The 1960 Republican National Convention was held in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, from July 25 to July 28, 1960, at the

International Amphitheatre The International Amphitheatre was an indoor arena located in Chicago, Illinois, that opened in 1934 and was demolished in 1999. It was located on the west side of Halsted Street, at 42nd Street, on the city's south side, in the Canaryville n ...

. It was the 14th and most recent time overall that Chicago hosted the Republican National Convention, more times than any other city. The convention nominated

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

Richard M. Nixon for

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

and former

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. of

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

for vice president.

The Presidency

By the time the Republican convention opened, Nixon had no opponents for the nomination. The highlight of the convention was the speech by U.S. Senator

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) and the Republican Party nominee for presiden ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

removing himself from the race, in which he called on

conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

to "take back" the party. Nixon won easily, earning 1,321 votes to 10 for Goldwater. At the convention, Nixon promised that he would visit every state during his campaign.

The Vice Presidency

After winning the presidential nomination, Nixon considered several candidates for the vice presidential nomination. Incumbent President

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

strongly supported Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., the

United States Ambassador to the United Nations The United States ambassador to the United Nations is the leader of the U.S. delegation, the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. The position is formally known as the permanent representative of the United States of America to the United Nations ...

. Though Lodge was not viewed by Republicans as a charismatic speaker, his foreign policy experience as well as his longtime Republican Party ties as a descendant of the

Lodge family The Lodge family is a formerly prominent New England political family, and among the families who make up the " Boston Brahmins", also known as the "first families of Boston". History The Boston Brahmin Lodge family are closely related with the ...

made him an appealing candidate. Lodge was unpopular with the conservative wing of the party, who regarded him as a Northeastern moderate. As a result of the conservatives' coolness toward Lodge, Nixon strongly considered conservative Minnesota Representative Walter Judd and U.S. Senator

Thruston Morton Thruston Ballard Morton (August 19, 1907 – August 14, 1982) was an American politician. A Republican, Morton represented Kentucky in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. Early life Morton was born on August 19, 1907, ...

of Kentucky, an establishment Republican who was more moderate than Judd but had a high profile as chairman of the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...

. Other candidates Nixon considered include: *

Robert B. Anderson Robert Bernard Anderson (June 4, 1910 August 14, 1989) was an American administrator, politician, and businessman. He served as the Secretary of the Navy between February 1953 and March 1954. He also served as the Secretary of the Treasury from ...

, U.S. Treasury Secretary from

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

* Prescott S. Bush, U.S. Senator from

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, and father of future 41st President

George H.W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; p ...

* Everett M. Dirksen, U.S. Senate Minority Leader from

Arthur S. Flemming Arthur Sherwood Flemming (June 12, 1905September 7, 1996) was an American government official. He served as the United States Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare from 1958 until 1961 under President Dwight D. Eisenhower's administration ...

, U.S. HEW Secretary from

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

Gerald R. Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...

, U.S. Representative from

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

(Would become Nixon's Vice President in 1973, and succeed him to the presidency upon his resignation in 1974.) * Barry M. Goldwater, U.S. Senator from

(Would be nominated for President in

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

) *

Alfred M. Gruenther General Alfred Maximilian Gruenther (March 3, 1899 – May 30, 1983) was a senior United States Army officer, Red Cross president, and bridge player. After being commissioned towards the end of World War I, he served in the army throughout t ...

, former NATO Supreme Commander from

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

* Charles A. Halleck, U.S. House Minority Leader from

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

Neil H. McElroy Neil Hosler McElroy (October 30, 1904 – November 30, 1972) was United States Secretary of Defense from 1957 to 1959 under President Eisenhower. He had been president of Procter & Gamble. Early life and education Born in Berea, Ohio, to school- ...

, former Secretary of Defense from Ohio *

James P. Mitchell James Paul Mitchell (November 12, 1900October 19, 1964) was an American politician and businessman from New Jersey. Nicknamed "the social conscience of the Republican Party," he served as United States Secretary of Labor from 1953 to 1961 during ...

, U.S. Labor Secretary from

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

Charles H. Percy Charles Harting Percy (September 27, 1919 – September 17, 2011) was an American businessman and politician. He was president of the Bell & Howell Corporation from 1949 to 1964, and served as a Republican U.S. senator from Illinois from 1967 ...

, businessman from Illinois * Nelson A. Rockefeller,

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

William P. Rogers William Pierce Rogers (June 23, 1913 – January 2, 2001) was an American diplomat and attorney. He served as United States Attorney General under President Dwight D. Eisenhower and United States Secretary of State under President Richard Nixo ...

U.S. Attorney General The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...

from

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

* Hugh D. Scott, U.S. Senator from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

* Frederick A. Seaton, U.S. Interior Secretary from

* William G. Stratton,

Governor of Illinois The governor of Illinois is the head of government of Illinois, and the various agencies and departments over which the officer has jurisdiction, as prescribed in the state constitution. It is a directly elected position, votes being cast by p ...

Philip Willkie Philip Herman Willkie (December 7, 1919 – April 10, 1974) was an American lawyer and a Republican politician from Indiana. He was the only child of Wendell Willkie, the Republican candidate for President of the United States in the election o ...

, son of

Wendell Willkie Wendell Lewis Willkie (born Lewis Wendell Willkie; February 18, 1892 – October 8, 1944) was an American lawyer, corporate executive and the 1940 Republican nominee for President. Willkie appealed to many convention delegates as the Republican ...

, the party's 1940 presidential candidate and member of the

Indiana House of Representatives The Indiana House of Representatives is the lower house of the Indiana General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Indiana. The House is composed of 100 members representing an equal number of constituent districts. House memb ...

After deciding on Lodge, Nixon participated in a closed session with party leaders, who concurred with his preference. After the session, Nixon announced his choice publicly, and the convention ratified it.

General election

The Nixon-Lodge ticket lost the 1960 election to the Democratic ticket of

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

and

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

References

External links

Republican Party platform of 1960
at ''The American Presidency Project''
Nixon nomination acceptance speech for President at RNC
(transcript) at ''The American Presidency Project''
Universal newsreel footage of the convention

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

Video of Lodge nomination acceptance speech for Vice President at RNC from C-SPAN (via YouTube)
{{Authority control Republican National Conventions 1960 United States presidential election Political conventions in Chicago 1960 in Illinois Articles containing video clips 1960 conferences July 1960 events in the United States

The Presidency

The Vice Presidency

General election

See also

References

External links