1960 Democratic Party presidential primaries

1960 Democratic Party presidential primaries

← 1956 March 8 to June 7, 1960 1964 →
1,521 delegates to the 1960 Democratic National Convention 761 (majority) votes needed to win
Candidate John F. Kennedy Hubert Humphrey Home state Massachusetts Minnesota Contests won 10 2 Popular vote 1,847,259 590,410 Percentage 31.4% 10.1%
First place by popular vote First place by convention roll call      John F. Kennedy      Lyndon B. Johnson      Hubert H. Humphrey      Various[a]
Previous Democratic nominee Adlai Stevenson Democratic nominee John F. Kennedy

From March 8 to June 7, 1960, voters and members of the Democratic Party elected delegates to the 1960 Democratic National Convention through a series of caucuses, conventions, and primaries, partly for the purpose of nominating a candidate for President of the United States in the 1960 election. The presidential primaries were inconclusive, as several of the leading contenders did not enter them, but U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts emerged as the strongest candidate and won the nomination over Lyndon B. Johnson at the convention, held from July 11 to 15 at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena.

Recalling the experience of 1928 Democratic nominee Al Smith (who was Catholic), many wondered if anti-Catholic prejudice would affect Kennedy's chances of winning the nomination and the election in November.^[1] To prove his vote-getting ability, Kennedy challenged U.S. senator Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota, a liberal, in the Wisconsin primary. Although Kennedy defeated Humphrey in Wisconsin, his reliance on heavily Catholic areas left many party bosses unconvinced. Kennedy thus faced Humphrey in the heavily Protestant state of West Virginia. Humphrey's campaign was low on money and could not compete with the well-organized, well-financed Kennedy team. Kennedy's siblings combed the state looking for votes, leading Humphrey to complain that he "felt like an independent merchant running against a chain store."^[2] On primary day, Kennedy crushed Humphrey with over 60% of the vote, and Humphrey withdrew from the race.

Although Kennedy won the popular contests by comfortable margin, his main opponent, Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson, did not participate (except as a write-in candidate). Johnson had a very strong base in the party establishment and gained the support of many delegates chosen through caucus and convention selection processes.^[3] In the months leading up to the Democratic Convention, Kennedy traveled around the nation persuading delegates from various states to support him. However, as the Convention opened, Kennedy was still a few dozen votes short of victory.^{[citation needed]}

Several major candidates served as Democratic Party nominees, with John F. Kennedy serving as the nominee for 1960, Johnson in 1964, and Humphrey in 1968.

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