1960 United States presidential election

==General election==

===Campaign promises===
[[File:Dwight David Eisenhower, photo portrait by Bachrach, 1952.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Dwight D. Eisenhower]], the incumbent president in 1960, whose term expired on January 20, 1961]]
During the campaign, Kennedy charged that under Eisenhower and the Republicans, the nation had fallen behind the [[Soviet Union]] in the [[Cold War]], both militarily and economically, and that, as president, he would "get America moving again". The Eisenhower administration had established NASA in 1958, but Kennedy believed that the Republican Party had ignored the need to catch up to the Soviet Union in the [[Space Race]]. He promised that the new Democratic administration would fully appreciate the importance of space accomplishments for the national security and international prestige of the United States. Nixon responded that, if elected, he would continue the "peace and prosperity" that Eisenhower had brought the nation in the 1950s. Nixon also argued that, with the nation engaged in the Cold War with the Soviets, Kennedy was too young and inexperienced to be trusted with the presidency. Had Nixon been elected, at 48 years, 11 days, he would have been [[List of presidents of the United States by age|the fourth-youngest]] president at the date of inauguration. Kennedy, by contrast, was 43 years, 236 days, on the date of his inauguration; the second-youngest man to begin a Presidency. (At 42 [[Theodore Roosevelt]], who [[First inauguration of Theodore Roosevelt|assumed the Presidency]] upon the [[Assassination of William McKinley|assassination of United States President William McKinley]] 60 years previously, was (and remains) the youngest.)

During Kennedy's campaign, he relied on his youth and promised to bring about change. Kennedy had a slogan emphasizing his youth, reading, "who's seasoned through and through/but not so dog-gone seasoned that he won't try something new." He was also endorsed by celebrities such as [[Frank Sinatra]], [[Henry Fonda]], and [[Harry Belafonte]]. Nixon asserted that his experience in politics made him more qualified to hold the office of president. He wanted voters to know that he had the abilities to take on communist threats.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Lee|first=Byung Joon|date=September 2016|title=Attacking the Airwaves: How Television Changed the American Presidential Campaign|journal=The New England Journal of History|volume=73|pages=1–27}}</ref>

===Campaign events===
[[File:John F. Kennedy campaigns in LaGrange, Georgia 1960.jpg|thumb|left|Kennedy campaigning in [[LaGrange, Georgia]], October 1960]]
Kennedy and Nixon both drew large and enthusiastic crowds throughout the campaign.<ref>[[E. Thomas Wood]], {{cite news|url=http://www.nashvillepost.com/news/2007/10/5/nashville_now_and_then_5oct2007|title=Nashville now and then: Nixon paints the town red|work=NashvillePost.com|access-date=October 6, 2007|date=October 5, 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080927034101/http://www.nashvillepost.com/news/2007/10/5/nashville_now_and_then_5oct2007|archive-date=September 27, 2008}}</ref> In August 1960, most polls gave Nixon a slim lead over Kennedy, and many political [[Pundit (expert)|pundits]] regarded him as the favorite to win. However, Nixon was plagued by bad luck throughout the fall campaign. In August, President Eisenhower, who had long been ambivalent about Nixon, held a televised press conference in which a reporter, [[Charles Mohr (journalist)|Charles Mohr]] of ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'', mentioned Nixon's claims that he had been a valuable administration insider and adviser. Mohr asked Eisenhower if he could give an example of a major idea of Nixon's that he had heeded. Eisenhower responded with the flip comment, "If you give me a week, I might think of one."<ref>Ambrose, Stephen E. (1991). ''Eisenhower: Soldier and President'', p. 525. Simon and Schuster. {{ISBN|0-671-74758-4}}.</ref> Although both Eisenhower and Nixon later claimed that he was merely joking with the reporter, the remark hurt Nixon, as it undercut his claims of having greater decision-making experience than Kennedy. The remark proved so damaging to Nixon that the Democrats turned Eisenhower's statement into a television commercial.<ref>{{cite web|title=Nixon's Experience? (Kennedy, 1960)|url=http://www.livingroomcandidate.org/commercials/1960/nixons-experience|website=The Living Room Candidate|publisher=[[Museum of the Moving Image (New York City)|Museum of the Moving Image]]|access-date=August 25, 2016}}</ref>

