| Election Name: | 1960 Republican Party presidential primaries |
| Country: | United States |
| Flag Year: | 1959 |
| Type: | primary |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1956 Republican Party presidential primaries |
| Previous Year: | 1956 |
| Next Election: | 1964 Republican Party presidential primaries |
| Next Year: | 1964 |
| Election Date: | March 8 to June 7, 1960 |
| Candidate1: | Richard Nixon |
| Color1: | FF8080 |
| Home State1: | California |
| States Carried1: | 11 |
| Popular Vote1: | 4,975,938 |
| Percentage1: | 86.6% |
| Candidate2: | Nelson Rockefeller |
| Color2: | 5d73e5 |
| Home State2: | New York |
| States Carried2: | 0 |
| Popular Vote2: | 30,639 |
| Percentage2: | 0.52% |
| Map Size: | 350px |
| Republican nominee | |
| Before Election: | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| After Election: | Richard Nixon |
From March 8 to June 7, 1960, voters of the Republican Party chose its nominee for president in the 1960 United States presidential election. Incumbent Vice President Richard Nixon was selected as the nominee through a series of primary elections and caucuses culminating in the 1960 Republican National Convention held from July 25 to July 28, 1960, in Chicago, Illinois.[1]
At this time, primaries were not conclusive in deciding a party's nominee. However, Nixon faced no formidable opposition. He swept the primaries without difficulty and received the nomination unanimously at the July convention. He was briefly opposed by Governor Nelson Rockefeller of New York, who withdrew and endorsed Nixon after struggling in the polls.
The following political leaders were candidates for the 1960 Republican presidential nomination:
| Candidate | Most recent office | Home state | data-sort-type="date" | CampaignWithdrawal date | Popular vote | Contests won | Running mate | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Nixon | Vice President of the United States (1953–1961) | California | data-sort-value="0" | (Campaign) Secured nomination: July 28, 1960 | data-sort-value="4,975,938" | 4,975,938 (86.6%) | data-sort-value="11" | 11 | Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. | |||
These candidates participated in multiple state primaries or were included in multiple major national polls.
| Candidate | Most recent office | Home state | data-sort-type="date" | CampaignWithdrawal date | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| data-sort-value="Rockefeller" scope="row" | Nelson Rockefeller | Governor of New York (1959–1973) | New York | data-sort-value="03-04-2016" | (Campaign) Suspended campaign: December 26, 1959 Re-entered race: June 8, 1960 | |||
The following candidates ran only in their home state's primary or caucus for the purpose of controlling its delegate slate at the convention and did not appear to be considered national candidates by the media.
The following persons were listed in two or more major national polls or were the subject of media speculation surrounding their potential candidacy, but declined to actively seek the nomination.
| Poll source | Publication | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gallup[2] | July 1957 | 6% | 48% | – | ||
| Gallup | Oct. 1957 | 7% | 48% | – | ||
| Gallup | Jan. 1958 | 4% | 64% | – | ||
| Gallup | Jan. 1959 | 6% | 56% | 27% | ||
| Gallup | Mar. 1959 | 8% | 56% | 23% | ||
| Gallup | Apr. 1959 | 10% | 58% | 17% | ||
| Gallup | May 1959 | 6% | 63% | 20% | ||
| Gallup | June 1959 | 11% | 61% | 18% | ||
| Gallup | July 1959 | 5% | 65% | 19% | ||
| Gallup | Aug. 1959 | 4% | 68% | 18% | ||
| Gallup | Oct. 1959 | 6% | 67% | 19% | ||
| Gallup | Nov. 1959 | 4% | 66% | 19% | ||
| Gallup | Jan. 1960 | 6% | 84% | – | ||
| Gallup | May 1960 | 2% | 75% | 13% | ||
| Gallup | July 1960 | 4% | 75% | 12% |
| Richard M. Nixon | George H. Bender | Cecil Underwood | James M. Lloyd | Nelson Rockefeller | Unpledged | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 8 | New Hampshire | 89.28% | - | - | - | 3.76% | - | |
| April 5 | Wisconsin | 100% | - | - | - | - | - | |
| April 12 | Illinois | 99.94% | - | - | - | - | - | |
| April 19 | New Jersey | - | - | - | - | - | 100% | |
| April 26 | Massachusetts | 85.96% | - | - | - | 6.58% | - | |
| April 26 | Pennsylvania | 98.15% | - | - | - | 1.27% | - | |
| May 1 | Washington, D.C. | - | - | - | - | - | 100% | |
| May 3 | Indiana | 95.40% | - | - | - | - | - | |
| May 3 | Ohio | 70.48% | 29.52% | - | - | - | - | |
| May 10 | Nebraska | 93.82% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 2.56% | 0% | |
| May 10 | West Virginia | - | - | 100% | - | - | - | |
| May 20 | Oregon | 93.06% | - | - | - | 4.10% | - | |
| May 24 | Florida | 100% | - | - | - | - | - | |
| June 7 | California | 100% | - | - | - | - | - | |
| June 7 | South Dakota | - | - | - | 100% | - | - |
Primaries total popular vote results