1964 United States presidential election
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538 members of the Electoral College 270 electoral votes needed to win | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Turnout | 62.8%[1] 1.0 pp | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Presidential election results map. Blue denotes states won by Johnson/Humphrey and red denotes those won by Goldwater/Miller. Numbers indicate electoral votes cast by each state. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1964 United States presidential election was the 45th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 3, 1964. Incumbent Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson defeated Senator Barry Goldwater, the Republican nominee, in a landslide. Johnson was the fourth and most recent vice-president to ascend to the presidency following the death of his predecessor and to win a full term in his own right. With 61.1% of the popular vote, Lyndon B. Johnson won the largest share of the popular vote for the Democratic Party in history, and the highest for any candidate since the advent of widespread popular elections in 1824.
Johnson took office on November 22, 1963, and emphasized the continuation of his assassinated predecessor,
Johnson championed his passage of the Civil Rights Act, and advocated a series of anti-poverty programs collectively known as the Great Society. Goldwater espoused a low-tax, small-government philosophy. Although he supported previous attempts at enacting civil rights legislation in 1957 and 1960, Goldwater opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, saying it violated individual liberty and states' rights. Democrats successfully portrayed Goldwater as a dangerous extremist, most famously in the "Daisy" television advertisement. The Republicans were divided between its moderate and conservative factions, with Rockefeller and other moderate party leaders refusing to campaign for Goldwater. Johnson led by wide margins in all polls during the campaign.
Johnson carried 44 states and the
Assassination of President John F. Kennedy
President Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas. Supporters were shocked and saddened by the loss of the charismatic President, while opposition candidates were put in the awkward position of running against the policies of a slain political figure.[2]
During the following period of mourning, Republican leaders called for a political moratorium, so as not to appear disrespectful.[3][4] As such, little politicking was done by the candidates of either major party until January 1964, when the primary season officially began.[5] At the time, most political pundits saw Kennedy's assassination as leaving the nation politically unsettled.[2]
Nominations
Democratic Party
1964 Democratic Party ticket | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Lyndon B. Johnson | Hubert Humphrey | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
for President | for Vice President | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
36th President of the United States (1963–1969) |
U.S. Senator from Minnesota (1949–1964) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Campaign | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Candidates
-
-
(1963–1967, 1971–1979, 1983–1987)
The only candidate other than President Johnson to actively campaign was then-Alabama Governor George Wallace, who ran in a number of northern primaries, though his candidacy was more to promote the philosophy of states' rights among a northern audience; while expecting some support from delegations in the South, Wallace was certain that he was not in contention for the Democratic nomination.[6] Johnson received 1,106,999 votes in the primaries.
At the national convention, the integrated
Johnson also faced trouble from
In early 1964, despite his personal animosity for the president, Kennedy had tried to force Johnson to accept him as his running mate. Johnson eliminated this threat by announcing that none of his cabinet members would be considered for second place on the Democratic ticket. Johnson also became concerned that Kennedy might use his scheduled speech at the 1964 Democratic Convention to create a groundswell of emotion among the delegates to make him Johnson's running mate; he prevented this by deliberately scheduling Kennedy's speech on the last day of the convention, after his running mate had already been chosen. Shortly after the 1964 Democratic Convention, Kennedy decided to leave Johnson's cabinet and run for the U.S. Senate in New York; he won the general election in November. Johnson chose United States Senator Hubert Humphrey from Minnesota, a liberal and civil rights activist, as his running mate.
Republican Party
1964 Republican Party ticket | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Barry Goldwater | William E. Miller | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
for President | for Vice President | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) |
U.S. Representative from New York (1951–1965) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Campaign | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Candidates
In order of delegates and votes won | ||||||||||
Barry Goldwater | William Scranton | Margaret Chase Smith | Nelson Rockefeller | Hiram Fong | Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. | George W. Romney | Walter Judd | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
U.S Senator from
(1953–65, 1969–87) |
Governor
of Pennsylvania (1963–67) |
U.S. Senator from Maine
(1949–73) |
Governor
of New York (1959–73) |
U.S Senator
from Hawaii (1959–77) |
Ambassador to the United Nations
(1953–60) |
Governor
of Michigan (1963–69) |
Former Representative from Minnesota
(1963–69) | |||
2,267,079 votes
1,220 PD |
245,401 votes
50 PD |
227.007 votes
22 PD |
1,304,204 votes
6 PD |
5 PD | 386,661 votes
3 PD |
1,955 votes
1 PD |
1 PD | |||
Harold Stassen | Jim Rhodes | John W. Byrnes | ||||||||
Former Governor
of Minnesota (1939–43) |
Governor
of Ohio (1953–71, 1975–83) |
Representative from Wisconsin
(1945–73) | ||||||||
114,083 votes | 615,754 votes | 299,612 votes |
Primaries
The Republican Party (GOP) was badly divided in 1964 between its
In 1961, a group of twenty-two conservatives, headed by Ohio Representative John M. Ashbrook, lawyer and National Review publisher William A. Rusher, and scholar F. Clifton White, met privately in Chicago to discuss the formation of a grass-roots organization to secure the nomination of a conservative as the 1964 Republican candidate. The main headquarters for the organization were established at Suite 3505 of the Chanin Building in New York City, leading members to refer to themselves as the "Suite 3505 Committee". Following the 1962 mid-term elections, they formally backed Goldwater, who notified them that he did not want to run for the presidency. In April 1963, they formed the Draft Goldwater Committee, chaired by Texas Republican Party Chairman Peter O'Donnell. The committee solidified growing conservative strength in the West and South, and began working to gain control of state parties in the Midwest from liberal Republicans. Throughout the rest of the year, speculation about a potential Goldwater candidacy grew, and grass-roots activism and efforts among conservative Republicans expanded.
