Hubert Humphrey's Victory In The 1968 Presidential Election
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Hubert Humphrey, a Democratic candidate in the 1968 presidential election, said before his decision to run, “ ...terrible, wrenching events are just over the horizon. I do not know what they are. But, if I run, I sense I will be engulfed by them” ( Van Dyk n.pag.). Once Humphrey joined the race, his words proved to be true and he was engulfed in chaos within the Democratic Party: President Johnson's decision to drop out of the race, Robert Kennedy’s assassination, the riots during the National Convention, and the fall campaign. On the other hand, the Republicans had a more efficient campaign because Richard Nixon had a favorable lead on all the candidates throughout the entire race due to the self-destruction of the Democrats. With all the…show more content… In the election, Nixon defeated the weakened New Deal Coalition. The coalition was formed by Franklin Roosevelt in the 1932 election and was the reason for Democratic success in previous elections. The coalition consisted of intellectuals, blue-collar workers, African-Americans, and many other groups. By 1968, the coalition weakened due to the polarizing issues of Vietnam and civil unrest. Traditionally, intellectuals supported the Democratic Party, but with the dividing issue of Vietnam, the intellectual vote was split between the Democrats and Republicans. Similarly to intellectuals, blue-collar workers disagreed with the counter-culture of the 1960's and voted for Richard Nixon instead of Hubert Humphrey. The decreased demographic support combined with the decline of labor unions and political machines led to a weakened New Deal coalition. Nixon's win created a new conservative coalition which began a new age of conservative dominance of the White House. The new coalition led to three Republican presidents being elected after Richard Nixon. With the end of the coalition, the Democrats were weakened and the party tried to reform, but these reforms further weakened the party. The Democrats also nominated weak candidates in the following elections which the Republicans defeated