Stevenson vs. Nixon- 1956

[gorkay]

Here's one for you-- I apologize if it's already been done, but I think it's a good one.

President Eisenhower's health problems force him to retire after one term in office. He endorses Vice-President Nixon for the 1956 Republican presidential nomination, and Nixon wins handily. Meanwhile, on the Democratic side, Adlai Stevenson wins his party's nomination again on the first ballot.

Questions:

1. Who would Nixon choose as his running mate?

2. In such a situation, would Stevenson still have left the vice-presidential nomination up to a vote of the delegates as he did in RL, or would he have taken the safer route of choosing his running mate? If the latter, who would he have picked?

3. Based on your answers to the first two questions, what would have happened in the general election?

[Lincoln Republican]

Nixon picks 52 year old Attorney General Herbert Brownell Jr. of New York for Vice President.  Brownell has been serving as Attorney General in the Eisenhower administration since 1953.  Brownell served as a member of the New York State Assembly from 1933 to 1937, and as an advisor to Governor Thomas Dewey.  As Attorney General, Brownell was known for his strong advocacy of civil rights, and desegragating public schools in the south.  Brownell was regarded as a brilliant attorney and a gifted administrator. 

Stevenson picks 61 year old Senator Clinton Anderson of New Mexico for Vice President.  He had served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives 1941-1945, Secretary of Agriculture in the Truman administration 1945-1948, and has been a U.S. Senator since 1949.  Anderson was known for devoting himself to causes he believed important, and for seeing a task through to it's completion.   

Vowing to carry on the "historic work and monumental accomplishments of President Eisenhower," Nixon leads a positive and upbeat campaign, achieving a comfortable victory over the already once defeated Presidential nominee Stevenson.

Nixon/Brownell                    300
Stevenson/Anderson           231

[CPT MikeyMike]

Nixon picks 52 year old Attorney General Herbert Brownell Jr. of New York for Vice President.  Brownell has been serving as Attorney General in the Eisenhower administration since 1953.  Brownell served as a member of the New York State Assembly from 1933 to 1937, and as an advisor to Governor Thomas Dewey.  As Attorney General, Brownell was known for his strong advocacy of civil rights, and desegragating public schools in the south.  Brownell was regarded as a brilliant attorney and a gifted administrator. 

Stevenson picks 61 year old Senator Clinton Anderson of New Mexico for Vice President.  He had served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives 1941-1945, Secretary of Agriculture in the Truman administration 1945-1948, and has been a U.S. Senator since 1949.  Anderson was known for devoting himself to causes he believed important, and for seeing a task through to it's completion.   

Vowing to carry on the "historic work and monumental accomplishments of President Eisenhower," Nixon leads a positive and upbeat campaign, achieving a comfortable victory over the already once defeated Presidential nominee Stevenson.

Nixon/Brownell                    300
Stevenson/Anderson           231

As long as Ike fully endorsed Nixon, there's no reason for Nixon to lose.

[Kaine for Senate '18]

Nixon chooses Christian Herter, Governor of Massachusetts since 1953, Congressman for Massachusetts' 10th District from 1943-1953, 61 years old.

Stevenson chooses Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts as his running mate, and does not let the convention decide.

In the General Election, Nixon destroys Stevenson, taking a good number of Southern States, and most of New England:

Nixon/Herter: 449
Stevenson/Kennedy: 82

[gorkay]

I don't think Nixon would have won by such a large margin. I just don't see him being as popular a candidate as Ike, even if he had had Ike's enthusiastic endorsement.

[Hotblack Desiato]

Nixon most likely wins but by a significantly lesser margin than Ike's victory.

[gorkay]

A Stevenson/Nixon debate in that election would have been highly entertaining. Despite all the legend about Nixon's performance in the 1960 debates, most of which is inaccurate, Nixon thought pretty fast on his feet (remember the "kitchen debate" with Khrushchev?), and assuming that he didn't bang his knee on a car door as he did in 1960, he would have been at full strength. Stevenson's oratory abilities are very well known, of course (his acceptance speech at the 1952 Democratic convention is the best one I've ever heard), so given their contrasting political philosophies and their abilities to express them, debates between the two could have been very edifying.

[pbrower2a]

Nixon picks 52 year old Attorney General Herbert Brownell Jr. of New York for Vice President.  Brownell has been serving as Attorney General in the Eisenhower administration since 1953.  Brownell served as a member of the New York State Assembly from 1933 to 1937, and as an advisor to Governor Thomas Dewey.  As Attorney General, Brownell was known for his strong advocacy of civil rights, and desegragating public schools in the south.  Brownell was regarded as a brilliant attorney and a gifted administrator. 

Stevenson picks 61 year old Senator Clinton Anderson of New Mexico for Vice President.  He had served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives 1941-1945, Secretary of Agriculture in the Truman administration 1945-1948, and has been a U.S. Senator since 1949.  Anderson was known for devoting himself to causes he believed important, and for seeing a task through to it's completion.   

Vowing to carry on the "historic work and monumental accomplishments of President Eisenhower," Nixon leads a positive and upbeat campaign, achieving a comfortable victory over the already once defeated Presidential nominee Stevenson.

Stevenson was a political turkey -- enough of a turkey to lose to Richard Nixon.

[Antonio the Sixth]

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It's difficult to say... He could have chosen Lodge as he did in 1960, or maybe N. Rockefeller if he wanted to be seen as more liberal.

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Probably not, that would have been a terrible political error. Against Eisenhower, he could not win, so he could let the convention choose. But against Nixon, he probably have a chance to win. To rally the party, he should have picked a southerner : Johnson ( to carry Texas ) or Kefauver.

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That would be a very close election, like the 1960's was. Nixon's canddacy would not change a lot the electoral structure. So, we can imagine an electoral map like this :

Nixon/Lodge : 284
Stevenson/Johnson : 247

Probably Nixon would have won, but by a close margin.