1960 United States presidential election in Oregon

Last updated

1960 United States presidential election in Oregon
Flag of Oregon.svg
  1956 November 8, 1960 [1] 1964  
  Richard Nixon official portrait as Vice President (cropped).tiff Jfk2 (3x4).jpg
Nominee Richard Nixon John F. Kennedy
Party Republican Democratic
Home state California Massachusetts
Running mate Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. Lyndon B. Johnson
Electoral vote60
Popular vote408,060367,402
Percentage52.56%47.32%

Oregon Presidential Election Results 1960.svg
County Results

President before election

Dwight D. Eisenhower
Republican

Elected President

John F. Kennedy
Democratic

The 1960 United States presidential election in Oregon took place on November 8, 1960, as part of the 1960 United States presidential election. Voters chose six [2] representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

Contents

Oregon was won by incumbent Vice President Richard Nixon (RCalifornia), running with former United States Ambassador to the United Nations Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., with 52.56% of the popular vote, against Senator John F. Kennedy (DMassachusetts), running with Senator Lyndon B. Johnson, with 47.32% of the popular vote. [3] [4] As of the 2020 presidential election , this is the last election in which Multnomah County voted for a Republican presidential candidate. [5]

Background

Oregon had not voted for the Democratic presidential nominee since the 1944 election. [6]

Legislation was passed in 1959 that created a primary system for the president. [7] Candidates had no choice as to whether or not they would run in the Oregon primaries. [8] Oregon had a unique law in which all individuals believed to be candidates (by the Attorney General) would be listed, whether or not they wanted to compete in the state's primary. [8]

Primaries

Democratic primary

Since at least 1957, Kennedy had been anticipating running in Oregon's primary due to the state's unique election laws, which would give him no choice as to whether or not he would be listed on the ballot. [8]

Oregon's primary came late, just prior to California's. [8] Kennedy had made several appearances in Oregon in the spring of 1959, and was leading according to his campaign's internal polling against a plethora of prospective opponents. [8] He garnered the support of figures such as Edith Green. [8] By late 1959, however, Senator Wayne Morse launched a favorite son campaign, which posed a viable challenge to Kennedy's prospects of winning Oregon. [8]

Hubert Humphrey had been seen as having a realistic chance of winning the strongly liberal state electorate if he were to remain a viable candidate through late-May (when the primary was scheduled). [8] However, Humphrey ultimately withdrew earlier on after losing the West Virginia primary. [8]

Kennedy's campaign worried about a potential active campaign effort by Adlai Stevenson II in the state, where many voters were still enamored with the two-time Democratic standard bearer. In a January 26, 1960 memo, campaign manager Robert Kennedy stated that it was important for the Kennedy campaign to try and stop Stevenson from becoming an active factor in the Oregon primary. [8] Congressman Charles O. Porter was seen as being likely to lead any potential effort to support a Stevenson candidacy in Oregon, therefore, Robert considered persuading him that such an effort would hand the primary to Morse, whom Porter despised. [8] However, by May this proved to be unneeded, as Kennedy had already cleared the field. [8]

While names of several other contenders appeared on the Oregon Democratic primary ballot, the only active opponent which Kennedy faced in the primary was Morse. [8] Oregon was the only state in which Kennedy directly challenged a favorite son candidate. [8] The Kennedy campaign saw the fiercely independent and progressive state electorate as challenging for them to maneuver. [8] He defeated Morse 51 to 32%. [8]

1960 Oregon Democratic Presidential Primary Results [9]
PartyCandidateVotesPercentage
Democratic John F. Kennedy 146,33251.0%
Democratic Wayne Morse 91,71531.9%
Democratic Hubert Humphrey 16,3195.7%
Democratic Stuart Symington 12,4964.4%
Democratic Lyndon B. Johnson 11,1013.9%
Democratic Adlai Stevenson II (write-ins)7,9242.8%
Democratic Others1,2100.4%
Totals287,097100.00%

Republican primary

Richard Nixon was the only candidate placed onto the Republican primary ballot by the secretary of state. Nelson Rockefeller, who withdrew from the race, received a large amount of write-in votes. [7]

1960 Oregon Republican Presidential Primary Results [9]
PartyCandidateVotesPercentage
Republican Richard Nixon 211,27693.1%
Republican Nelson Rockefeller (write-ins)9,3074.1%
Democratic John F. Kennedy (write-ins)2,8641.3%
Republican Barry Goldwater (write-ins)1,5710.7%
Republican Others2,0150.9%
Totals227,033100.00%

Campaign

Nixon placed first in all four congressional districts. Crook County, a bellwether county since the 1884 election, incorrectly supported Kennedy. Oregon had one of the lowest Catholic and highest fundamentalist Protestant populations in the United States. [10]

Results

1960 United States presidential election in Oregon
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Richard Nixon 408,060 52.56%
Democratic John F. Kennedy 367,40247.32%
Write-in9590.12%
Total votes776,421 100%

