1968 Republican National Convention
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The 1968 Republican National Convention was held at the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami Beach, Dade County, Florida, USA, from August 5 to August 8, 1968, to select the party's nominee in the general election. It nominated former Vice President Richard M. Nixon for president and Maryland Governor Spiro T. Agnew for vice president. It was the fourth time Nixon had been nominated on the Republican ticket as either its vice presidential (1952 and 1956) or presidential candidate (1960). Symbolic of the South's changing political affiliation, this was the first Republican National Convention held in a prior Confederate State.
Political context
Former Vice President
The so-called "New Nixon" in the 1968 presidential election devised a "Southern strategy," taking advantage of the region's opposition to racial integration and other progressive/liberal policies of the Democratic Party and President Lyndon B. Johnson.
Nixon was nominated on the first ballot with 692 votes to 277 votes for Nelson Rockefeller, 182 votes for California Governor Ronald Reagan and the rest scattered. He was able to secure the nomination to the support of many Southern delegates, after he and his subordinates made concessions to Strom Thurmond and Harry Dent on civil rights, the Supreme Court, and the selection of a vice presidential candidate.[1]
Nixon decided not to re-select his 1960 running mate
In his acceptance speech, Nixon deplored the state of the union and urged a return to law and order both at home and abroad:
When the strongest nation in the world can be tied down for four years in Vietnam with no end in sight, when the richest nation in the world can't manage its own economy, when the nation with the greatest tradition of the rule of law is plagued by unprecedented racial violence, when the President of the United States cannot travel abroad or to any major city at home, then it's time for new leadership for the United States of America.[3]
Nixon also said that he had "a good teacher", referring to Eisenhower, and made the delegates happy with the statement "Let's win this one for Ike!" Eisenhower was not present during Nixon's speech nor during any part of the convention. Due to failing health, he was under doctor's orders not to travel, but addressed the convention by telephone. He died the following March.
Balloting
The following were placed into nomination:
Nominated for President
-
-
James A. Rhodes
of Ohio -
SenatorClifford Case
of New Jersey -
-
Nominated for Vice President
The Republican Convention Tally results
This was the last time during the 20th Century that two siblings (the Rockefeller brothers) received votes at a convention.
President | (before switches) | (after switches) | Vice President | Vice-Presidential votes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Richard M. Nixon |
692 | 1238 | Spiro T. Agnew |
1119 |
Nelson Rockefeller | 277 | 93 | George Romney | 186 |
Ronald Reagan | 182 | 2 | John V. Lindsay |
10 |
James A. Rhodes |
55 | — | Massachusetts Senator Edward Brooke | 1 |
Michigan Governor George Romney | 50 | — | James A. Rhodes |
1 |
Clifford Case |
22 | — | Not Voting | 16 |
Kansas Senator Frank Carlson | 20 | — | — | |
Arkansas Governor Winthrop Rockefeller | 18 | — | — | |
Hawaii Senator Hiram Fong | 14 | — | — | |
Harold Stassen | 2 | — | — | |
New York City Mayor John V. Lindsay |
1 | — | — |
Results by state
The balloting by state was as follows:[5][6][7]
State | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alabama | 14 | 12 | |||||||||
Alaska | 11 | 1 | |||||||||
Arizona | 16 | ||||||||||
Arkansas | 18 | ||||||||||
California | 86 | ||||||||||
Colorado | 14 | 3 | 1 | ||||||||
Connecticut | 4 | 12 | |||||||||
Delaware | 9 | 3 | |||||||||
Florida | 32 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
Georgia | 21 | 2 | 7 | ||||||||
Hawaii | 14 | ||||||||||
Idaho | 9 | 5 | |||||||||
Illinois | 50 | 5 | 3 | ||||||||
Indiana | 26 | ||||||||||
Iowa | 13 | 8 | 3 | ||||||||
Kansas | 20 | ||||||||||
Kentucky | 22 | 2 | |||||||||
Louisiana | 19 | 7 | |||||||||
Maine | 7 | 7 | |||||||||
Maryland | 18 | 8 | |||||||||
Massachusetts | 34 | ||||||||||
Michigan | 4 | 44 | |||||||||
Minnesota | 9 | 15 | 1 | 1 | |||||||
Mississippi | 20 | ||||||||||
Missouri | 16 | 5 | 3 | ||||||||
Montana | 11 | 3 | |||||||||
Nebraska | 16 | ||||||||||
Nevada | 9 | 3 | |||||||||
New Hampshire | 8 | ||||||||||
New Jersey | 18 | 22 | |||||||||
New Mexico | 8 | 1 | 5 | ||||||||
New York | 4 | 88 | |||||||||
North Carolina | 9 | 1 | 16 | ||||||||
North Dakota | 5 | 2 | 1 | ||||||||
Ohio | 2 | 55 | 1 | ||||||||
Oklahoma | 14 | 1 | 7 | ||||||||
Oregon | 18 | ||||||||||
Pennsylvania | 22 | 41 | 1 | ||||||||
Rhode Island | 14 | ||||||||||
South Carolina | 22 | ||||||||||
South Dakota | 14 | ||||||||||
Tennessee | 28 | ||||||||||
Texas | 41 | 15 | |||||||||
Utah | 2 | 6 | |||||||||
Vermont | 9 | 3 | |||||||||
Virginia | 22 | 2 | |||||||||
Washington | 15 | 3 | 6 | ||||||||
West Virginia | 11 | 3 | |||||||||
Wisconsin | 30 | ||||||||||
Wyoming | 12 | ||||||||||
District of Columbia | 6 | 3 | |||||||||
Puerto Rico | 5 | ||||||||||
U.S. Virgin Islands | 2 | 1 | |||||||||
Total | 692 | 277 | 182 | 55 | 50 | 22 | 20 | 18 | 14 | 2 | 1 |
See also
- History of the United States Republican Party
- List of Republican National Conventions
- United States presidential nominating convention
- 1968 Democratic National Convention
- 1968 United States presidential election
- Richard Nixon 1968 presidential campaign
- 1968 Miami riot
Notes
- Clifford Case), Kansas (Frank Carlson), and Arkansas (Winthrop Rockefeller).
References
- ISBN 978-0-7432-4302-5.
- ^ Perlstein, pp. 299-304
- ^ "Address Accepting the Presidential Nomination at the Republican National Convention in Miami Beach, Florida". The American Presidency Project. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
- ^ Troy, Schlesinger & Israel 2012, pp. 1318–1319.
- ^ "Lebanon Daily News". Lebanon, PA. August 8, 1968. Retrieved January 9, 2018.
- ^ "The News-Herald". Franklin, PA. August 8, 1968. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
- ^ "1968 Republican Convention Roll Call". CBS Radio News. August 1968. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13.
Bibliography
- ISBN 978-0-8160-8220-9.
External links
- Republican Party platform of 1968 at The American Presidency Project
- Nixon nomination acceptance speech for President at RNC (transcript) at The American Presidency Project
- Video of Nixon nomination acceptance speech for President at RNC from C-SPAN (via YouTube)
- Audio of Nixon nomination acceptance speech for President at RNC[permanent dead link]
- Video of Agnew nomination acceptance speech for Vice President at RNC (via YouTube)
Preceded by 1964 Daly City, California |
Republican National Conventions | Succeeded by 1972 Miami Beach, Florida |