Initially, Rockefeller was considered the front-runner, ahead of Goldwater. However, in 1963, two years after Rockefeller's divorce from his first wife, he married
In the first primary, in New Hampshire, both Rockefeller and Goldwater were considered to be the favorites, but the voters instead gave a surprising victory to the U.S. ambassador to South Vietnam, Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., Nixon's running mate in 1960 and a former Massachusetts senator. Lodge was a write-in candidate. He went on to win the Massachusetts and New Jersey primaries, before withdrawing his candidacy because he had finally decided he did not want the Republican nomination.[11]
Despite his defeat in New Hampshire, Goldwater pressed on, winning the
The final showdown between Goldwater and Rockefeller was in the
Total popular vote
- Barry Goldwater – 2,267,079 (38.33%)
- Nelson Rockefeller – 1,304,204 (22.05%)
- Jim Rhodes – 615,754 (10.41%)
- Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. – 386,661 (6.54%)
- John W. Byrnes – 299,612 (5.07%)
- William Scranton – 245,401 (4.15%)
- Margaret Chase Smith – 227,007 (3.84%)
- Richard Nixon – 197,212 (3.33%)
- Unpledged – 173,652 (2.94%)
- Harold Stassen – 114,083 (1.93%)
- Other – 58,933 (0.99%)
- Lyndon B. Johnson (write-in) – 23,406 (0.40%)
- George W. Romney – 1,955 (0.03%)
Convention
The 1964 Republican National Convention, July 13–16 at Daly City, California's Cow Palace arena, was one of the most bitter[clarification needed] on record.[citation needed][when?] The party's moderates and conservatives openly expressed their contempt for each other. Rockefeller was loudly booed when he came to the podium for his speech; in his speech, he roundly criticized the party's conservatives, which led many conservatives in the galleries to yell and scream at him. A group of moderates tried to rally behind Scranton to stop Goldwater, but Goldwater's forces easily brushed his challenge aside,[citation needed] and Goldwater was nominated on the first ballot. The presidential tally was as follows:
- Barry Goldwater 883
- William Scranton 214
- Nelson Rockefeller 114
- George W. Romney 41
- Margaret Chase Smith 27
- Walter Judd 22
- Hiram Fong 5
- Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. 2
The vice-presidential nomination went to little-known Republican Party Chairman William E. Miller, a Representative from western New York. Goldwater stated that he chose Miller simply because "he drives [President] Johnson nuts". This would be the only Republican ticket between 1948 and 1976 that did not include Nixon.
In accepting his nomination, Goldwater uttered his most famous phrase (a quote from Cicero suggested by speechwriter Harry Jaffa): "I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."[12] For many GOP moderates, Goldwater's speech was seen as a deliberate insult,[citation needed] and many of these moderates would defect to the Democrats in the fall election.
General election
Campaign
Although Goldwater had been successful in rallying conservatives, he was unable to broaden his base of support for the
In December 1961, he told a
Goldwater was also hurt by the reluctance of many prominent moderate Republicans to support him. Governors
Shortly before the Republican convention, CBS reporter Daniel Schorr wrote from Germany that, "It looks as though Senator Goldwater, if nominated, will be starting his campaign here in Bavaria, center of Germany's right wing". He noted that a prior Goldwater interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel was an "appeal to right-wing elements". However, there was no ulterior motive for the trip; it was just a vacation.[19]
Eisenhower's strong backing could have been an asset to the Goldwater campaign, but instead, its absence was clearly noticed. When questioned about the presidential capabilities of the former president's younger brother, university administrator Milton S. Eisenhower, in July 1964, Goldwater replied: "One Eisenhower in a generation is enough." However, Eisenhower did not openly repudiate Goldwater, and made one television commercial for Goldwater's campaign.[25] A prominent Hollywood celebrity who vigorously supported Goldwater was Ronald Reagan. Reagan gave a well-received televised speech supporting Goldwater; it was so popular that Goldwater's advisors had it played on local television stations around the nation. Many historians consider this speech — "A Time for Choosing" — to mark the beginning of Reagan's transformation from an actor to a political leader. In 1966, Reagan would be elected Governor of California.
