Suppose that the 1960 presidential election goes further down the wire, and the Kennedy-Johnson ticket holds a plurality of the electoral and popular vote, but falls short of the magic number of 268 electors. Harry Byrd and his unpledged electors make known their demands regarding segregation, but Jack refuses to sacrifice his civil rights plank. The country stares down deadlock that may be resolved by a contingent election.
It looks like there are many ways the election could proceed. If the electoral chips fall so that the unpledged electors can be a kingmaker to either ticket, would Nixon be willing to play ball with Byrd? Else, is LBJ's presence enough to get the Southern Congressional delegations to line up for JFK?
It looks like there are many ways the election could proceed. If the electoral chips fall so that the unpledged electors can be a kingmaker to either ticket, would Nixon be willing to play ball with Byrd? Else, is LBJ's presence enough to get the Southern Congressional delegations to line up for JFK?