At the Republican National Convention, Nixon had pledged to campaign in all fifty states. This pledge backfired when, in August, Nixon injured his knee on a car door, while campaigning in North Carolina. The knee became infected, and Nixon had to cease campaigning for two weeks, while the infection was treated with [[Antibacterial|antibiotics]]. When he left [[Walter Reed Army Medical Center|Walter Reed Hospital]], Nixon refused to abandon his pledge to visit every state; he thus wound up wasting valuable time visiting states that he had no chance of winning, that had few electoral votes and would be of little help at the election, or states that he would almost certainly win regardless. In his effort to visit all 50 states, Nixon spent the vital weekend before the election campaigning in Alaska, which had only three electoral votes, while Kennedy campaigned in more populous states such as New Jersey, Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania.

Throughout the campaign, Nixon's unfriendly relations with the media, which dated back to the [[Checkers speech|"Fund" scandal]] eight years earlier, were a persistent liability to him. The Washington D.C. press corps, around 100 members, were largely liberal Democrats and by nature inclined to favor Kennedy, but Nixon often made things worse with his mutually antagonistic attitude towards them. Many of Nixon's stump speeches were filled with folksy homilies that resonated with rural and small town Americans, but were distasteful to the elitist D.C. reporters. [[Mary McGrory]] of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' said he was "just so icky, so yucky, humorless, self-righteous and smarmy." However, more important than that was the adulation the press had for Kennedy; as the campaign drew to its terminal phase, this love of the Massachusetts Senator took on an almost messianic fervor. Kennedy was expert at using this to his advantage and flattered reporters instead of arguing with them.

Nixon visited [[Atlanta]], Georgia, on August 26, and acquired a very large turnout to his event. He rode through a parade in Atlanta, and was greeted by 150,000 people.<ref>{{Cite news|title=The Nixon-Kennedy Campaigns In Georgia|last=Fleming|first=K|date=November 1960|work=The Atlanta-Journal and Constitution}}</ref> Nixon mentioned in his speech in Atlanta, "In the last quarter of a century, there hasn't been a Democratic candidate for President that has bothered to campaign in the State of Georgia."<ref name="presidency.ucsb.edu">{{Cite web|url=http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=25759|title=John F. Kennedy: Speech by Senator John F. Kennedy, the Little White House, Warm Springs, GA|website=www.presidency.ucsb.edu|access-date=2017-03-01|archive-date=March 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170302031116/http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=25759|url-status=dead}}</ref> However, Kennedy would not let Nixon take the Democratic states that easily. Kennedy would change that statistic, and visit some surprising states, including Georgia. He visited the cities of [[Columbus, Georgia|Columbus]], [[Warm Springs, Georgia|Warm Springs]], and [[LaGrange, Georgia|LaGrange]] on his campaign trail in Georgia. In his visit to Warm Springs, state troopers tried to keep Kennedy from an immense crowd; however, Kennedy reached out to shake hands of those who were sick with [[polio]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=Cheering Throng Engulfs Kennedy|last=Galphin|first=B|date=October 11, 1960|work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution}}</ref> He also visited small towns across Georgia and saw a total of about 100,000 people in the state. Kennedy also spoke at a rehabilitation facility in Warm Springs. Warm Springs was near and dear to Kennedy's heart, due to the effects the facility had on [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]. Roosevelt spent time at the rehabilitation facility, and died there in 1945.<ref name="presidency.ucsb.edu"/>

In Warm Springs, Kennedy spoke to supporters at the facility, and mentioned Roosevelt in his speech. He admired Roosevelt, and commended him for sticking up for the farmers, workers, small towns, big cities, those in poverty, and those who were sick.<ref name="presidency.ucsb.edu" /> He said Roosevelt had a "spirit of strength and progress, to get America moving".<ref name="presidency.ucsb.edu"/> Kennedy discussed his six-point plan for health care. He wanted a medical program set up for retirement, and federal funding for the construction of medical schools and hospitals. He also planned for the government to loan students money to attend medical school, and provide grants to renovate old hospitals. He called for more money to be spent on medical research and, finally, expand effort for rehabilitation and come up with new ways to assist those in need.<ref name="presidency.ucsb.edu"/> Many Republicans disapproved of Kennedy's plans and described them as an "appeal to socialism".<ref>{{Cite news|title=Kennedy's Plans Altered: Crowd of 50,000 Is Seen|last=Gaines|first=Marion|date=October 6, 1960|work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution}}</ref> Nevertheless, many residents of Warm Springs were supportive of Kennedy, with women wearing hats reading "Kennedy and Johnson" and<ref>{{Cite news|title=Women Dressed in Support of John F. Kennedy's Presidential Campaign, Little White House, Warm Springs, Georgia|last=Johnson|first=Marion|date=October 10, 1960|work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution}}</ref> signs around the town saying "Douglas County For Kennedy, Except 17 Republicans 6 Old Grouches".<ref>{{Cite news|title=A Sign of Votes at Warm Springs|last=Stovall|first=Hugh|date=October 11, 1960|work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution}}</ref> Joe O. Butts, the mayor of Warm Springs during Kennedy's visit, said: "He must've shaken hands with everybody within two miles of him, and he was smiling all the time."<ref name=":1"/>

