JFK's Election Flashcards
the election results
Closest election victory of the 20th Century
Only 119,450 votes separating the candidates
A winning margin for Kennedy of just 0.17% of the popular vote
why did Kennedy Win
Eisenhowers Errors
Nixons Errors
Kennedys Performace
Televised Debate
MLK
Eisenhower’s Errors
Ike was not helpful to Nixon’s presidential campaign. Instead of promoting Nixon’s candidacy, Ike was preoccupied with defending his presidential record against Kennedy’s attacks on his policies on defence and poverty.
how did Kennedy Undermine Ike’s presidency
Kennedy claimed that 17M Americans went to bed hungry each night, Ike responded by saying ‘they must all be dieting’.
how did Ike’s policies damage Nixon’s candidacy
After the 1959 budget deficit of $13B, Ike and congress agreed on huge spending cuts to ensure a surplus in 1960. This led to a recession that damaged Nixon’s campaign
Ike refused to refute JFK’s accusation that there was a missile gap in the Soviets favour, this left Nixon looking weak on defence.
how did Ikes comments damage Nixon
Nixon made his experience of governing central to his campaign, but when a reporter asked Ike for an example of a ‘major idea’ of Nixons he adopted - Ike answered ‘if you give me a week, I might think of one’. This remark greatly damaged Nixon’s claim to governmental experience
Nixons Strengths
13 years experience in congress including vice-president to Eisenhower
He had a reputation as an anti-communist
Foreign policy experience as a ‘goodwill ambassador’
His non-privileged background
Strong support from California
Chose Henry Cabot Lodge, a former Massachusetts senator as vice president
JFK’s strengths
He had been a war hero
He was young, handsome and tall
13 year’s experience in congress including seven in the Senate
Had strong support from Northern Democrats and Catholics
He chose Lyndon Johnson, an experience Texas senator, as his vice president - appeal to dixiecrats
He appealed to African-Americans voters with targeted promises
His father’s wealth and political connections bankrolled his campaign
nixon’s errors
Nixon contributed his fair share to his defeat. He rejected Ike’s advice over televised debates with JFK. Ike pointed out that Nixon was already well known the debates would simply give JFK free advertising
Televised Debate
Arguably the biggest factor in the Kennedy Victory as the two candidates were tied prior. JFK’s blue suit was chosen to contrast with the grey TV background where Nixons grey suit blended into it. Nixon was recovering from a knee injury and flu had developed during a tireless campaign he sweated profusely under hot lights. Radio listeners thought Nixon won but the larger TV audience of 74M believed JFK was the victor by a wide margin. Four days after the election - JFK admitted ‘it was the TV more than anything else that tuned the tide’. JFK looked better on TV and looked straight at the Camera’s, Nixon looked sideways and projected shiftiness - he spoke after JFK - looked like a second fiddle
DAVID L VANCIL AND SUE D PENDALL
They believed that Kennedy won because of effective marketing
He benefited from snappy political broadcasts and jingles like ‘Kennedy for me’
Huge range of merchandise such as pin badges, hats, flags and posters
Clever photo opportunities showed Kennedy meeting a range of people
Glamourous wife Jackie gained supporters
Nixons exhaustion - MLK
Nixon foolishly promised to campaign in all 50 states. This explains his inaction over MLK’s arrest after participation in an Atlanta sit-in in October 1960. JFK called his wife and helped secure the black vote - he took the black vote by 70:30.
Nixons running mate
They lost the southern white vote by promising a black cabinet member. In contrast to Nixon, JFK choose a running mate who helped him win the south.
how was Kennedy’s campaign disadvantaged
His unpopular father, his youth and his catholicism
how did JFK deal with his father as a problem
JFK’s father had supported the appeasement of Nazi Germany in the 1930s and many openly asserted that he was trying to purchase the presidency for his son - he used his money and influence effectively in the 1960 campaign. While Nixon had no rapport with Journalists, Kennedy charmed them with wit and modesty.
pope
Kennedys religion was more of a problem than his father. Anti-catholicism remained strong there were fears that Kennedy would put loyalty to the pope before loyalty to america. Kennedy pointed out that no one had asked for his religion when he fought in the second world war and assured voters that his loyalty was to his country not to Rome. He spoke to a group of protestant ministers in Houston two months before the election where he promised a solid commitment to the separation of church and state. However, Kennedy’s catholicism cost him 1.5M votes. The narrow margin of his victory in terms of popular vote owed much to protestant reluctance to vote for the first Catholic president of the US
his youth
There was a lot of anxiety about his youth, Kennedy helped turn it to his advantage. Unlike Nixon, Kennedy was an exceptionally personable candidate. His looks attracted people as he worked the crowds. One reporter said the campaign was ‘just an effective presentation of a celebrity’. Kennedy’s most effective use of his youthfulness lay in his telling exploitation of the contrast with the elderly Ike
Kennedy’s campaign
Kennedy encapsulated his campaign theme in his slogan ‘lets get the country moving again’ which suggested a stark contrast to Ike and stagnation. JFK emphasised that not all Americans participated in the American Dream under Ike, citing 7% unemployment and underemployment, he presented a new version of the American Dream that offered something more than prosperity in his New Frontier speech.
electoral fraud
There were allegations of voter fraud in Texas, johnson’s home state and in Chicago where Democrat Mayor Daley had a reputation for guaranteeing landslide results. Ike encouraged Nixon to challenge the result in the courts but Nixon refused saying it would cause a constitutional crisis and suggest that he was a sore loser
nixons attempts to use JFK’s catholicism
To exploit Catholicism as a weakness in JFK’s candidacy, the Nixon campaign employed a tactic known as “guilt by association”. This involved linking JFK to the more controversial policies of the Vatican, such as opposition to birth control and support for right-wing dictatorships in Latin America. Nixon’s campaign team sought to portray JFK as a tool of the Pope and a threat to American democracy.
how did JFK spin Nixon’s attempts
