The 1960 United States Senate election in Alaska was held on November 8, 1960. Despite
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
Presidential candidate
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
defeating
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 i ...
in
the state
A state is a centralized political organization that imposes and enforces rules over a population within a territory. There is no undisputed definition of a state. One widely used definition comes from the German sociologist Max Weber: a "stat ...
by a close margin, popular incumbent
Democratic U.S. Senator
Bob Bartlett
Edward Lewis "Bob" Bartlett (April 20, 1904 – December 11, 1968), was an Alaska politician and a member of the Democratic Party.
A key fighter for Alaska statehood, Bartlett served as the Secretary of Alaska Territory from 1939 to 1945, ...
was re-elected to a full term in office, defeating Republican dentist
Lee McKinley.
Bartlett was considered unbeatable within the state, having support from both Democrats & Republicans. Dentist
Lee McKinley defeated Lawrence Brayton, a leader in the minor Alaska Party before the race, in the primary, with Brayton endorsing McKinley and becoming a campaign manager for the south-central district. The party did not provide much support to McKinley, who also did not campaign personally. McKinley pledged to stand against socialism and excessive federal intervention and spending. McKinley was unable to spark interest, except for one incident where his campaign plane, which fit in with his reputation as the "Flying Dentist", was downed, and McKinley was left stranded for a day before being found by a bush pilot.
McKinley later took Secretary of State
Hugh Wade to court over irregularities with the ballot, including the inability to inform voters that they could cross party line to vote and that the option to vote for a straight-party ticket had been designed as a circle rather than a square. Spending remained low, with the highest budget coming from Bartlett's campaign, who self-admittedly raised only $13,000.
[Slotnick, Herman E. “The 1960 Election in Alaska.” The Western Political Quarterly, vol. 14, no. 1, 1961, pp. 300–04. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/443850. Accessed 11 Apr. 2023.]
Republican primary
Candidates
*Lawrence M. Brayton
*
Lee McKinley, dentist and Territorial Representative 1953–55
Results
General election
Results
See also
*
1960 United States Senate elections
The 1960 United States Senate elections coincided with the election of John F. Kennedy as president on November 8, 1960. A special election was held on June 28, 1960, for a mid-term vacancy in North Dakota. The Republicans gained two seats at t ...
References
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
1960
It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism.
Events
January
* Ja ...
1960 Alaska elections
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