United States presidential election, 1964
President Lyndon B. Johnson was still popular, despite that America was increasingly involved in the Vietnam War. Johnnson's popularity ensured his nomination as the Democratic presidential candidate, while the Republicans chose conservative senator Barry Goldwater as their candidate. Goldwater wanted to change the strategy for the war in Vietnam (once saying he would use an atomic bomb to stop Chinese supply lines.) Johnson countered that he would not escalate the war in Vietnam. Johnson won a landslide victory in the election. [1]
This would be the last time the Republican Party campaigned solely towards its right-wing base supporters. Goldwater subsequently realised that relying on the Republican base alone would not be enough to win an election, and took steps to ensure that from 1968 onwards the Republicans would campaign across a broader political spectrum while still holding true to Conservative values.
| candidates | popular vote | electoral vote |
|---|---|---|
| Lyndon B. Johnson | 43, 126, 233 | 486 |
| Barry M. Goldwater | 27, 174, 989 | 52 |
| Eric Haas | 45, 186 | 0 |
| Clifton DeBerry | 32, 705 | 0 |
| Earle Harold Munn | 23, 267 | 0 |
References
- ↑ Encyclopedia of Presidents, by Jim Hargrove, Children's Press, 1987, pp. 67-68.
- ↑ A Pictoral History of the U.S. Presidents, by Clare Gibson, Gramercy Books, 2001, p. 125.
