JOHN F. KENNEDY – DEMOCRAT
John Kennedy had been a Vice-Presidential contender in 1956 when Stevenson left the choice of his running mate up to the convention which chose Senator Estes Kefauver on the third ballot. Kennedy then worked hard for Stevenson and gained the respect of many Democratic politicians. In 1958, Kennedy ran for re-election to the Senate, a position he had taken from Henry Cabot Lodge II in 1952, and won by such an impressive victory that he became the leading contender for the 1960 nomination.
Kennedy’s competition for the nomination included Senators Hubert Humphrey, Stuart Symington, and Lyndon Johnson. Adlai Stevenson was also available in case the convention became deadlocked. Kennedy decided he would have to win in the primaries to prove a Roman Catholic could win the Presidency. Hubert Humphrey became the main opposition. Kennedy won New Hampshire, as expected, since he was a New Englander; and his Wisconsin victory was not decisive enough to settle the issue. West Virginia became the real battleground. Kennedy felt that if a Catholic and rich man’s son could win in this largely Protestant and relatively poor state, he could win the rest of the country. Kennedy won sixty-one percent of the vote and Humphrey withdrew. By convention time, Kennedy had enough votes to win on the first ballot. His closest rival, Lyndon Johnson, was offered and accepted the Vice-Presidential nomination. This helped unify the party and gave the ticket religious and geographical balance.
The highlight of the campaign was a series of televised debates between Kennedy and Richard Nixon, the Republican nominee. This was the first time a nationwide audience could see both candidates facing each other. Kennedy was relaxed and confident, while Nixon appeared tired and uncertain. The election result gave Kennedy the narrowest popular margin of the twentieth century, although he won by three hundred and three electoral votes to Nixon’s two hundred nineteen.
The youthful vitality Kennedy brought to the White House and his tragic assassination less than three years later, had endeared him to much of the public, whatever the practical merits of his shortened term in office. The result is a special interest in Kennedy campaign items which are collected by many people and thus scarce items are highly valued. A wide variety of items were produced in 1960. Most jugates and many single picture buttons were issued in the 3 ½” size. The miniature PT boat metal pin, one of the most popular items with Kennedy collectors, has been re-issued in several styles. Many of the rarer Kennedy items sell for higher prices than items from much earlier campaigns, but there are enough common items to build a Kennedy collection from items that sell for under twenty dollars.
Taken (and revised) from The Encyclopedia of Political Buttons 1896-1972 by Ted Hake.Hake's Americana & Collectibles
John F. Kennedy Memorabilia Available For Purchase |