Results by county

CountyRichard Milhous Nixon
Republican
John Fitzgerald Kennedy
Democratic
Various candidates
Write-ins
MarginTotal votes cast
# %# %# %# %
Baker 3,51448.46%3,73451.50%30.04%-220-3.03%7,251
Benton 9,73464.36%5,39135.64%4,34328.71%15,125
Clackamas 28,53154.53%23,67945.26%1090.21%4,8529.27%52,319
Clatsop 6,28648.86%6,53050.75%500.39%-244-1.90%12,866
Columbia 4,35643.96%5,54655.97%60.06%-1,190-12.01%9,908
Coos 8,75140.32%12,89359.40%610.28%-4,142-19.08%21,705
Crook 1,73246.35%2,00553.65%-273-7.31%3,737
Curry 2,38246.23%2,76753.70%40.08%-385-7.47%5,153
Deschutes 5,14551.74%4,77648.03%230.23%3693.71%9,944
Douglas 12,49348.39%13,32251.61%-829-3.21%25,815
Gilliam 71254.02%60645.98%1068.04%1,318
Grant 1,69754.13%1,43845.87%2598.26%3,135
Harney 1,46454.40%1,22045.34%70.26%2449.07%2,691
Hood River 3,10355.86%2,45044.10%20.04%65311.76%5,555
Jackson 17,55454.59%14,53145.19%720.22%3,0239.40%32,157
Jefferson 1,41353.75%1,21446.18%20.08%1997.57%2,629
Josephine 7,38757.57%5,41942.23%250.19%1,96815.34%12,831
Klamath 9,09550.46%8,92849.54%1670.93%18,023
Lake 1,55551.90%1,44148.10%1143.81%2,996
Lane 36,14852.49%32,59647.34%1180.17%3,5525.16%68,862
Lincoln 5,23149.90%5,24350.01%90.09%-12-0.11%10,483
Linn 12,89953.89%11,03546.11%1,8647.79%23,934
Malheur 5,04359.86%3,38140.14%1,66219.73%8,424
Marion 29,12458.28%20,79141.61%550.11%8,33316.68%49,970
Morrow 1,00349.12%1,03950.88%-36-1.76%2,042
Multnomah 127,27150.53%124,27349.34%3380.13%2,9981.19%251,882
Polk 6,70959.38%4,57840.52%110.10%2,13118.86%11,298
Sherman 65956.57%50643.43%15313.13%1,165
Tillamook 3,93548.92%4,09850.94%110.14%-163-2.03%8,044
Umatilla 9,37453.77%8,05346.19%60.03%1,3217.58%17,433
Union 3,68947.48%4,08152.52%-392-5.05%7,770
Wallowa 1,44046.08%1,68253.82%30.10%-242-7.74%3,125
Wasco 4,35549.58%4,42650.39%30.03%-71-0.81%8,784
Washington 25,41558.85%17,73641.07%350.08%7,67917.78%43,186
Wheeler 56654.84%46645.16%1009.69%1,032
Yamhill 8,29559.98%5,52839.97%60.04%2,76720.01%13,829
Totals408,06052.56%367,40247.32%9590.12%40,6585.24%776,421

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1956 United States presidential election</span> 43rd quadrennial U.S. presidential election

The 1956 United States presidential election was the 43rd quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 6, 1956. President Dwight D. Eisenhower successfully ran for reelection against Adlai Stevenson II, the former Illinois governor whom he had defeated four years earlier. This election saw the sixth and most recent rematch in American presidential history, and the second where the winner was the same both times. This was the last election before the term limits established by the 22nd Amendment came into effect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 United States presidential election</span> 44th quadrennial U.S. presidential election

The 1960 United States presidential election was the 44th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 8, 1960. In a closely contested election, Democratic Senator John F. Kennedy defeated the incumbent Vice President Richard Nixon, the Republican nominee. This was the first election in which 50 states participated, marking the first participation of Alaska and Hawaii, and the last in which the District of Columbia did not. This made it the only presidential election where the threshold for victory was 269 electoral votes. It was also the first election in which an incumbent president –in this case, Dwight D. Eisenhower– was ineligible to run for a third term because of the term limits established by the 22nd Amendment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1968 United States presidential election</span> 46th quadrennial U.S. presidential election

The 1968 United States presidential election was the 46th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 5, 1968. The Republican nominee, former vice president Richard Nixon, defeated both the Democratic nominee, incumbent vice president Hubert Humphrey, and the American Independent Party nominee, former Alabama governor George Wallace. This was the last election until 1988 in which the incumbent president was not on the ballot. This was also the last election where a third-party candidate received an electoral vote.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1972 United States presidential election</span> 47th quadrennial U.S. presidential election

The 1972 United States presidential election was the 47th quadrennial presidential election held on Tuesday, November 7, 1972. Incumbent Republican president Richard Nixon defeated Democratic U.S. senator George McGovern in a historic-level landslide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eugene McCarthy</span> American politician (1916–2005)

Eugene Joseph McCarthy was an American politician, writer, and academic from Minnesota. He served in the United States House of Representatives from 1949 to 1959 and the United States Senate from 1959 to 1971. McCarthy sought the Democratic presidential nomination in the 1968 election, challenging incumbent Lyndon B. Johnson on an anti-Vietnam War platform. McCarthy unsuccessfully ran for U.S. president four more times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 Democratic National Convention</span> U.S. political event held in Los Angeles, California

