Posted by In 1960 the Presidential Election was close. Based on data at The American Presidency Project, John F. Kennedy received 34,226,731 votes and Richard M. Nixon received 34,108,157 votes. The difference in popular votes was 118,574 (based on my calculator input). However, the electoral votes showed a different picture. Kennedy received 303 electoral votes and Nixon 219, a difference of 84 electoral votes. Since Harry Byrd received 16 electoral votes from unpledged electors, Kennedy received 56.3% of the electoral votes and Nixon got 40.7% of the electoral votes. But the percentage of the popular vote was a different story: Kennedy 49.7%, Nixon 49.5%, a difference of 0.2 percentage points.
Before I examine the 2020 election, let me offer a few thoughts on this one. In 1960 I was 6 years old. Obviously, I did not vote in the election, but I did follow some of the campaign rhetoric on TV and in the conversations of Catholic family members. The possibility of a Catholic being elected President was big news.
When John F Kennedy was elected, the Catholic community celebrated. I can state that this excitement carried through the Catholic school system. And when he was assassinated on November 22, 1963, the Catholic community mourned and memorialized him. Scholastic Book Services published The Life and Words of John F. Kennedy by James Playsted Wood in 1965. Catholic youth were encouraged to study the life and work of JFK in the hope they would be inspired to pursue public service as they got older.
In retirement I selected a number of books for my Rest-In-Peace Reading List. In preparation for the 2024 election, I’ve started reading The Making of the President 1960 by Theodore H. White. One of the passages that grabbed me was an account of election night. White describes a virtual dead zone between 10pm and midnight. He notes that between these hours, “…the New York headquarters of the great broadcasting companies and the two great wire services…” are the only sources of election updates. Everyone receives the same information at the same time. White continues: “There is nothing that can be done in these hours, for no one can any longer direct the great strike for America’s power; the polls have closed. Good or bad, whatever the decision, America will accept the decision – and cut down any man who goes against it, even though for millions the decision runs contrary to their own votes. The general vote is an expression of national will, the only substitute for violence and blood. Its verdict is to be defended as one defends civilization itself.”
Clearly the electoral vote impacts the results of the popular vote. But Mr. White’s testimony to the nation’s respect for the election process is of great importance at this time. This leads us to the 2020 election.
2020 Election: Trump vs Biden
We all know the results, but let’s look at the data.
Popular vote: Trump 74,216,728 (46.86%) Biden 81,268,773 (51.31%)
Elecoral Vote: Trump 232 (43.12%) Biden 306 (56.88%)
At first glance, these numbers do not indicate anything is wrong with the final result. There is significant separation in both the popular vote and the electoral vote. However, as we all know, Mr. Trump made every effort to challenge the results both in court and during the official electoral count. Since then, he has spent a great deal of time in court. Of course, he was also impeached by the House for his activities on January 6 during the official electoral count.
The 1960 election was much closer, and the Republican party challenged those results. Richard Nixon did not challenge them. As reported by Peter Carlson of the Washington Post, Nixon told Earl Mazo of the New York Herald Tribune that “the country couldn’t afford a constitutional crisis at the height of the Cold War.” [Another Race To the Finish: 1960’s Election Was Close But Nixon Didn’t Haggle November 16, 2000] Keep in mind that Richard Nixon was still Vice President in the Eisenhower White House. Whether you agree or disagree with his decision, at that time he placed the needs of the nation above his personal desires. The same statement cannot be made for Donald Trump. (Nixon’s other failures do not diminish the value of this action.)
The fact that 60 years separated these two elections should provide some caution for the GOP. The Democrats took the White House in 1964. I would not expect a landslide like the one that Lyndon B. Johnson enjoyed, but I would anticipate a GOP defeat. It will be a true Replacements moment: “Let’s face it boys, we screwed the pooch today.”
As always, “Good night and good luck” [Edward R. Morrow].
Joe Allen 