alternatehistory.com

Hey, trying to make this into a timeline, hope you guys enjoy!


President Lyndon Johnson was worried about his reelection prospects. Though he managed to pass the Civil Rights Act only a month before, in doing so he has alienated many Southerners, and his policy in Vietnam was not yet cemented.

So, many speculated on the topic of whom he would select as a running mate. Many Democrats supported the idea of Robert Kennedy, but he despised the Attorney General and was sharply against the suggestion. He preferred his personal friend and protege, Senator Hubert Humphrey.



However, Johnson needed his allies in Congress, and so he continued the search. He settled on a rather surprising choice: youthful Southern Governor Carl Sanders. Some felt that he could relate to the modern problems in America, others felt that he did not have the experience for the position.

But, despite the opposition of some Mississippi delegates at the Democratic Convention in Atlantic City, Johnson and Sanders went on to the general election, the well-received acceptance speeches of both candidates giving them a strong opening.

Senator Barry Goldwater was the public face of the new conservatism that has overtaken the Grand Old Party. He attacked Johnson for his perceived indecisiveness in dealing with Communist threats in Vietnam and Cuba, as well as his "Great Society" legislative initiatives he planned on pursuing.

While Johnson authorized several negative ads against the Republican nominee, Sanders was deployed on the trail to convince voters to support the Administration's ambitious programs to increase social welfare, giving the campaign's positive side an attractive face.



Johnson/Sanders defeated Goldwater/Miller with 486 electoral votes, carrying 44 states and Washington, DC. Goldwater would end up winning in the Peach State, though it hardly dented into the Democrats' celebrations.
Top