Meanwhile, President Johnson was concerned he could lose the election by appearing soft on Communism.[26] On July 10, the USS Maddox was ordered into the Gulf of Tonkin, authorized to "maintain contact with the U.S. military command in Saigon ... and arrange 'such communications ... as may be desired'".[27] On July 30, South Vietnamese commandos tried to attack the North Vietnamese radar station on the island of Hon Me,[28] with the USS Maddox sufficiently close that the North Vietnamese believed it was there to provide cover for that commando raid.[29] North Vietnam filed an official complaint with the International Control Commission, accusing the United States of being behind the raid.[28] On August 2, the Maddox reported having been attacked by three North Vietnamese Navy torpedo boats.[30] Johnson called Soviet Premier Khrushchev, saying the US did not want war and asking the Soviets to convince North Vietnam to not attack American warships.[31] The next day, August 3, South Vietnamese raided Cape Vinhson and Cua Ron.[29] That night, in the middle of a thunderstorm, the Maddox intercepted radio messages that gave them "the 'impression' that Communist patrol boats were bracing for [another] assault". They called for air support from the USS Ticonderoga. The pilots didn't see anything, but the Maddox and the nearby USS Turner Joy started shooting in all directions. However, after the incident, all US personnel involved acknowledged they had neither seen nor heard Communist gunfire. Nevertheless, Johnson and an aide Kenneth O'Donnell agreed that Johnson "would have to respond firmly to defend himself against Goldwater and the Republican right wing". Johnson denounced the attack as "unprovoked" and secured essentially a blank check to do anything he thought necessary in Vietnam, and left Goldwater looking like an irresponsible hawk.[32]
Ads and slogans
Johnson positioned himself as a moderate, and succeeded in portraying Goldwater as an extremist. CIA Director William Colby asserted that Tracy Barnes instructed the CIA to spy on the Goldwater campaign and the Republican National Committee, to provide information to Johnson's campaign; E. Howard Hunt, later implicated as a ringleader in the Watergate scandal, disputed this, instead claiming the operation had been ordered by the White House.[33]
Goldwater had a habit of making blunt statements about
The Johnson campaign's greatest concern may have been voter complacency leading to low turnout in key states. To counter this, all of Johnson's broadcast ads concluded with the line: "Vote for President Johnson on November 3. The stakes are too high for you to stay home."[39][40] The Democratic campaign used two other slogans: "All the way with LBJ";[41][42][43] and, "LBJ for the USA".[44]
The election campaign was disrupted for a week by the death of former president Herbert Hoover on October 20, 1964, because it was considered disrespectful to be campaigning during a time of mourning. Hoover died of natural causes. He had been U.S. president from 1929 to 1933. Both major candidates attended his funeral.[45]
Johnson
Results
This section possibly contains original research. (September 2023) |
The election was held on November 3, 1964. Johnson beat Goldwater in the general election, winning over 61% of the popular vote. Johnson became the only Democrat between 1944 and 1976 to win a majority of the popular vote. In the end, Goldwater won only his native state of Arizona and five Deep South states — Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina — which had been increasingly alienated by Democratic civil rights policies, and where Jim Crow laws tended to be still active to varying degrees, before the following year's Voting Rights Act outlawed them entirely.
The five Southern states that voted for Goldwater swung over dramatically to support him. For instance, in Mississippi, where Democrat
The 1964 election was a major transition point for the South, and an important step in the process by which the Democrats' former "Solid South" became a Republican bastion. Nonetheless, Johnson still managed to eke out a bare popular majority of 51–49% (6.307 to 5.993 million) in the eleven former Confederate states. Conversely, Johnson was the first Democrat ever to carry the state of Vermont in a presidential election, and only the second Democrat, after Woodrow Wilson in 1912, when the Republican Party was divided, to carry Maine since the Republican Party was founded in 1854. Maine and Vermont had been the only states that FDR had failed to carry during any of his four successful presidential bids.
Around twenty percent of the people who had voted for Nixon in the 1960 election switched their support to Johnson.[48] Of the 3,126 counties/districts/independent cities making returns, Johnson won in 2,275 (72.77%), while Goldwater carried 826 (26.42%). Unpledged electors carried six counties in Alabama (0.19%). Johnson was the first president whose home state was in the former Confederacy since Zachary Taylor in 1848.
The Johnson landslide defeated many conservative Republican congressmen, giving him a majority that could overcome the conservative coalition. Johnson's landslide victory coincided with the defeat of many conservative Republican congressmen. The subsequent 89th Congress would pass major legislation such as the Social Security Amendments of 1965 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The 1964 election marked the beginning of a major, long-term re-alignment in American politics, as Goldwater's unsuccessful bid significantly influenced the modern conservative movement. The movement of conservatives to the Republican Party continued, culminating in the 1980 presidential victory of Ronald Reagan.
