1972 with Eagleton as Dem VP

[Joe Republic]

Let's imagine that the revelations about Tom Eagleton's EST and depression were never made public, or never actually happened.  Thereby, he was never dropped from McGovern's ticket.

How would the election have turned out in the end?  Would McGovern/Eagleton have fared better than McGovern/Shriver did?  Or would they have done worse?

[Joe Republic]

Yes, but a big reason why McGovern lost so much support was his indecisiveness over his running mate.  Shortly after the EST revelations, McGovern claimed he still supported Eagleton "1000%", and then just three days later he dropped him from the ticket.  That flip-flop caused a massive loss in McGovern's credibility, which of course, would not have happened in this scenario.

Also, Eagleton was a solid choice.  Much moreso than Sargent Shriver, who had never held elected office and was pretty much a nobody anyway.

[Joe Republic]

I don't doubt for a moment that McGovern would have still lost by a landslide.  But I'd have to agree more with Boss Tweed that he would have gained about 5 percentage points on average, give or take, and variable from state to state.  That would certainly have been enough to switch a few of the closer states.