Nixon won with 70% of the vote to 21% for Reagan and 5% for Rockefeller. Undeterred, Reagan remained Nixon's leading challenger. Nixon won the Oregon primary on May 15 with 65% of the vote, and won all the following primaries except for California, where only Reagan's name appeared on the ballot.
At the convention, Rockefeller and Reagan discussed a possible "Stop Nixon" movement, but the two were too far apart ideologically for their forces to unite. Nixon was nominated on the first ballot with 692 votes to 277 votes for Nelson Rockefeller, 182 votes for California Governor Ronald Reagan.
In his acceptance speech Nixon spoke about the deplorable the state of the union. He told the crowd,
"When the strongest nation in the world can be tied down for four years in Vietnam with no end in sight, when the richest nation in the world can't manage its own economy, when the nation with the greatest tradition of the rule of law is plagued by unprecedented racial violence, when the President of the United States cannot travel abroad or to any major city at home, then it's time for new leadership for the United States of America".
Nixon reminded the crowd that he had "a good teacher", referring to former President Dwight Eisenhower, and he told the delegates "Let's win this one for Ike!"
In 1964 Goldwater had done well in the Deep South, and this meant that there was a higher proportion of delegates to the 1968 Republican National Convention that would be more conservative than in past conventions. Nixon was concerned that the conservative Reagan might be nominated if there was no victor on the first ballot. To win the nomination on the first ballot, Nixon enlisted the aid of South Carolina Senator Strom Thurmond (who had switched parties in 1964 from Democratic to Republican).
Nixon surprised many with his selection of a running mate. Among those that pundits speculated that Nixon might choose, the names included his 1960 running mate Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr., U.S. House of Representatives House Minority Leader Gerald R. Ford, of Michigan, or New York City Mayor John V. Lindsay. Nixon's first choice for running mate was his longtime friend and ally Robert Finch, who was the Lieutenant Governor of California at the time. Finch declined that offer, but would later serve as the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in Nixon's Administration. Instead Nixon chose Maryland Governor Spiro T. Agnew, someone who Nixon believed would appeal both to southerners and moderates in the party. But Agnew was an unpopular choice, especially with many African-Americans. As Governor of Maryland, Agnew had summoned several African-American civic, religious and political leaders for a meeting, following the April 1968 riots in East and West Baltimore after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Agnew complained to the group about their lack of support after a number of what he perceived to be positive projects, programs and support by his Republican administration for the minority communities in the City. Many in the hall had not forgiven Agnew's for these comments caused and some in the audience walked out.
George Romney challenged Agnew for the Vice-Presidential nomination, but the vote wasn't close. Delegates selected Agnew over Romney by a vote of 1119 to 186.
Nixon left the convention with a lead in the polls that increased even more after the violence at the Democratic Convention and the violence that was seen on television sets across the nation. But the race would narrow as election day approached.
The front-runner for the Republican nomination was former Vice President Richard Nixon. He formally began campaigning in January of 1968, but by then he had already worked tirelessly behind the scenes working to get Republicans elected in Congress and as Governors in the 1966 midterm elections. Many of these new congressmen and governors supported him as a result. But there was hesitation in the Republican ranks over Nixon, who had lost the 1960 election and then lost the 1962 California gubernatorial election (telling a post-election news conference that the media would no longer have "Nixon to kick around" anymore, incorrectly as it turned out). Sensing vulnerability in the Democratic party, and remembering their crushing defeat in 1964, many Republicans hoped that a more "electable" candidate would emerge. But as the 1968 Republican primary campaign progressed, one Nixon opponent after another would enter the race and then drop out. Nixon was always the front runner because of his superior organization.
Nixon's first challenger was Michigan Governor George W. Romney. A Gallup poll of who Republicans supported for their presidential candidate, taken in mid-1967, showed Nixon with 39%, followed by Romney with 25%. But when Romney, misspoke after a fact finding trip to Vietnam, telling Detroit talk show host Lou Gordon that he had been "brainwashed" by the military and the diplomatic corps into supporting the Vietnam War, his remark was followed by weeks of ridicule in the national news media. Romney had changed his mind and was now opposed to American involvement in Vietnam. He planned to run as the anti-war Republican candidate, much like the role Eugene McCarthy was playing in the Democratic Party. Following his "brainwashing" comment, Romney's support dropped steadily. With polls showing him far behind Nixon he withdrew from the race on February 28, 1968.