Eisenhower remained out of the fray until the general election in the fall, when it was agreed that he should take to the campaign trail in support of Nixon. The president was very much a party man, and although he had some antipathies towards his vice president, he badly wanted the White House to remain in Republican control and also feared that Kennedy was too young and inexperienced for the job. Eisenhower came out in a "cyclonic" campaign, making a series of fiery speeches in the swing states of New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania in support of Nixon and denouncing Democrat charges that he had neglected military preparedness. As the poll numbers with Kennedy narrowed to a close, Eisenhower's "fall offensive" was cut short by his own wife. [[Mamie Eisenhower]] was horrified to hear of this and became convinced that he would kill himself due to his bad heart. She phoned Nixon and told him he'd better tell the president to stop this right now, before something happened. Nixon had a luncheon with Eisenhower on October 3, but he was unable to explain exactly why his help in this campaign wasn't needed, instead clumsily beating around the bush. Eisenhower was surprised and slightly annoyed, but agreed to stop campaigning.

Despite the reservations [[Robert F. Kennedy]] had about Johnson's nomination, choosing Johnson as Kennedy's running mate proved to be a master stroke. Johnson vigorously campaigned for Kennedy, and was instrumental in helping the Democrats to carry several Southern states skeptical of him, especially Johnson's home state of Texas. Johnson made a "last-minute change of plans, and scheduled two 12-minute whistlestop speeches in Georgia".<ref>{{Cite news|title=Johnson Due in State Tonight|date=October 11, 1960|work=The Atlanta Constitution}}</ref> One of these visits included stopping in Atlanta to speak from the rear of a train at [[Terminal Station (Atlanta)|Terminal Station]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|title=New President Johnson An Old Friend to Georgia|date=November 23, 1963|work=The Atlanta Constitution}}</ref> On the other hand, Ambassador Lodge, Nixon's running mate, ran a lethargic campaign and made several mistakes that hurt Nixon. Among them was a pledge, made without approval, that Nixon would name at least one African American to a [[Cabinet of the United States|Cabinet]] post. Nixon was furious at Lodge and accused him of spending too much time campaigning with minority groups instead of the white majority.<ref>{{cite book |last=White |first=Theodore H. |title=The Making of the President, 1960 |date=2009 |publisher=HarperCollins |location=Pymble, NSW |isbn=978-0-061-98601-7 |page=297}}</ref>

Nixon's inability to carry the African-American vote was another of many missteps in his campaign. Eisenhower had scored 40% of black votes four years earlier, and Nixon assumed he would perform as well with his strong support of civil rights. However, several missteps including the Lodge "pledge" and Nixon's refusal to comment on Martin Luther King Jr.'s arrest in Atlanta harmed his support with black voters. Attempts by the Nixon campaign to counter this were not very successful as they were out-spent three to one. Ultimately, Nixon won just 30% of the black vote (compared to Eisenhower's 40%) on Election Day and strong black turnout for Kennedy in several important states including Illinois and South Carolina may have contributed to his defeat.

