Democratic Party vice presidential candidate selection, 1972

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Former Ambassador to France Sargent Shriver was chosen as the Democratic nominee for vice president in 1972. Sargent Shriver 1961.jpg
Former Ambassador to France Sargent Shriver was chosen as the Democratic nominee for vice president in 1972.

This article lists those who were potential candidates for the Democratic nomination for Vice President of the United States in the 1972 election. Coming into the 1972 Democratic National Convention, South Dakota Senator George McGovern had the delegate lead, but did not have the presidential nomination locked up. [1] After winning the Democratic nomination for president on July 13, McGovern looked for a running mate. [2] McGovern's first choice for vice president was Ted Kennedy, but Kennedy refused to join the ticket; Minnesota Senator Walter Mondale, [2] Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson, and Connecticut Senator Abraham A. Ribicoff also declined. [1] McGovern offered the position to Missouri Senator Thomas Eagleton, who appealed to labor groups and Catholics, two groups that McGovern had alienated during the primary campaign. [1] The ticket of McGovern and Eagleton was nominated by the 1972 Democratic National Convention. Following the convention, it was revealed that Eagleton had received treatment for depression. [1] Though McGovern considered keeping Eagleton the ticket, he ultimately chose to replace Eagleton with former Ambassador Sargent Shriver. [3] The McGovern-Shriver ticket lost the presidential election to the Nixon-Agnew ticket. After the controversy surrounding Eagleton, future campaigns spent much more time vetting vice presidential candidates. [2]

Democratic Party (United States) political party in the United States

The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. Tracing its heritage back to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison's Democratic-Republican Party, the modern-day Democratic Party was founded around 1828 by supporters of Andrew Jackson, making it the world's oldest active political party.

Vice President of the United States Second highest executive office in United States

The Vice President of the United States is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the President of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The Vice President is also an officer in the legislative branch, as President of the Senate. In this capacity, the Vice President presides over Senate deliberations, but may not vote except to cast a tie-breaking vote. The Vice President also presides over joint sessions of Congress.

Contents

Potential running mates

Thomas Eagleton American politician

Thomas Francis Eagleton was a United States Senator from Missouri, serving from 1968 to 1987. He is best remembered for briefly being the Democratic vice presidential nominee under George McGovern in 1972. He suffered from bouts of depression throughout his life, resulting in several hospitalizations, which were kept secret from the public. When they were revealed, it humiliated the McGovern campaign and Eagleton was forced to quit the race. He later became adjunct professor of public affairs at Washington University in St. Louis.

Sargent Shriver Robert Sargent Shriver, Jr.

Robert Sargent Shriver Jr. was an American diplomat, politician and activist. As the husband of Eunice Kennedy Shriver, he was part of the Kennedy family. Shriver was the driving force behind the creation of the Peace Corps, and founded the Job Corps, Head Start, and other programs as the "architect" of the 1960s "War on Poverty." He was the Democratic Party's nominee for vice president in the 1972 presidential election.

Mike Gravel Democratic U.S. Senator from Alaska

Maurice Robert "Mike" Gravel is an American politician who was a Democratic United States Senator from Alaska from 1969 to 1981 and a candidate in the 2008 U.S. presidential election.

See also

The 1972 Democratic National Convention was the presidential nominating convention of the Democratic Party for the 1972 presidential election. It was held at Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami Beach, Florida, on July 10 – 13, 1972. Lawrence F. O'Brien served as permanent chairman of the convention, while Yvonne Braithwaite Burke served as vice-chair, becoming the first African American and the first woman of color to hold that position. On the last day of the convention, Lawrence F. O'Brien departed and Burke was left to preside for about fourteen hours.

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Abraham Ribicoff American politician

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Electoral history of George McGovern

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George McGovern 1972 presidential campaign

The George McGovern presidential campaign of 1972 began when United States Senator George McGovern from South Dakota launched his second candidacy for the Presidency of the United States in an ultimately unsuccessful bid to win the 1972 presidential election, winning only in the District of Columbia and the state of Massachusetts. McGovern vied to become the first South Dakota native to become president.

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1976 Democratic Party vice presidential candidate selection

This article lists those who were potential candidates for the Democratic nomination for Vice President of the United States in the 1976 election. Former Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter won the 1976 Democratic nomination for President of the United States, and chose Minnesota Senator Walter Mondale as his running mate. According to Joel Goldstein, a legal professor and the author of several works on the vice presidency, 1976 marked the beginning of the modern vice presidential selection process, with candidates undergoing extensive vetting. Carter thought that the vice president could be an important asset for a president, and Mondale became a major part of Carter's campaign. The choice of Mondale helped Carter, a Southern "outsider" with little experience in Washington, rally the Democratic base to his candidacy. The Carter-Mondale ticket defeated the Ford-Dole ticket in the 1976 election.