Senator Charles Percy of Illinois was courted as another possible alternative to Nixon. He too had planned on running an active campaign after first contemplating running as Illinois's favorite son in the state primary. ("Favorite sons" were local candidates that a state would nominate in the hope that, if no candidate was chosen on the first ballot, that candidate might attract support from delegates released from other candidates.) Percy reconsidered and chose not to have his name put on the ballot for the Illinois presidential primary. He coyly said that he was no longer seeking the presidential nomination, but would not refuse it either.
Nixon won a strong victory in the important New Hampshire primary on March 12, winning 78% of the vote. Anti-war Republicans wrote in the name of New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller, the leader of the Republican Party's liberal wing, and Rockefeller received 11% of the vote, making him Nixon's new challenger. Rockefeller had originally not intended to run. He planned to make Senator Jacob Javits as New York's favorite son, and broker him the second spot on the ticket. But with Romney and Percy not running, Rockefeller reconsidered the idea of entering the race again. Javits decided to focus on winning a third term in the Senate. Nixon led Rockefeller in the polls throughout the primary campaign. Rockefeller defeated Nixon in the Massachusetts primary on April 30, but that was his only victory. He fared poorly in other state primaries and conventions. He had declared his candidacy too late to place his name on many state ballots.
By early spring, California Governor Ronald Reagan, the leader of the Republican Party's conservative wing, and the heir apparent to Barry Goldwater, had become Nixon's chief rival. In the Nebraska primary on May 14, Nixon won with 70% of the vote to 21% for Reagan and 5% for Rockefeller. Undeterred, Reagan remained Nixon's leading challenger. Nixon won the Oregon primary on May 15 with 65% of the vote, and won all the following primaries except for California, where only Reagan's name appeared on the ballot.
At the convention, Rockefeller and Reagan discussed a possible "Stop Nixon" movement, but the two were too far apart ideologically for their forces to unite. Nixon was nominated on the first ballot with 692 votes to 277 votes for Nelson Rockefeller, 182 votes for California Governor Ronald Reagan.
In his acceptance speech Nixon spoke about the deplorable the state of the union. He told the crowd,
"When the strongest nation in the world can be tied down for four years in Vietnam with no end in sight, when the richest nation in the world can't manage its own economy, when the nation with the greatest tradition of the rule of law is plagued by unprecedented racial violence, when the President of the United States cannot travel abroad or to any major city at home, then it's time for new leadership for the United States of America".
Nixon reminded the crowd that he had "a good teacher", referring to former President Dwight Eisenhower, and he told the delegates "Let's win this one for Ike!"
In 1964 Goldwater had done well in the Deep South, and this meant that there was a higher proportion of delegates to the 1968 Republican National Convention that would be more conservative than in past conventions. Nixon was concerned that the conservative Reagan might be nominated if there was no victor on the first ballot. To win the nomination on the first ballot, Nixon enlisted the aid of South Carolina Senator Strom Thurmond (who had switched parties in 1964 from Democratic to Republican).
Nixon surprised many with his selection of a running mate. Among those that pundits speculated that Nixon might choose, the names included his 1960 running mate Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr., U.S. House of Representatives House Minority Leader Gerald R. Ford, of Michigan, or New York City Mayor John V. Lindsay. Nixon's first choice for running mate was his longtime friend and ally Robert Finch, who was the Lieutenant Governor of California at the time. Finch declined that offer, but would later serve as the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in Nixon's Administration. Instead Nixon chose Maryland Governor Spiro T. Agnew, someone who Nixon believed would appeal both to southerners and moderates in the party. But Agnew was an unpopular choice, especially with many African-Americans. As Governor of Maryland, Agnew had summoned several African-American civic, religious and political leaders for a meeting, following the April 1968 riots in East and West Baltimore after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Agnew complained to the group about their lack of support after a number of what he perceived to be positive projects, programs and support by his Republican administration for the minority communities in the City. Many in the hall had not forgiven Agnew's for these comments caused and some in the audience walked out.
George Romney challenged Agnew for the Vice-Presidential nomination, but the vote wasn't close. Delegates selected Agnew over Romney by a vote of 1119 to 186.
Nixon left the convention with a lead in the polls that increased even more after the violence at the Democratic Convention and the violence that was seen on television sets across the nation. But the race would narrow as election day approached.