Nixon was endorsed by 731 English-language newspapers while Kennedy was endorsed by 208. This was the largest amount of endorsements for a Democratic presidential candidate since 1932.{{sfn|Williams|1961|p=28}}

===Debates===
{{Main|1960 United States presidential debates}}
There were [[1960 United States presidential debates|four presidential debates]] and no vice presidential debates during the 1960 general election.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.debates.org/index.php?page=1960-debates|title=CPD: 1960 Debates|website=www.debates.org|access-date=2019-01-08}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|+'''Debates among candidates for the 1960 U.S. presidential election'''
!No.
!Date
!Host
!Location
!Panelists
!Moderator
!Participants
!Viewership<br/>(millions)
|-
|P1
|Monday, September 26, 1960
|[[WBBM-TV]]
|[[Chicago|Chicago, Illinois]]
|[[Sander Vanocur]]<br>Charles Warren<br>[[Stuart Novins]]
|[[Howard K. Smith]]
|[[John F. Kennedy|Senator John F. Kennedy]]<br>[[Richard Nixon|Vice President Richard Nixon]]
|66.4<ref name=":2" />
|-
|P2
|Friday, October 7, 1960
|[[WRC-TV]] 
|Washington, D.C.
|Paul Niven<br>[[Edward P. Morgan]]<br>Alan Spivak<br>Harold R. Levy
|[[Frank McGee (journalist)|Frank McGee]]
|[[John F. Kennedy|Senator John F. Kennedy]]<br>[[Richard Nixon|Vice President Richard Nixon]]
|61.9<ref name=":2" />
|-
| rowspan="2" |P3
| rowspan="2" |Thursday, October 13, 1960
|[[The Prospect Studios|ABC Studios Los Angeles]] (Nixon)
|Los Angeles, California
| rowspan="2" |[[Frank McGee (journalist)|Frank McGee]]<br>Charles Van Fremd<br>[[Douglass Cater]]<br>[[Roscoe Drummond]]
| rowspan="2" |[[Bill Shadel]]
| rowspan="2" |[[John F. Kennedy|Senator John F. Kennedy]]<br>[[Richard Nixon|Vice President Richard Nixon]]
| rowspan="2" |63.7<ref name=":2" />
|-
|[[ABC Studios|ABC Studios New York]] (Kennedy)
|[[New York City]]
|-
|P4
|Friday, October 21, 1960
|[[ABC Studios|ABC Studios New York]]
|[[New York City]] 
|Frank Singiser<br>John Edwards<br>[[Walter Cronkite]]<br>[[John Chancellor]]
|[[Quincy Howe]]
|[[John F. Kennedy|Senator John F. Kennedy]]<br>[[Richard Nixon|Vice President Richard Nixon]]
|60.4<ref name=":2" />
|}
[[File:Kennedy Nixon debate first Chicago 1960.jpg|thumb|Senator [[John F. Kennedy]] (left) and vice president [[Richard Nixon]] (right), prior to their first presidential debate.]]
[[File:Kennedy Nixon Debat (1960).jpg|thumb|Second of the four Kennedy and Nixon debates, which took place at [[WRC-TV]] in [[Washington, D.C.|Washington, D. C.]], on October 7, 1960<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.debates.org/index.php?page=1960-debates|title=1960 debates|publisher=Commission on Presidential Debates|access-date=December 30, 2014}}</ref>]]
[[File:TNC-172 Kennedy-Nixon First Presidential Debate, 1960.webm|thumb|Full broadcast of the September 26 debate]]
The key turning point of the campaign came with the four Kennedy-Nixon debates; they were the first presidential debates ever (the [[Lincoln–Douglas debates]] of 1858 had been the first for senators from Illinois), also the first held on television and thus attracted enormous publicity. Nixon insisted on campaigning until just a few hours before the first debate started. He had not completely recovered from his stay in hospital, and thus looked pale, sickly, under-weight, and tired.<ref name="Nixon, p. 270">(Nixon, p. 270)</ref> His eyes moved across the room during the debate, and at various moments, sweat was visible on his face. He also refused make-up for the first debate, and as a result, his facial stubble showed prominently on black-and-white TV screens. Furthermore, the debate set appeared darker once the paint dried up, causing Nixon's suit color to blend in with the background, reducing his stature.<ref name="Nixon, p. 270"/> Nixon's poor appearance on television in the first debate was reflected by the fact that his mother called him immediately following the debate to ask if he was sick.<ref>(Nixon, p. 271)</ref> Kennedy, by contrast, rested and prepared extensively beforehand and thus appeared tanned,{{efn|name="addisons"|His tanned appearance was likely darkening hyper-pigmentation of the skin due to [[Addison's disease#Notable cases|Addison's disease]].<ref>O'Brien, Michael. ''John F. Kennedy: A Biography'' (2005), pp. 407–408.</ref>}} confident, and relaxed during the debate.<ref name=schlinder /> An estimated 70 million viewers watched the first debate.<ref name="museum.tv">{{cite web |url=http://www.museum.tv/eotvsection.php?entrycode=kennedy-nixon |title=THE KENNEDY-NIXON PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES, 1960 – The Museum of Broadcast Communications |publisher=[[The Museum of Broadcast Communications]] (MBC) |access-date=October 8, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100821064309/http://www.museum.tv/eotvsection.php?entrycode=kennedy-nixon |archive-date=August 21, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