This was the first election to have the participation of the
Presidential candidate | Party | Home state | Popular vote[49] | Electoral vote[50] |
Running mate | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Count | Percentage | Vice-presidential candidate | Home state | Electoral vote[50] | ||||
Lyndon B. Johnson (incumbent) | Democratic
|
Texas | 43,129,040 | 61.05% | 486 | Hubert Humphrey | Minnesota | 486 |
Barry Goldwater | Republican
|
Arizona | 27,175,754 | 38.47% | 52 | William E. Miller | New York | 52 |
(unpledged electors) | Democratic | Alabama | 210,732 | 0.30% | 0 | Alabama | 0 | |
Eric Hass | Socialist Labor
|
New York | 45,189 | 0.06% | 0 | Henning A. Blomen | Massachusetts | 0 |
Clifton DeBerry | Socialist Workers | Illinois | 32,706 | 0.05% | 0 | Ed Shaw | Michigan | 0 |
E. Harold Munn | Prohibition | Michigan | 23,267 | 0.03% | 0 | Mark R. Shaw
|
Massachusetts | 0 |
John Kasper | States' Rights | New York | 6,953 | 0.01% | 0 | J. B. Stoner | Georgia | 0 |
Joseph B. Lightburn | Constitution
|
West Virginia | 5,061 | 0.01% | 0 | Theodore Billings | Colorado | 0 |
Other | 12,837 | 0.02% | — | Other | — | |||
Total | 70,641,539 | 100% | 538 | 538 | ||||
Needed to win | 270 | 270 |
Aftermath
Although Goldwater was decisively defeated, some political pundits and historians believe he laid the foundation for the conservative
Johnson used his victory in the 1964 election to launch the
Geography of results
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Results by state
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Results by county, shaded according to winning candidate's percentage of the vote
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Results by district, shaded according to winning candidate's percentage of the vote
Cartographic gallery
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Presidential election results by county
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Democratic presidential election results by county
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Republican presidential election results by county
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Unpledged electors presidential election results by county
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"Other" presidential election results by county
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Cartogram of presidential election results by county
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Cartogram of Democratic presidential election results by county
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Cartogram of Republican presidential election results by county
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Cartogram of unpledged electors presidential election results by county
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Cartogram of "Other" presidential election results by county
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County swing from 1960 to 1964
Results by state
Source: [53]
States/districts won by Johnson/Humphrey |
States/districts won by Goldwater/Miller |
Lyndon B. Johnson Democratic |
Barry Goldwater Republican |
Unpledged electors Unpledged Democratic |
Other | Margin | State total | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
State | electoral votes |
# | % | electoral votes |
# | % | electoral votes |
# | % | electoral votes |
# | % | electoral votes |
# | % | # | |
Alabama | 10 | - | - | - | 479,085 | 69.45 | 10 | 210,732 | 30.55 | - | - | - | - | −268,353 | −38.90 | 689,817 | AL |
Alaska | 3 | 44,329 | 65.91 | 3 | 22,930 | 34.09 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 21,399 | 31.82 | 67,259 | AK |
Arizona | 5 | 237,753 | 49.45 | - | 242,535 | 50.45 | 5 | - | - | - | 482 | 0.10 | - | −4,782 | −1.00 | 480,770 | AZ |
Arkansas | 6 | 314,197 | 56.06 | 6 | 243,264 | 43.41 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 70,933 | 12.66 | 560,426 | AR |
California | 40 | 4,171,877 | 59.11 | 40 | 2,879,108 | 40.79 | - | - | - | - | 489 | 0.01 | - | 1,292,769 | 18.32 | 7,057,586 | CA |
Colorado | 6 | 476,024 | 61.27 | 6 | 296,767 | 38.19 | - | - | - | - | 302 | 0.04 | - | 179,257 | 23.07 | 776,986 | CO |
Connecticut | 8 | 826,269 | 67.81 | 8 | 390,996 | 32.09 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 435,273 | 35.72 | 1,218,578 | CT |
Delaware | 3 | 122,704 | 60.95 | 3 | 78,078 | 38.78 | - | - | - | - | 113 | 0.06 | - | 44,626 | 22.17 | 201,320 | DE |
