1960 Republican National Convention

Presidential nomination

Presidential candidates

File:Richard Nixon presidential portrait (cropped).jpg|Vice President Richard Nixon of California Image:Goldwater for President (cropped).jpg|Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona (Declined Consideration)

By the time the Republican convention opened, Nixon had no opponents for the nomination. The highlight of the convention was the speech by U.S. Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona removing himself from the race, in which he called on conservatives to "take back" the party. Nixon won easily, earning 1,321 votes to 10 for Goldwater. At the convention, Nixon promised that he would visit every state during his campaign.

Presidential Balloting / 3rd Day of Convention (July 27, 1960) File:1960RepublicanPresidentialNomination1stBallot.png|1st Presidential Ballot

Vice Presidential nomination

Main article: 1960 Republican Party vice presidential candidate selection

Vice Presidential candidates

Image:Henry Cabot Lodge Jr (R-MA) (cropped).jpg|UN Ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. of Massachusetts Image:Thruston B Morton.jpg|Senator Thruston B. Morton of Kentucky Image:Walter Judd.jpg|Representative Walter Judd of Minnesota Image:80-G-K-14927 Robert B. Anderson.jpg|Treasury Secretary Robert B. Anderson of Texas Image:PrescottBush.jpg|Senator Prescott Bush of Connecticut Image:Senator Everett Dirksen.jpg|Senate Minority Leader Everett Dirksen of Illinois Image:Arthur S. Flemming.jpg|HEW Secretary Arthur Flemming of Ohio Image:Gerald Ford presidential portrait (cropped).jpg|Representative Gerald Ford of Michigan Image:Jpmitchell.jpg|Labor Secretary James P. Mitchell of New Jersey Image:Nelson Rockefeller 1960 (cropped).jpg|Governor Nelson Rockefeller of New York Image:SenHughScott.jpg|Senator Hugh Scott of Pennsylvania Image:Interior Secretary Fred Seaton.jpg|Interior Secretary Fred A. Seaton of Nebraska Image:William G. Stratton (Illinois Blue Book Portrait 1959-1960) (cropped).jpg|Governor William Stratton of Illinois Image:Philip H. Willkie speaking to the press.jpg|Former State Representative Philip Willkie of Indiana

After winning the presidential nomination, Nixon considered several candidates for the vice presidential nomination. Incumbent President Dwight D. Eisenhower strongly supported Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., the United States Ambassador to the United Nations. Though Lodge was not viewed by Republicans as a charismatic speaker, his foreign policy experience as well as his longtime Republican Party ties as a descendant of the Lodge family made him an appealing candidate.

Lodge was unpopular with the conservative wing of the party, who regarded him as a Northeastern moderate.

Other candidates Nixon may have considered include:

• Barry M. Goldwater, U.S. Senator from Arizona (Would be nominated for president in 1964)
• Charles A. Halleck, U.S. House Minority Leader from Indiana
• Neil H. McElroy, former Secretary of Defense from Ohio
• Charles H. Percy, businessman from Illinois
• William P. Rogers, U.S. Attorney General from Maryland

After deciding on Lodge, Nixon participated in a closed session with party leaders, who concurred with his preference. After the session, Nixon announced his choice publicly, and the convention ratified it.

Vice Presidential Balloting / 4th Day of Convention (July 28, 1960) File:1960RepublicanVicePresidentialNomination1stBallot.png|1st Vice Presidential Ballot

General election

The Nixon-Lodge ticket lost the 1960 election to the Democratic ticket of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.

References

References

1. "History Files - Parades, Protests and Politics".
2. "Richard Nixon: Address Accepting the Presidential Nomination at the Republican National Convention in Chicago".
3. (2007). "The First Modern Campaign: Kennedy, Nixon, and the Election of 1960". Rowman & Littlefield.
4. (2008). "1960: LBJ Vs. JFK Vs. Nixon : the Epic Campaign that Forged Three Presidencies". Sterling Publishing Company.