It is often claimed that people who watched the debate on television overwhelmingly believed Kennedy had won, while radio listeners (a smaller audience) thought Nixon had ended up defeating him.<ref name="museum.tv"/><ref>{{cite episode|title=Nixon|series=American Experience|series-link=American Experience|network=[[PBS]]|station=[[WGBH-TV|WGBH]]|date=October 15, 1990|season=3|number=2|url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/nixon/|access-date=June 15, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite episode|title=JFK (Part 1)|series=American Experience|network=PBS|station=WGBH|date=November 11, 2013|season=25|number=7|url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/jfk/|access-date=September 24, 2019}}</ref> However, that has been disputed.<ref>Campbell, W. Joseph (September 24, 2016), "[https://mediamythalert.wordpress.com/2016/09/24/debate-myth-emerges-anew-2nd-edition-of-getting-it-wrong-out-soon/ Debate myth emerges anew]", Media Myth Alert.</ref> Indeed, one study has speculated that the viewer/listener disagreement could be due to sample bias, in that those without TV could be a skewed subset of the population:<ref>{{cite journal|title=The myth of viewer-listener disagreement in the first Kennedy-Nixon debate|year= 1987 |doi=10.1080/10510978709368226 |volume=38 |journal=Central States Speech Journal |pages=16–27 | last1 = Vancil | first1 = David L.}}</ref>

{{blockquote|Evidence in support of this belief [''i. e.'', that Kennedy's physical appearance over-shadowed his performance during the first debate] is mainly limited to sketchy reports about a market survey, conducted by Sindlinger & Company, in which 49% of those who listened to the debates on radio said Nixon had won, compared to 21% naming Kennedy, while 30% of those who watched the debates on television said Kennedy had won, compared to 29% naming Nixon. Contrary to popular belief, the Sindlinger evidence suggests not that Kennedy won on television, but that the candidates tied on television, while Nixon won on radio. However, no details about the sample have ever been reported, and it is unclear whether the survey results can be generalized to a larger population. Moreover, since 87% of American households had a television in 1960 [and that the] fraction of Americans lacking access to television in 1960 was concentrated in rural areas, and particularly in southern and western states, places that were unlikely to hold significant proportions of Catholic voters.<ref name=schlinder>{{cite web|url=http://faculty.las.illinois.edu/salthaus/Publications/media%20and%20politics%20encyclopedia_kennedy-nixon%20debates.pdf|author=Scott L. Althaus|author-link=Scott Althaus|title=''Encyclopedia of Media and Politics''|page=Kennedy-Nixon debates|editor=Todd Schaefer and Tom Birkland|location=Washington, D. C.|publisher=C.Q. Press|access-date=May 25, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121203011711/http://faculty.las.illinois.edu/salthaus/Publications/media%20and%20politics%20encyclopedia_kennedy-nixon%20debates.pdf|archive-date=December 3, 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>}}

Nonetheless, [[Gallup, Inc.|Gallup]] polls in October 1960 showed Kennedy moving into a slight but consistent lead over Nixon after the candidates were in a statistical tie for most of August and September.<ref name=gallup>{{cite web|title=Gallup Presidential Election Trial-Heat Trends, 1936–2008|url=http://www.gallup.com/poll/110548/gallup-presidential-election-trialheat-trends-19362004.aspx#4|work=gallup.com|date=September 24, 2008 |publisher=Gallup, Inc.|access-date=September 18, 2020}}</ref> For the remaining three debates, Nixon regained his lost weight, wore television make-up, and appeared more forceful than in his initial appearance.

