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Democratic Ticket
Presidential candidate: JOHN F. KENNEDY, Massachusetts Senator
VP candidate: LYNDON B. JOHNSON, Texas Senator
Popular votes: 34,226,731 (49.7%)
Electoral votes: 303
Republican Ticket
Presidential candidate: Richard Nixon, Vice President
VP candidate: Henry Cabot Lodge, United Nations Ambassador
Popular votes: 34,108,157 (49.5%)
Electoral votes: 219
Independent Democratic Ticket
Presidential candidate: Henry Byrd, Virginia Senator
Popular votes: 116,248 (0.2%)*
Electoral votes: 15
 *For Byrd electors in Mississippi
1960 US Electoral Map: How each state voted. Election Results. Wisconsin's Choice: Nixon.

Election Facts

  • This election featured the first televised debate between presidential contenders. It gave Kennedy the edge in personal image.
  • Kennedy's campaign appealed to a new generation and called for meeting the challenges of the future.
  • Kennedy promised to lead the nation out of recession and proposed an increase in defense spending.
  • Kennedy won by a narrow victory and became the first Catholic president.
  • Nixon considered a recount but decided against it.
Nixon/Lodge supporters, 1960.
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Richard Nixon speaks in Janesville, WI, 1960. Photo by Harry Van Tuyl.
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Richard Nixon is introduced at a campaign stop in Milwaukee, October 8, 1960. Photo by Fred Stanger.
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John F. Kennedy campaigns in Gays Mills, WI, 1960. Photo by Fritz Albert.
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John F. Kennedy speaks in Ohio.
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Young Kennedy supporters in Madison, 1960. Courtesy of the "Wisconsin State Journal."
Rally for John F. Kennedy, Madison, October 23, 1960.
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