1912 Republican Party Convention

Early in the 20th century, some states began to hold primary elections and meetings to gauge public opinion about potential candidates for a party’s nomination. However, even as states made this shift, nominating conventions remained the place where decisions of consequence happened.

At the 1912 Republican Party Convention, former President Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt and incumbent President William Taft both sought the Republican Party’s nomination. The New York Tribune (1866 -1924), founded by politically active Horace Greeley, ran many articles that covered different aspects of the convention. At the time of the convention, The Tribune was one of the nation’s leading Republican daily newspapers.  

Source Analysis

• What do you notice about how the text arranged on the page? How does the way the text is arranged impact how you read the article?
• What can you tell about Roosevelt’s opinion of the nominating process, as it existed then? What information from the article supports your thinking? 
• What additional information would be helpful to better understanding challenges with the nominating process?

Amendment to state primary law, 1914

Between 1912 and 1920, several states passed laws that required primary elections. In this copy of legislation passed in 1912 and later amended in 1914, the state of Kentucky joined other states that changed their voting laws. Because the Constitution leaves matters of elections to the states, and not to the federal government, rules for elections in each state varied. This created challenges for consistency in the nomination process.

Source Analysis

• What text do you notice first and why?
• This law was amended in 1914. What changed?
• What can this source tell you about challenges to the nomination process in the early 20th century?

Deadlock ends at Republican Convention, 1920

Through the early part of the 20th century, more states started to hold primary elections and caucuses. At the time, voting in a primary election or meeting in a caucus looked very different than it does today. Instead of casting a vote for a candidate, citizens would mark the delegates they wanted to attend their party’s convention. In turn, the winning delegates would cast their votes for their preferred nominee at the party’s convention.

Press coverage from the 1920 Republican National Convention provide a sense of the spirit—and sometimes unexpected outcome—of party nominating conventions.  The Times Recorder documented the process by which Ohio Senator Warren Harding won the party’s nomination.

Source Analysis

• What words, figures, or phrases most stand out in this article and why?
• How does including the ballot counts in the article help you understand the nominating process, as it existed at the time?
• What can this article tell you about challenges to the nominating process as it existed then?
• What additional questions does this article raise and what information might be helpful to address your questions?

Speech by Senator John F. Kennedy, 1960

By the mid-20th century, there were a mix of methods for selecting delegates to attend party nominating conventions. Some states held primaries, others held conventions and a few hosted caucuses to decide.  Candidates seeking their party’s nomination could campaign across the United States to show that they had popular support. However, it wasn’t a requirement. Senator Kennedy gave this speech in response to calls from then President Truman to step down. Kennedy’s speech was published in national newspapers, including in the Evening Star.

Source Analysis

• What can you tell about Kennedy’s purpose in delivering this speech? Who do you think is his audience?
• According to Kennedy, what is Truman’s critique of Kennedy’s candidacy for president?
• What arguments does Kennedy make to address Truman’s critique?
• What can you learn about the nominating process from Kennedy’s speech?
• Based on this speech, how would you describe the challenges to how candidates were nominated, at this point in time?

John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy at convention, 1960

Throughout the spring of 1960 the Democratic Party held primary elections, caucuses, and state conventions to elect delegates for the party’s national convention. John F. Kennedy used those primaries to demonstrate that he could convince delegates to support his candidacy. Kennedy’s toughest opponent, Texas Senator Lyndon Johnson, didn’t officially enter the contest until just before the Convention. Johnson had a strong base of support from leaders in the Democratic Party. Despite Kennedy’s performance in the primaries, it was unclear who would win the party’s nomination.

This photograph by American photographer Warren Leffler shows one moment during the Convention when Kennedy’s candidacy was in question. The photograph was later published in the U.S. News and World Report Magazine.

Source Analysis

• Describe what you see – what do you notice first?
• Who do you think the audience is for this image?
• What can you infer about the mood of the 1960 Democratic Convention from examining this image?
• How does this image impact your understanding of challenges to the nominating process, as it existed at the time?

Forming Conclusions: Early and Mid-20th Century

Think about the sources you examined in this section.

• What patterns did you notice about the role of nominating conventions and primary elections?
• How did the sources you study support or challenge what you already thought might be problems or challenges in determining presidential candidates?
• Based on the sources you reviewed, what conclusions can you make about the relationship between nominating conventions and primary elections? What new questions do you have?