D. C. | 3 | 169,796 | 85.50 | 3 | 28,801 | 14.50 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 140,995 | 71.00 | 198,597 | DC |
Florida | 14 | 948,540 | 51.15 | 14 | 905,941 | 48.85 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 42,599 | 2.30 | 1,854,481 | FL |
Georgia | 12 | 522,557 | 45.87 | - | 616,584 | 54.12 | 12 | - | - | - | - | - | - | −94,027 | −8.25 | 1,139,336 | GA |
Hawaii | 4 | 163,249 | 78.76 | 4 | 44,022 | 21.24 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 119,227 | 57.52 | 207,271 | HI |
Idaho | 4 | 148,920 | 50.92 | 4 | 143,557 | 49.08 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5,363 | 1.83 | 292,477 | ID |
Illinois | 26 | 2,796,833 | 59.47 | 26 | 1,905,946 | 40.53 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 890,887 | 18.94 | 4,702,841 | IL |
Indiana | 13 | 1,170,848 | 55.98 | 13 | 911,118 | 43.56 | - | - | - | - | 1,374 | 0.07 | - | 259,730 | 12.42 | 2,091,606 | IN |
Iowa | 9 | 733,030 | 61.88 | 9 | 449,148 | 37.92 | - | - | - | - | 182 | 0.02 | - | 283,882 | 23.97 | 1,184,539 | IA |
Kansas | 7 | 464,028 | 54.09 | 7 | 386,579 | 45.06 | - | - | - | - | 1,901 | 0.22 | - | 77,449 | 9.03 | 857,901 | KS |
Kentucky | 9 | 669,659 | 64.01 | 9 | 372,977 | 35.65 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 296,682 | 28.36 | 1,046,105 | KY |
Louisiana | 10 | 387,068 | 43.19 | - | 509,225 | 56.81 | 10 | - | - | - | - | - | - | −122,157 | −13.63 | 896,293 | LA |
Maine | 4 | 262,264 | 68.84 | 4 | 118,701 | 31.16 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 143,563 | 37.68 | 381,221 | ME |
Maryland | 10 | 730,912 | 65.47 | 10 | 385,495 | 34.53 | - | - | - | - | 1 | 0.00 | - | 345,417 | 30.94 | 1,116,457 | MD |
Massachusetts | 14 | 1,786,422 | 76.19 | 14 | 549,727 | 23.44 | - | - | - | - | 4,755 | 0.20 | - | 1,236,695 | 52.74 | 2,344,798 | MA |
Michigan | 21 | 2,136,615 | 66.70 | 21 | 1,060,152 | 33.10 | - | - | - | - | 1,704 | 0.05 | - | 1,076,463 | 33.61 | 3,203,102 | MI |
Minnesota | 10 | 991,117 | 63.76 | 10 | 559,624 | 36.00 | - | - | - | - | 2,544 | 0.16 | - | 431,493 | 27.76 | 1,554,462 | MN |
Mississippi | 7 | 52,618 | 12.86 | - | 356,528 | 87.14 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | −303,910 | −74.28 | 409,146 | MS |
Missouri | 12 | 1,164,344 | 64.05 | 12 | 653,535 | 35.95 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 510,809 | 28.10 | 1,817,879 | MO |
Montana | 4 | 164,246 | 58.95 | 4 | 113,032 | 40.57 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 51,214 | 18.38 | 278,628 | MT |
Nebraska | 5 | 307,307 | 52.61 | 5 | 276,847 | 47.39 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 30,460 | 5.22 | 584,154 | NE |
Nevada | 3 | 79,339 | 58.58 | 3 | 56,094 | 41.42 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 23,245 | 17.16 | 135,433 | NV |
New Hampshire | 4 | 184,064 | 63.89 | 4 | 104,029 | 36.11 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 78,036 | 27.78 | 288,093 | NH |
New Jersey | 17 | 1,867,671 | 65.61 | 17 | 963,843 | 33.86 | - | - | - | - | 7,075 | 0.25 | - | 903,828 | 31.75 | 2,846,770 | NJ |
New Mexico | 4 | 194,017 | 59.22 | 4 | 131,838 | 40.24 | - | - | - | - | 1,217 | 0.37 | - | 62,179 | 18.98 | 327,615 | NM |
New York | 43 | 4,913,156 | 68.56 | 43 | 2,243,559 | 31.31 | - | - | - | - | 6,085 | 0.08 | - | 2,669,597 | 37.25 | 7,166,015 | NY |
North Carolina | 13 | 800,139 | 56.15 | 13 | 624,844 | 43.85 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 175,295 | 12.30 | 1,424,983 | NC |
North Dakota | 4 | 149,784 | 57.97 | 4 | 108,207 | 41.88 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 41,577 | 16.09 | 258,389 | ND |
Ohio | 26 | 2,498,331 | 62.94 | 26 | 1,470,865 | 37.06 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1,027,466 | 25.89 | 3,969,196 | OH |
Oklahoma | 8 | 519,834 | 55.75 | 8 | 412,665 | 44.25 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 107,169 | 11.49 | 932,499 | OK |
Oregon | 6 | 501,017 | 63.72 | 6 | 282,779 | 35.96 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 218,238 | 27.75 | 786,305 | OR |
Pennsylvania | 29 | 3,130,954 | 64.92 | 29 | 1,673,657 | 34.70 | - | - | - | - | 5,092 | 0.11 | - | 1,457,297 | 30.22 | 4,822,690 | PA |
Rhode Island | 4 | 315,463 | 80.87 | 4 | 74,615 | 19.13 | - | - | - | - | 2 | 0.00 | - | 240,848 | 61.74 | 390,091 | RI |
South Carolina | 8 | 215,700 | 41.10 | - | 309,048 | 58.89 | 8 | - | - | - | - | - | - | −93,348 | −17.79 | 524,756 | SC |
South Dakota | 4 | 163,010 | 55.61 | 4 | 130,108 | 44.39 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 32,902 | 11.22 | 293,118 | SD |