However, up to 20 million fewer viewers watched the three remaining debates than the first. Political observers at the time felt that Kennedy won the first debate,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kraus |first=Sidney |date=Autumn 1996 |title=Winners of the first 1960 televised presidential debate between Kennedy and Nixon |url=https://academic.oup.com/joc/article-abstract/46/4/78/4160281 |journal=Journal of Communication |volume=46 |issue=4 |pages=78–96 |doi=10.1111/j.1460-2466.1996.tb01507.x |via=Oxford Academic}}</ref> Nixon won the second<ref>{{Cite news |last=Reston |first=James |date=October 8, 1960 |title=The Second Debate; Vice President Apparently Came Out Ahead in a More Informative Show |pages=10 |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1960/10/08/archives/the-second-debate-vice-president-apparently-came-out-ahead-in-a.html |access-date=May 13, 2022}}</ref> and third debates,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wicker |first=Tom |date=October 15, 1960 |title=G.O.P. Ledaers Say Kennedy 'Cribbed' |pages=12 |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1960/10/15/archives/gop-leaders-say-kennedy-cribbed-alcorn-and-hall-assail-use-of.html |access-date=May 13, 2022}}</ref> while the fourth debate,<ref>{{Cite news |date=October 23, 1960 |title=Kennedy-Nixon Debates Viewed as Draw in 23 Major Cities |pages=70 |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1960/10/23/archives/kennedynixon-debates-viewed-as-draw-in-23-major-cities-audience.html |access-date=May 13, 2022}}</ref> which was seen as the strongest performance by both men, was a draw.

The third debate has been noted, as it brought about a change in the debate process. This debate was a monumental step for television. For the first time ever, split-screen technology was used to bring two people from opposite sides of the country together so they were able to converse in real time. Nixon was in Los Angeles, while Kennedy was in New York. The men appeared to be in the same room, thanks to identical sets. Both candidates had monitors in their respective studios, containing the feed from the opposite studio, so that they could respond to questions. Bill Shadel moderated the debate from a different television studio in Los Angeles.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/60737674/the-record/|title=Clipped From The Record|website=The Record|date=October 13, 1960|page=41}}</ref> The main topic of this debate was whether military force should be used to prevent [[Kinmen|Quemoy]] and [[Matsu Islands|Matsu]], two island archipelagos off the Chinese coast, from falling under Communist control.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.debates.org/index.php?page=october-13-1960-debate-transcript|title=October 13, 1960 Debate Transcript|publisher=Debates.org |access-date=December 5, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=October 14, 1960 |title=Here Are Kennedy And Nixon Answers On Major Issues |pages=22 |work=[[The Tampa Tribune]] |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/330339595/?terms=Kennedy%20Nixon%20debate%20Quemoy%20Matsu%20Islands&match=1 |access-date=May 13, 2022}}</ref>

===Campaign issues===
A key concern in Kennedy's campaign was the widespread skepticism among Protestants about his [[20th century history of the Catholic Church in the United States|Roman Catholic]] religion. Some Protestants, especially Southern Baptists and Lutherans, feared that having a Catholic in the White House would give undue influence to the Pope in the nation's affairs.<ref>{{cite book|author=Shaun Casey|title=The Making of a Catholic President: Kennedy vs. Nixon 1960|url=https://archive.org/details/makingofcatholic00case|url-access=registration|year=2009|publisher=Oxford University Press|pages=[https://archive.org/details/makingofcatholic00case/page/143 143]–46|isbn=9780199743636}}</ref> Radio evangelists such as [[G. E. Lowman]] wrote that, "Each person has the right to their own religious belief ... [but] ... the Roman Catholic ecclesiastical system demands the first allegiance of every true member, and says in a conflict between church and state, the ''church'' must prevail".<ref>{{cite book|last=Lowman|first=G. E.|author-link=G. E. Lowman|title=Should a Roman Catholic Be President?|work=Prophecies for the Times|volume=8|pages=83–89|year=1960|url=http://www.jfklibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/Archives/JFKCAMP1960-1020-024.aspx}} Archived at the [[John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum]].</ref> The religious issue was so significant that Kennedy made a speech before the nation's newspaper editors in which he criticized the prominence they gave to the religious issue over other topics – especially in foreign policy – that he felt were of greater importance.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jfklibrary.org/Research/Ready-Reference/JFK-Speeches/Remarks-of-Senator-John-F-Kennedy-at-American-Society-of-Newspaper-Editors-Washington-DC-April-21-19.aspx |title=Remarks of Senator John F. Kennedy at American Society of Newspaper Editors, Washington, D. C., April 21, 1960, "The Religion Issue in American Politics" – John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum |publisher=Jfklibrary.org |date=April 21, 1960 |access-date=June 24, 2012 |archive-date=April 19, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120419122244/http://www.jfklibrary.org/Research/Ready-Reference/JFK-Speeches/Remarks-of-Senator-John-F-Kennedy-at-American-Society-of-Newspaper-Editors-Washington-DC-April-21-19.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref>

