1968: The Election That Changed America

by Lewis L. Gould

Book Overview

Examines the presidential election campaign of 1968 and explores how the events and issues of the campaign shaped national affairs in the two decades that followed.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1566630096
• ISBN13: 9781566630092
• Release Date: February 1993
• Publisher: Ivan R. Dee Publisher
• Length: 178 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 8.5" x 5.6"

Customer Reviews

Solid Overview of 1968 Presidential Election

Lewis Gould, a history professor at the University of Texas, provides an excellent, brief (172-page), and concise overview of the pivotal 1968 U.S. Presidential Election contest. Gould's book tells the story of the collapse of electoral support for the Democratic Party in the years immediately following Lyndon Johnson's 1964 landslide victory over Barry Goldwater. It also analyzes the issues that Richard Nixon and the Republicans exploited, highlighted, and/or developed, to win in 1968 and to hold onto the White House for 20 of the next 24 years. In 1968, those issues were race riots in America's big cities, divisions over the Vietnam War, and disenchantment with the costly new welfare and regulatory policies that were at the heart of Johnson's Great Society domestic agenda. Race-related policies like busing and affirmative action, the foreign policy fallout from Vietnam, and disenchantment with liberal tax, spending, and regulatory policies would therafter persist as major issues which favored the Republicans. As with all history, Gould reminds his readers that none of these events were inevitable. Despite the difficult political environment in 1968, incumbent Vice-President Humphrey virtually erased Nixon's lead in the opinion polls during the final weeks of the fall campaign and lost the election by less than 1% of the popular vote. Former Alabama Governor George Wallace, running as an Independent, was a potential spoiler who threatened to win enough electoral votes to deadlock the Electoral College and throw the election into the House of Representatives for the first time since 1824. In that event, the Democratic-controlled House would most likely have chosen Humphrey--even if Nixon had won a plurality of the electoral and/or popular votes. Ultimately, Humphrey was unable to replicate in 1968 the surprising success that Harry Truman had in 1948 of holding together enough of the old New Deal Democratic coalition to win the election. As Gould points out, George Wallace provide a temporary vehicle for those southern Democrats and moderate-to-conservative northern Democrats who were disaffected with the national Democratic Party, but not quite ready to vote Republican in 1968. Interestingly, Gould argues that--despite his tragic assassination and the subsequent wave of Kennedy nostalgia that has fueled a variety of "what-if" scenarios--Robert Kennedy would probably not have won the Democratic nomination in 1968. Gould argues that Kennedy was not as popular within the Democratic Party as Humphrey and, even more important to party professionals and stalwarts, was not as strong a potential candidate in the fall election as Humphrey.

Good read

This is a short book about an election that changed the course of politics in America. The book is highly readable and takes account of the entire election of 1968. Gould writes an interesting piece on the primaries, conventions, and general election. While the book is not incredibly in depth it is a good introduction to the election of 1968. Defenitely worth a read as it is quite concise.

An Election That Changed America

The election of 1968 is one of the most significant in American history. While the 2000 and 2004 are the most controversial elections in our immediate hindsight, they pale in comparison to 1968. Lewis Gould's argument suggests that race was the primary factor in the 1968 election. The assassination of Martin Luther King, the race riots that proceeded the assassination, as well as the civil rights movement were on the minds of voters. With the riots, some felt blacks received equal rights too soon. Others felt the rights they received were the cause of the riots and increases in crime. Yet still other voters questioned if laws that mandated such change as school desegregation was a proper solution. From differing perspectives, race was a prominent issue. Third party candidate George Wallace became the choice of those disenchanted with the civil rights movement. Vietnam was the other "hot button" issue. With no apparent end to the war in sight, the polls showed disapproval for Lyndon Johnson. He never declared candidacy for reelection, and waited until March 31 to announce he would not run. Some sighted poor health among the reasons for this choice. Johnson's lack of action, in addition to his unwillingness to endorse Hubert Humphrey, crippled the chances of the democratic party. While the democratics were in disarray, the republicans were united behind Richard Nixon. With more funds and a united party, Nixon never had to reveal a platform for most issues. Nixon's campaign was only threatened by a potential cease-fire in Vietnam brokered by Johnson which Gould alleges Nixon lobbied to prevent the South Vietnamese from accepting. Gould also addresses the candidacy of Robert Kennedy. Unfortunately, he will never know what would have happened had he not been assassinated. The author contends that Kennedy faced nearly insurmountable odds to gain the nomination of his party, much less defeat Nixon. Based on the confused state of the democratic party in 1968, I believe Kennedy's chances are much less clear. The legacy of the 1968 election is more clear. It marked a clear shift from democrat dominance to a republican dominated government which is still evideant today. The strength of this book is its ability to draw out how the parties went different ways in 1968, and with few aberrations continue this trend today. It will only be when the democratic party realizes the change in voter tendencies that the legacy of 1968 will fade.

solid introduction to a pivotal election

This is an interesting, highly readable account of the 1968 election. Actually, it's a political history of the entire year, taking us through the primaries and conventions and campaigns and highlighting the important events and issues that shaped that year's (and beyond) politics. Gould argues, with moderate success, that the election was shaped the most by racial issues, not Vietnam. I think that case can be made, especially when the candidates were talking about "law-and-order" issues (i.e. race riots, urban crime); the presence and performance of George Wallace only underscores the role race played, and after all, this was the pivotal election in turning the South Republican. Gould, though, slightly overstates the case. The enduring significance of the election might well be race (and I think so), but at the time, Vietnam was key--for example, in LBJ's decision not to run (to which Gould gives in depth attention but which he seems to attribute largely to Johnson's health concerns). He also makes a provocative and appealing case that Robert Kennedy's potential for victory, in the nomination and the general, has been overstated by historians and Kennedy supporters ever since his tragic death after the California primary.The book is brief and not deep; it is American Political History 100, maybe 200--not 400. One gets an overview of the year but not an in depth picture or analysis. Somewhat detached (which might be a laudable achievement, considering the high emotions that surround the Sixties), it doesn't quite capture the mood of 1968. It's still a solid starting point and a decent read.