1964 Democratic Party vice presidential candidate selection
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The selection of the Democratic Party's vice presidential candidate for the 1964 United States presidential election occurred at the party's national convention. After the assassination of 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 post-election inauguration, 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.[1]
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.[1] 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.[1][2] 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.[2] Humphrey then easily won the vice presidential nomination on the first ballot at the 1964 Democratic National Convention.[1] The Johnson-Humphrey ticket went on to beat the Goldwater-Miller ticket in the 1964 election.
Potential running mates
Finalists
- Minnesota Senator Hubert Humphrey[3]
- Minnesota Senator Eugene McCarthy[4]
- Connecticut Senator Thomas J. Dodd[5]
Others
- California Governor Pat Brown[1]
- Connecticut Senator Abraham A. Ribicoff[1]
- New York Mayor Robert Wagner[1]
- Secretary of Agriculture Orville Freeman of Minnesota, a former Governor of Minnesota as well.[6]
- Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy[7]
- U.N. Ambassador, former Governor of Illinois, and '52/'56 Democratic Presidential nominee Adlai E. Stevenson, Jr.[8]
- Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield of Montana[9]
- OEO Director Sargent Shriver[10]
- Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara[11]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Nathanson, Iric (24 May 2011). "Loyal lieutenant: On the ticket with LBJ". Minnesota Post. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
- ^ a b Walch, Timothy (1997). At the President's Side: The Vice Presidency in the Twentieth Century. University of Missouri Press. pp. 104–105. ISBN 9780826211330. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
- ^ https://www.minnpost.com/politics-policy/2011/05/loyal-lieutenant-ticket-lbj/
- ^ https://www.npr.org/sections/politicaljunkie/2010/07/27/128809159/flashback-friday-on-this-day-in-1964-lbj-rules-out-rfk-for-v-p
- ^ https://www.minnpost.com/politics-policy/2011/05/loyal-lieutenant-ticket-lbj/
- ^ https://www.npr.org/sections/politicaljunkie/2010/07/27/128809159/flashback-friday-on-this-day-in-1964-lbj-rules-out-rfk-for-v-p
- ^ https://www.npr.org/sections/politicaljunkie/2010/07/27/128809159/flashback-friday-on-this-day-in-1964-lbj-rules-out-rfk-for-v-p
- ^ https://www.npr.org/sections/politicaljunkie/2010/07/27/128809159/flashback-friday-on-this-day-in-1964-lbj-rules-out-rfk-for-v-p
- ^ https://www.npr.org/sections/politicaljunkie/2010/07/27/128809159/flashback-friday-on-this-day-in-1964-lbj-rules-out-rfk-for-v-p
- ^ https://www.npr.org/sections/politicaljunkie/2010/07/27/128809159/flashback-friday-on-this-day-in-1964-lbj-rules-out-rfk-for-v-p
- ^ https://www.npr.org/sections/politicaljunkie/2010/07/27/128809159/flashback-friday-on-this-day-in-1964-lbj-rules-out-rfk-for-v-p