Tennessee | 11 | 634,947 | 55.50 | 11 | 508,965 | 44.49 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 125,982 | 11.01 | 1,143,946 | TN |
Texas | 25 | 1,663,185 | 63.32 | 25 | 958,566 | 36.49 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 704,619 | 26.82 | 2,626,811 | TX |
Utah | 4 | 219,628 | 54.86 | 4 | 180,682 | 45.14 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 38,946 | 9.73 | 400,310 | UT |
Vermont | 3 | 108,127 | 66.30 | 3 | 54,942 | 33.69 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 53,185 | 32.61 | 163,089 | VT |
Virginia | 12 | 558,038 | 53.54 | 12 | 481,334 | 46.18 | - | - | - | - | 2,895 | 0.28 | - | 76,704 | 7.36 | 1,042,267 | VA |
Washington | 9 | 779,881 | 61.97 | 9 | 470,366 | 37.37 | - | - | - | - | 7,772 | 0.62 | - | 309,515 | 24.59 | 1,258,556 | WA |
West Virginia | 7 | 538,087 | 67.94 | 7 | 253,953 | 32.06 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 284,134 | 35.87 | 792,040 | WV |
Wisconsin | 12 | 1,050,424 | 62.09 | 12 | 638,495 | 37.74 | - | - | - | - | 1,204 | 0.07 | - | 411,929 | 24.35 | 1,691,815 | WI |
Wyoming | 3 | 80,718 | 56.56 | 3 | 61,998 | 43.44 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 18,720 | 13.12 | 142,716 | WY |
TOTALS: | 538 | 43,129,040 | 61.05 | 486 | 27,175,754 | 38.47 | 52 | 210,732 | 0.30 | - | - | - | - | 15,951,287 | 22.58 | 70,641,539 | US |
Close states
Margin of victory less than 5% (23 electoral votes):
- Arizona, 1.00% (4,782 votes)
- Idaho, 1.83% (5,363 votes)
- Florida, 2.30% (42,599 votes)
Margin of victory over 5%, but less than 10% (40 electoral votes):
- Nebraska, 5.22% (30,460 votes)
- Virginia, 7.36% (76,704 votes)
- Georgia, 8.25% (94,027 votes)
- Kansas, 9.03% (77,449 votes)
- Utah, 9.73% (38,946 votes)
Tipping point:
- Washington, 24.59% (309,515 votes)
Statistics
Counties with highest percent of vote (Democratic)
- Duval County, Texas 92.55%
- Knott County, Kentucky 90.61%
- Webb County, Texas 90.08%
- Jim Hogg County, Texas 89.87%
- Menominee County, Wisconsin 89.12%
Counties with highest percent of vote (Republican)
- Holmes County, Mississippi 96.59%
- Noxubee County, Mississippi 96.59%
- Amite County, Mississippi 96.38%
- Leake County, Mississippi 96.23%
- Franklin County, Mississippi 96.05%
Counties with highest percent of vote (other)
- Macon County, Alabama 61.54%
- Limestone County, Alabama 56.01%
- Jackson County, Alabama 53.53%
- Lauderdale County, Alabama 52.45%
- Colbert County, Alabama 51.41%
Voter demographics
The 1964 presidential vote by demographic subgroup | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Demographic subgroup | Johnson | Goldwater | ||||
Total vote | 61 | 38 | ||||
Gender | ||||||
Men | 60 | 40 | ||||
Women | 62 | 38 | ||||
Age | ||||||
18–29 years old | 64 | 36 | ||||
30–49 years old | 61 | 39 | ||||
50 and older | 59 | 41 | ||||
Race | ||||||
White
|
59 | 41 | ||||
Black
|
94 | 6 | ||||
Religion | ||||||
Protestants | 55 | 45 | ||||
Catholics | 76 | 24 | ||||
Party | ||||||
Democrats | 87 | 13 | ||||
Republicans | 20 | 80 | ||||
Independents
|
56 | 44 | ||||
Education | ||||||
Less than high school | 66 | 34 | ||||
High school | 62 | 38 | ||||
College graduate or higher | 52 | 48 | ||||
Occupation | ||||||
Professional and business | 54 | 46 | ||||
White-collar | 57 | 43 | ||||
Blue-collar | 71 | 29 | ||||
Region | ||||||
Northeast | 68 | 32 | ||||
Midwest | 61 | 39 | ||||
South | 52 | 48 | ||||
West | 60 | 40 | ||||
Union households | ||||||
Union | 73 | 27 |
Source: [55]
See also
- Conservatism in the United States
- History of the United States (1964–1980)
- History of the United States Democratic Party
- History of the United States Republican Party
- Second inauguration of Lyndon B. Johnson
- 1964 United States gubernatorial elections
- 1964 United States House of Representatives elections
- 1964 United States Senate elections
- Natural born citizen of the United States (regarding Goldwater's constitutional eligibility to be president)
- Scientists and Engineers for Johnson–Humphrey
Notes
- ^ Two Democrats (Barack Obama in 2008 and Joe Biden in 2020) have since won an electoral vote from Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District, however Johnson remains the last Democrat to carry the state as a whole
References
- ^ "National General Election VEP Turnout Rates, 1789-Present". United States Election Project. CQ Press.
- ^ a b White 1965, p. 19
- ^ Bigart, Homer (November 26, 1963). "GOP Leaders Ask Halt in Campaign". New York Times. p. 11.