The 1960 Democratic National Convention was held in Los Angeles, California, on July 11–15, 1960. It nominated Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts for president and Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas for vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1956 Democratic National Convention</span> U.S. political event held in Chicago, Illinois

The 1956 Democratic National Convention nominated former Governor Adlai Stevenson of Illinois for president and Senator Estes Kefauver of Tennessee for vice president. It was held in the International Amphitheatre on the South Side of Chicago from August 13 to August 17, 1956. Unsuccessful candidates for the presidential nomination included Governor W. Averell Harriman of New York, Senator Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas, and Senator Stuart Symington of Missouri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 Democratic Party presidential primaries</span> Selection of the Democratic Party nominee

From March 8 to June 7, 1960, voters and members of the Democratic Party elected delegates to the 1960 Democratic National Convention through a series of caucuses, conventions, and primaries, partly for the purpose of nominating a candidate for President of the United States in the 1960 election. The presidential primaries were inconclusive, as several of the leading contenders did not enter them, but U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts emerged as the strongest candidate and won the nomination over Lyndon B. Johnson at the convention, held from July 11 to 15 at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1968 Democratic Party presidential primaries</span> Selection of Democratic US presidential candidate

From March to July 1968, Democratic Party voters elected delegates to the 1968 Democratic National Convention for the purpose of selecting the party's nominee for President in the upcoming election. After an inconclusive and tumultuous campaign focused on the Vietnam War and marred by the June assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, incumbent Vice President Hubert Humphrey was nominated at the 1968 Democratic National Convention held from August 26 to August 29, 1968, in Chicago, Illinois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 United States presidential election in California</span>

The 1960 United States presidential election in California took place on November 8, 1960 as part of the 1960 United States presidential election. State voters chose 32 representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral history of Wayne Morse</span>

Electoral history of Wayne Morse, United States Senator from Oregon, candidate for the 1960 Democratic presidential nomination and Oregon favorite-son candidate in the 1952 Republican presidential primaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Nixon 1968 presidential campaign</span>

The 1968 presidential campaign of Richard Nixon, the 36th vice president of the United States, began when Nixon, the Republican nominee of 1960, formally announced his candidacy, following a year's preparation and five years' political reorganization after defeats in the 1960 presidential election and the 1962 California gubernatorial election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 United States presidential election in Pennsylvania</span> Election in Pennsylvania

The 1960 United States presidential election in Pennsylvania took place on November 8, 1960 as part of the 1960 United States presidential election. Voters chose 32 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 United States presidential election in New Hampshire</span> Election in New Hampshire

The 1960 United States presidential election in New Hampshire took place on November 8, 1960, as part of the 1960 United States presidential election, which was held throughout all 50 states. Voters chose four representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1968 United States presidential election in Mississippi</span> Election in Mississippi

The 1968 United States presidential election in Mississippi was held on November 5, 1968. Mississippi voters chose seven electors, or representatives to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice-President.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John F. Kennedy 1960 presidential campaign</span> 1960 United States presidential campaign of John F. Kennedy

The 1960 presidential campaign of John F. Kennedy, then junior United States senator from Massachusetts, was formally launched on January 2, 1960, as Senator Kennedy announced his intention to seek the Democratic Party nomination for the presidency of the United States in the 1960 presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 United States presidential election in Iowa</span>

The 1960 United States presidential election in Iowa took place on November 8, 1960, as part of the 1960 United States presidential election. Voters chose ten representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 United States presidential election in Nebraska</span> Election in Nebraska

The 1960 United States presidential election in Nebraska took place on November 8, 1960, as part of the 1960 United States presidential election. Voters chose six representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 United States presidential election in South Dakota</span> Election in South Dakota

The 1960 United States presidential election in South Dakota took place on November 8, 1960, as part of the 1960 United States presidential election. Voters chose four representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 United States presidential election in Illinois</span>

The 1960 United States presidential election in Illinois took place on November 8, 1960, as part of the 1960 United States presidential election. State voters chose 27 representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

References

  1. "United States Presidential election of 1960 - Encyclopædia Britannica" . Retrieved June 7, 2017.
  2. "1960 Election for the Forty-Fourth Term (1961-65)" . Retrieved June 7, 2017.
  3. "1960 Presidential General Election Results - Oregon" . Retrieved June 7, 2017.
  4. "The American Presidency Project - Election of 1960" . Retrieved June 7, 2017.
  5. Sullivan, Robert David; ‘How the Red and Blue Map Evolved Over the Past Century’; America Magazine in The National Catholic Review; June 29, 2016
  6. Swarthout 1961, p. 356.
  7. 1 2 Swarthout 1961, p. 358-359.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Oliphant, Thomas; Wilkie, Curtis (2017). The road to Camelot: Inside JFK's Five-Year Campaign. Simon & Schuster.
  9. 1 2 "RESULTS OF 1960 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION PRIMARIES". John F. Kennedy presidential library. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  10. Swarthout 1961, p. 357-358.

Works cited