To address fears among Protestants that his Roman Catholicism would impact his decision-making, Kennedy told the Greater Houston Ministerial Association on September 12, 1960: "I am not the Catholic candidate for president. I am the Democratic Party's candidate for president who also happens to be a Catholic. I do not speak for my Church on public matters – and the Church does not speak for me."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/jfkhoustonministers.html|title=Address to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association|access-date=September 17, 2007|last=Kennedy|first=John F.|date=June 18, 2002|work=American Rhetoric}}</ref> He promised to respect the separation of church and state, and not to allow Catholic officials to dictate public policy to him.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Carty |first1=Thomas J. |title=A Catholic in the White House? Religion, Politics, and John F. Kennedy's Presidential Campaign |date=2004 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |location=New York City}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Casey |first1=Shaun A. |title=The Making of a Catholic President: Kennedy vs. Nixon 1960 |date=2009 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York City}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Lacroix |first1=Patrick |title=John F. Kennedy and the Politics of Faith |date=2021 |publisher=University Press of Kansas |location=Lawrence |pages=21–44}}</ref> Kennedy also raised the question of whether one-quarter of Americans were relegated to second-class citizenship just because they were Roman Catholic. Kennedy would become the first Roman Catholic to be elected president—it would be 60 years before another Roman Catholic, [[Joe Biden]], was elected.<ref>{{cite book|author=Fleegler, Robert L|title=Ellis Island Nation: Immigration Policy and American Identity in the Twentieth Century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UpkAJo3vOWYC&pg=PA148|year=2013|publisher=U of Pennsylvania Press|page=148|isbn=978-0812208092}}</ref>

Kennedy's campaign took advantage of an opening when Rev. [[Martin Luther King Jr.]], the civil-rights leader, was arrested in Georgia while taking part in a [[Sit-in#Civil Rights Movement|sit-in]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=White|first1=Theodore H.|title=The Making of the President 1960|url=https://archive.org/details/makingofpresiden1960whit|url-access=registration|date=1961|page=[https://archive.org/details/makingofpresiden1960whit/page/385 385]|publisher=New York, Atheneum Publishers }}</ref> Nixon asked President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] to intervene, but the President declined to do so (as the matter was under state jurisdiction, the President did not have the power to pardon King). Nixon refused to take further action, but Kennedy placed calls to local political authorities to get King released from jail, and he also called King's father and wife. As a result, King's father endorsed Kennedy, and he received much favorable publicity among the black electorate.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Farrington|first=Joshua D.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ig8cDQAAQBAJ&q=%22king+sr%22+nixon+kennedy+republican&pg=PA111|title=Black Republicans and the Transformation of the GOP|date=September 20, 2016|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|isbn=978-0-8122-9326-5|language=en}}</ref> A letter to the Governor of Georgia regarding Martin Luther King Jr.'s, arrest also helped Kennedy garner many African American votes. John F. Kennedy asked Governor Ernest Vandiver to look into the harsh sentencing, and stated his claim that he did not want to have to get involved in Georgia's justice system.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.jfklibrary.org/Research/Research-Aids/Ready-Reference/JFK-Fast-Facts/Vandiver-Letter.aspx|title=President Kennedy's Letter to Georgia Governor Ernest Vandiver, October 26, 1960 – John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum|website=www.jfklibrary.org|access-date=2017-03-01|archive-date=March 1, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170301180442/https://www.jfklibrary.org/Research/Research-Aids/Ready-Reference/JFK-Fast-Facts/Vandiver-Letter.aspx|url-status=dead}}</ref> A member of Kennedy's civil rights team and King's friend, Harris Wofford, and other Kennedy campaign members passed out a pamphlet to black churchgoers the Sunday before the presidential election that said, ""''No Comment" Nixon versus a Candidate with a Heart, Senator Kennedy.''"<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Kuhn|first=Clifford|year=1997|title="There's a Footnote to History!" Memory and the History of Martin Luther King's October 1960 Arrest and Its Aftermath|journal=The Journal of American History|pages=586}}</ref> On election day, Kennedy won the black vote in most areas by wide margins, and this may have provided his margin of victory in states such as New Jersey, South Carolina, Illinois, and Missouri.{{citation needed|date=July 2017}} Researchers found that Kennedy's appeal to African American voters appears to be largely responsible for his receiving more African-American votes than Adlai Stevenson in the 1956 election.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=Spring 2014 |title=Lincoln M. Fitch: Throwing the Switch: Eisenhower, Stevenson and the African-American Vote in the 1956 Election |url=https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1295&context=student_scholarship |access-date=July 16, 2023 |website=cupola.gettysburg.edu}}</ref> The same study conducted found that white voters were less influenced on the topic of civil rights than black voters in 1960. The Republican national chairman at the time, [[Thruston Ballard Morton]], regarded the African-American vote as the single most crucial factor.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Middleton|first=Russell|date=March 1962|title=The Civil Rights Issue And Presidential Voting Among Southern Negroes And Whites|journal=Social Forces|volume=40|issue=3|pages=209–215|doi=10.2307/2573630|jstor=2573630}}</ref>