1968 Democratic Party vice presidential candidate selection

This article lists those who were potential candidates for the Democratic nomination for Vice President of the United States in the 1968 election. After winning the Democratic presidential nomination at the 1968 Democratic National Convention, incumbent Vice President Hubert Humphrey asked the convention to nominate Maine Senator Edmund Muskie as his running mate. The convention overwhelmingly voted to ratify the choice of Muskie, though Julian Bond picked up a scattering of votes. Muskie was surprised by the selection, as he was from a Northeastern state with few electoral votes. Humphrey almost chose Oklahoma Senator Fred R. Harris, but Humphrey decided that Muskie's age, governmental experience, and quiet temperament made him the better candidate. The Humphrey-Muskie ticket ultimately lost to the Nixon-Agnew ticket in the 1968 election. Muskie's place on the national ticket helped make him an early front-runner for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination, though Muskie ultimately dropped out of the contest.

1968 Republican Party vice presidential candidate selection

This article lists those who were potential candidates for the Republican nomination for Vice President of the United States in the 1968 election. After winning the Republican presidential nomination at the 1968 Republican National Convention, former Vice President Richard Nixon convened a series of meetings with close advisers and party leaders such as Strom Thurmond in order to choose his running mate. Nixon ultimately asked the convention to nominate Maryland Governor Spiro Agnew as his running mate. By a large margin, Agnew won the vice presidential nomination on the first ballot over Michigan Governor George W. Romney, who was supported by a faction of liberal Republicans. Nixon chose Agnew because he wanted a centrist who was broadly acceptable to the party, had experience with domestic issues, and appealed to Southern voters. The Nixon-Agnew ticket defeated the Humphrey-Muskie ticket, and also won re-election in 1972, defeating the McGovern-Shriver ticket. However, Agnew was forced to resign as Vice President in 1973 due to a controversy regarding his personal taxes.

1964 Democratic Party vice presidential candidate selection

This article lists those who were potential candidates for the Democratic nomination for Vice President of the United States in the 1964 election. After the assassination of Democratic President John F. Kennedy in 1963, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson ascended to the presidency. As the 25th Amendment had not yet been passed, there was no process for filling the office of vice president until the next election, and Speaker of the House John William McCormack was next-in-line for the presidency from November 1963 to January 1965. Johnson carefully considered his running mate for the 1964 election, and put up "trial balloons" in the media about possible running mates. Among those speculated at the time were Connecticut Senators Abraham Ribicoff and Thomas J. Dodd, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, New York Mayor Robert Wagner, California Governor Pat Brown, and Minnesota Senators Hubert Humphrey and Eugene McCarthy. Many Democrats also hoped for Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, the brother of former President John F. Kennedy, but Johnson carefully maneuvered to keep Kennedy off the ticket due to personal enmity between the two. After an interview in the Oval Office, Johnson announced his choice of Humphrey, who provided geographic balance to the ticket and had been a key lieutenant for Johnson in the Senate, particularly in regards to the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Humphrey then easily won the vice presidential nomination on the first ballot at the 1964 Democratic National Convention. The Johnson-Humphrey ticket went on to beat the Goldwater-Miller ticket in the 1964 election. Humphrey later won the 1968 Democratic presidential nomination over McCarthy, but lost the election to Richard Nixon.

1960 Democratic Party vice presidential candidate selection

This article lists those who were potential candidates for the Democratic nomination for Vice President of the United States in the 1960 election. After winning the presidential nomination on the first ballot of the 1960 Democratic National Convention, Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy turned his attention to picking a running mate. Kennedy chose Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson, who had finished second on the presidential ballot, as his running mate. Johnson, a Protestant Texan, provided geographical and religious balance to a ticket led by a Catholic Northeasterner, but many liberals did not like the pick. Many were surprised both that Kennedy made the offer and that Johnson accepted the offer, as the two had been rivals for the 1960 presidential nomination. According to some accounts, Kennedy had offered the position to Johnson as a courtesy and expected Johnson to decline the offer; when Johnson accepted, Kennedy sent his brother, Robert F. Kennedy, to talk Johnson out of accepting the offer. However, Kennedy may have made the offer in earnest due to Johnson's appeal in the south, Johnson's friendly relationship with Speaker of the House Sam Rayburn, and Kennedy's desire to remove Johnson as Senate Majority Leader in favor of the more liberal Mike Mansfield. Regardless, Johnson decided that accepting the offer would be better for his political career and better position himself to become president, and so he chose to become Kennedy's running mate. The Democratic convention confirmed Johnson as the vice presidential nominee, although the delegation from Washington, D.C. attempted to select Minnesota Governor Orville Freeman instead.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 NPR Staff (4 August 2012). "The Thomas Eagleton Affair Haunts Candidates Today". NPR. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Altman, Lawrence (23 July 2012). "Hasty and Ruinous 1972 Pick Colors Today's Hunt for a No. 2". New York Times. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  3. ↑ Thurber, Jon (5 March 2007). "Thomas Eagleton, 77; vice presidential candidate left race over health reports". LA Times. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Rudin, Ken (7 March 2007). "The Eagleton Fiasco of 1972". NPR. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  5. 1 2 Sigelman, Lee; Wahlbeck, Paul (December 1997). "The "Veepstakes": Strategic Choice in Presidential Running Mate Selection". The American Political Science Review. 91 (4): 858. JSTOR   2952169.
  6. 1 2 Baumgartner, Jody (1 January 2006). The American Vice Presidency Reconsidered. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 61. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
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