- ^ White 1965, pp. 59–60
- ^ White 1965, p. 101
- ^ "Jan 11, 1964: WALLACE CONSIDERS PRIMARIES IN NORTH". New York Times. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
- ^ Unger and Unger; LBJ; a Life (1999) pp. 325–326; Dallek Flawed Giant, p. 164.
- ^ Evans and Novak (1966) pp. 451–456.
- The Years of Lyndon Johnson: The Passage of Power" (2012), ch. 3 ("It's about Roosevelt and his father", Johnson said).
- ^ ISBN 0-465-04195-7.
- ISBN 9780521425957
- ^ "News Analysis; The Extremism Issue; Aides Say Goldwater Sought to Extol Patriotism and Defend His Party Stand". The New York Times. July 23, 1964. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
- ^ "Civil Rights Act of 1964 – CRA – Title VII – Equal Employment Opportunities – 42 US Code Chapter 21". Archived from the original on January 25, 2010.
- ^ a b Barnes, Bart (May 30, 1998). "Barry Goldwater, GOP Hero, Dies". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
- ^ "The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 1964 – Eastern Seabord".
- ^ "The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 1964 – Social Security".
- ^ Black, Conrad (2007), p. 464.
- ^ Nation: The Social Security Argument, Time, October 23, 1964
- ISBN 978-1568584126.
- ^ Nick Gillespie (July 30, 2006). "The Hard Right". New York Times.
- ^ Sally Satel (June 30, 2004). "Essay; The Perils of Putting National Leaders on the Couch". New York Times.
- ^ "'64 Poll of Psychiatrists On Goldwater Defended". The New York Times. September 5, 1965.
- ^ "EXPERT CONDEMNS GOLDWATER POLL – Tells Libel Trial Magazine Survey Was 'Loaded'". The New York Times. May 16, 1968.
- ^ "Goldwater Awarded $75,000 in Damages In His Suit for Libel". The New York Times. May 25, 1968. p. 1.
- ^ "The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 1964 – Ike at Gettysburg".
- ^ Karnow (1983), p. 371.
- ^ Karnow (1983), p. 366.
- ^ a b Karnow (1983), p. 367.
- ^ a b Karnow (1983), p. 370.
- ^ Moïse (1996), pp. 50, 78.
- ^ Karnow (1983), pp. 368–369.
- ^ Karnow (1983), pp. 368–374. Moïse (1996) noted that the Johnson administration did not intentionally fake the incident. However, it's clear that Johnson was under pressure to do something, the attacks that actually occurred earlier were not "unprovoked", as Johnson claimed, and once he had taken action, he could not easily admit that the evidence was over-stated.
- ^ Usdin, Steve (May 22, 2018). "When the CIA Infiltrated a Presidential Campaign" (Politico)
- ^ "The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 1964 – Peace Little Girl (Daisy)".
- ISBN 1429931264
- ^ "The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 1964 – Confessions of a Republican".
- ^ "10 worst political slogans of all time". The Daily Telegraph. March 23, 2016. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
- ^ "Election and the Vietnam War". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
- ^ Barth, Jay (May 12, 2016). "1964 redux: The stakes are too high for you to stay at home". Arkansas Times. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ "The Living Room Candidate - Commercials - 1964 - Republican Convention". www.livingroomcandidate.org. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ISBN 978-0-19-556316-0, retrieved May 18, 2023
- ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ "[Delegates on the floor at the 1964 Democratic National Convention, Atlantic City, New Jersey; large banner reading "New York for LBJ all the way..."] / WKL". Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ "LBJ for the USA". Library of Congress.
- ISBN 0817977511
- ^ "Gallup Presidential Election Trial-Heat Trends, 1936–2008". Gallup, Inc.
- ^ Kornacki, Steve (February 3, 2011). "The 'Southern Strategy', fulfilled". Salon.com. Archived April 13, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ Murphy, Paul (1974). Political Parties In American History, Volume 3, 1890-present. G. P. Putnam's Sons.
- ^ a b Leip, David. "1964 Presidential Election Results". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved May 8, 2013.
- ^ a b "Electoral College Box Scores 1789–1996". National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved August 7, 2005.
- ISBN 978-1-56858-412-6.
- ^ Williams, Juan (June 10, 2004). "Reagan, the South and Civil Rights". NPR.org. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
- ^ "1964 Presidential General Election Data – National". Retrieved March 18, 2013.
- ^ "1964 Presidential General Election Data – National". Retrieved March 18, 2013.
- Gallup. Archived from the originalon July 26, 2011. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
Sources
- Wikidata Q108903453.
- Edwin E. Moïse (1996). Tonkin Gulf and the Escalation of the Vietnam War. Wikidata Q108905649.
Further reading
- Annunziata, Frank. "The Revolt Against the Welfare State: Goldwater Conservatism and the Election of 1964." Presidential Studies Quarterly 10.2 (1980): 254–265. online
- Barone, Michael; Grant Ujifusa (1967). The Almanac of American Politics 1966: The Senators, the Representatives and the Governors: Their Records and Election Results, Their States and Districts.