The issue that dominated the election was the rising Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union.<ref name="jfk1960">{{cite web|url=http://www.jfklibrary.org/JFK/JFK-in-History/Campaign-of-1960.aspx|title=Campaign of 1960 – John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum|website=www.JFKLibrary.org|access-date=July 26, 2017}}</ref> In 1957, the Soviets had launched Sputnik, the first man-made satellite to orbit Earth.<ref name="jfk1960" /> Soon afterwards, some American leaders warned that the nation was falling behind communist countries in science and technology.<ref name="jfk1960" /> In Cuba, the revolutionary regime of Fidel Castro became a close ally of the Soviet Union in 1960, heightening fears of communist subversion in the Western Hemisphere.<ref name="jfk1960" /> Public opinion polls revealed that more than half the American people thought that war with the Soviet Union was inevitable.<ref name="jfk1960" />

Kennedy took advantage of increased Cold War tension by emphasizing a perceived "[[missile gap]]" between the United States and Soviet Union. He argued that under the Republicans, the Soviets had developed a major advantage in the numbers of nuclear missiles.<ref>(Ambrose, p. 562)</ref> He proposed a bi-partisan congressional investigation about the possibility that the Soviet Union was ahead of the United States in developing missiles.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|title=A Friendly Georgia Greeted Kennedy During His 5 Visits|last=Hal|first=Gulliver|date=November 23, 1963|work=The Atlanta Constitution}}</ref> He also noted in an October 18 speech that several senior US military officers had long criticized the Eisenhower Administration's defense spending policies.<ref>[http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=74096 Speech of Senator John F. Kennedy, American Legion Convention, Miami Beach, FL] accessed November 17, 2013</ref>

Both candidates also argued about the economy and ways in which they could increase the economic growth and prosperity of the 1950s, and make it accessible to more people (especially minorities). Some historians criticize Nixon for not taking greater advantage of Eisenhower's popularity (which was around 60–65% throughout 1960 and on election day), and for not discussing the prosperous economy of the Eisenhower presidency more often in his campaign.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-08/uoc--int081409.php |title=It's not the economy, stupid – it's what you do with it |publisher=Eurekalert.org |date=August 14, 2009 |access-date=June 24, 2012}}</ref> As the campaign moved into the final two weeks, the polls and most political pundits predicted a Kennedy victory. However, President Eisenhower, who had largely sat out the campaign, made a vigorous campaign tour for Nixon over the last 10 days before the election. Eisenhower's support gave Nixon a badly needed boost. Nixon also criticized Kennedy for stating that [[Quemoy]] and [[Matsu Islands|Matsu]], two small islands off the coast of Communist China that were held by Nationalist Chinese forces based in Taiwan, were outside the treaty of protection the United States had signed with the Nationalist Chinese. Nixon claimed the islands were included in the treaty, and accused Kennedy of showing weakness towards Communist aggression.<ref>(Ambrose, pp. 579–580)</ref> Aided by the Quemoy and Matsu issue, and by Eisenhower's support, Nixon began to gain momentum, and by election day, the polls indicated a virtual tie.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Perry|first=Paul|date=1962|title=Gallup Poll Election Survey Experience, 1950 to 1960|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2747357|journal=The Public Opinion Quarterly|volume=26|issue=2|pages=272–279|doi=10.1086/267097|jstor=2747357|issn=0033-362X}}</ref>