President Stassen - in 1968?

[Vinization]

So, Harold Stassen, the famous liberal Republican politician turned joke perennial candidate from the 1952 presidential election onward, we all know him.

But what if he made a comeback in 1958? That year, he tried to become the GOP gubernatorial candidate in Pennsylvania, but he was defeated in the primary by a businessman named Art McGonigle by more than twenty points. McGonigle went on to lose the general election to Democratic Pittsburgh mayor David Lawrence by a margin of just 1.9%.

WI Stassen somehow won the Pennsylvania gubernatorial primary and, after it, the election, ensuring that he remained a prominent figure in the Republican Party? I assume he'd skip the 1960 presidential race since he'd be governor for less than two years (while 1964 was a suicide mission), meaning he could be a serious contender for the GOP presidential nomination in 1968, running against the likes of Nixon, Reagan, Rockefeller and George Romney.

Assuming Stassen beats them in the primary and, after that, Humphrey in the general election, what would be his policies as president? How would he handle stuff like the economy, crime and, most importantly, the Vietnam War?​

 

[marktaha]

Offered himself as a peace in Vietnam candidate in 1968.

 

[PNWKing]

Stassen vs. Humphrey. Two Minnesotans, this would be amusing.

 

[David T]

Stassen had committed the blunder of urging the GOP to dump Nixon in 1956. If he had avoided that mistake, maybe Pennsylvania GOP leaders would look more kindly on his 1958 gubernatorial candidacy, and as noted, if he got the GOP nomination he had a reasonable chance of defeating David Lawrence in November. I had a post where that leads to a successful Nixon-Stassen ticket in 1960: "Nixon (who had backed Stassen for the presidency in 1948) would certainly like a running mate who could help him in *both* Minnesota and Pennsylvania, both of which were closely contested in 1960. http://psephos.adam-carr.net/countries/u/usa/pres/1960.txt (Stassen might help in other closely contested states as well. Having become a Philadelphian, he might attract voters just across the river in New Jersey.)...So Nixon/Stassen wins in 1960 (given the closeness of the OTL election and the help that Stassen might bring to the ticket in some close states, this is plausible). If Nixon serves two terms, Stassen might be Nixon's successor in 1968 (he will only be 61 then). Or an assassin could make him president a few years earlier..." https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...sen-ticket-wins-in-1960.400841/#post-13368884

 

[Vinization]

Stassen had committed the blunder of urging the GOP to dump Nixon in 1956. If he had avoided that mistake, maybe Pennsylvania GOP leaders would look more kindly on his 1958 gubernatorial candidacy, and as noted, if he got the GOP nomination he had a reasonable chance of defeating David Lawrence in November. I had a post where that leads to a successful Nixon-Stassen ticket in 1960: "Nixon (who had backed Stassen for the presidency in 1948) would certainly like a running mate who could help him in *both* Minnesota and Pennsylvania, both of which were closely contested in 1960. http://psephos.adam-carr.net/countries/u/usa/pres/1960.txt (Stassen might help in other closely contested states as well. Having become a Philadelphian, he might attract voters just across the river in New Jersey.)...So Nixon/Stassen wins in 1960 (given the closeness of the OTL election and the help that Stassen might bring to the ticket in some close states, this is plausible). If Nixon serves two terms, Stassen might be Nixon's successor in 1968 (he will only be 61 then). Or an assassin could make him president a few years earlier..." https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...sen-ticket-wins-in-1960.400841/#post-13368884

There'd be an enormous amount of voter fatigue against the GOP in an alt 1968 where Nixon serves two terms, and Oswald always killing the president who gets elected in 1960 is a cliche I'd rather avoid, but thanks for the suggestion and the POD.

 

[ejpsan]

Pat Paulson was a more credible candidate for the Republican nomination than Harold Stassen in 1968.
That being said if he was able to make a political comeback in Minnesota and more importantly he didn't run every four years for President that made him in to a punchline he could conceivably could have been a credible candidate.
After Nixon lost the 1962 California Gubernatorial election he was considered to be washed up in politics and only in the 1966 Mid Terms when he campaigned for GOP candidates across America did he become the front runner in 1968.
If Harold Stassen did the same he would have been looked more favorably.