- Brennan, Mary C. (1995). Turning Right in the Sixties: The Conservative Capture of the G.O.P. University of North Carolina Press.
- Burdick, Eugene (1964). The 480. – a political fiction novel around the Republican campaign.
- Converse, Philip E., Aage R. Clausen, and Warren E. Miller. "Electoral myth and reality: the 1964 election." American Political Science Review 59.2 (1965): 321–336. online, widely cited based on voter surveys.
- ISBN 978-0-19-515920-2.
- Davies, Gareth, and Julian E. Zelizer, eds. America at the Ballot Box: Elections and Political History (2015) pp. 184–195, role of liberalism.
- Donaldson, Gary (2003). Liberalism's Last Hurrah: The Presidential Campaign of 1964. M. E. Sharpe. ISBN 0-7656-1119-8.
- Erikson, Robert S. "The influence of newspaper endorsements in presidential elections: The case of 1964." American Journal of Political Science (1976): 207–233. online
- Evans, Rowland, and Novak, Robert (1966). Lyndon B. Johnson: The Exercise of Power.
- Farrington, Joshua D. (2020). "Evicted from the Party: Black Republicans and the 1964 Election". Journal of Arizona History 61.1: 127–148.
- Fraser, Steve; Gary Gerstle, eds. (1990). The Rise and Fall of the New Deal Order, 1930–1980.
- Goldberg, Robert Alan (1995). Barry Goldwater.
- Hamby, Alonzo (1992). Liberalism and Its Challengers: From F.D.R. to Bush.
- Hodgson, Godfrey (1996). The World Turned Right Side Up: A History of the Conservative Ascendancy in America. Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN 9780395822944.
- Jensen, Richard (1983). Grass Roots Politics: Parties, Issues, and Voters, 1854–1983.
- Johnstone, Andrew, and Andrew Priest, eds. US Presidential Elections and Foreign Policy: Candidates, Campaigns, and Global Politics from FDR to Bill Clinton (2017) pp 154–176. online
- Jurdem, Laurence R. "'The Media Were Not Completely Fair to You': Foreign Policy, the Press and the 1964 Goldwater Campaign". Journal of Arizona History 61.1 (2020): 161–180.
- Kolkey, Jonathan Martin (1983). The New Right, 1960–1968: With Epilogue, 1969–1980.
- Ladd, Everett Carll Jr.; Charles D. Hadley (1978). Transformations of the American Party System: Political Coalitions from the New Deal to the 1970s (2nd ed.).
- Lesher, Stephan (1995). George Wallace.
- McGirr, Lisa (2002). Suburban Warriors: The Origins of the New American Right. Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691059037.
- Mann, Robert (2011). Daisy Petals and Mushroom Clouds: LBJ, Barry Goldwater and the Ad That Changed American Politics. Louisiana State University Press.
- Matthews, Jeffrey J. (1997). "To Defeat a Maverick: The Goldwater Candidacy Revisited, 1963–1964". Presidential Studies Quarterly. 27 (4): 662. online
- Middendorf, J. William (2006). A Glorious Disaster: Barry Goldwater’s Presidential Campaign and the Origins of the Conservative Movement. Basic Books.
- Rae, Nicol C. (1994). Southern Democrats. Oxford University Press.
- Rice, Ross R. "The 1964 Elections in the West." Western Political Quarterly 18.2-2 (1965): 431–438, with full articles on each Western state.
- Anderson, Totton J., and Eugene C. Lee. "The 1964 election in California." Western Political Quarterly 18.2-2 (1965): 451–474.
- Perlstein, Rick (2002). Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus.
- Schlesinger Jr., Arthur Meier, ed. (2001). History of American Presidential Elections, 1789–2000.
- Schuparra, Kurt. "Barry Goldwater and Southern California Conservatism: Ideology, Image and Myth in the 1964 California Republican Presidential Primary." Southern California Quarterly 74.3 (1992): 277–298. online
- Shermer, Elizabeth Tandy, ed. Barry Goldwater and the remaking of the American political landscape (University of Arizona Press, 2013).
- Sundquist, James L. (1983). Dynamics of the Party System: Alignment and Realignment of Political Parties in the United States.
- White, Theodore (1965). The Making of the President: 1964. New York, Atheneum Publishers.
- Young, Nancy Beck. Two Suns of the Southwest: Lyndon Johnson, Barry Goldwater, and the 1964 Battle between Liberalism and Conservatism (UP of Kansas, 2019). online
Primary sources
- Gallup, George H., ed. (1972). The Gallup Poll: Public Opinion, 1935–1971. 3 vols. Random House.
- Chester, Edward W. (1977). A guide to political platforms.
- Porter, Kirk H. and Donald Bruce Johnson, eds. (1973). National party platforms, 1840–1972.
External links
- Campaign commercials from the 1964 election
- 1964 election results: State-by-state Popular vote Archived July 6, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
- 1964 popular vote by states (with bar graphs)
- 1964 popular vote by counties
- electoral history
- Election of 1964 in Counting the Votes Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine