| Election Name: | 1968 New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary |
| Country: | New Hampshire |
| Flag Year: | 1931 |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1964 New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary |
| Previous Year: | 1964 |
| Next Election: | 1972 New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary |
| Next Year: | 1972 |
| Image1: | File:37_Lyndon Johnson 3x4.jpg |
| Candidate1: | Lyndon Johnson |
| Colour1: | 3333ffff |
| Home State1: | Texas |
| Popular Vote1: | 27,520 |
| Percentage1: | 49.6% |
| Candidate2: | Eugene McCarthy |
| Colour2: | 37c837 |
| Home State2: | Minnesota |
| Popular Vote2: | 23,263 |
| Percentage2: | 41.9% |
| Delegate Count1: | 4 |
| Delegate Count2: | 20 |
See main article: 1968 Democratic Party presidential primaries.
The 1968 New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary was held on March 12, 1968, in New Hampshire as one of the Democratic Party's statewide nomination contests ahead of the 1968 United States presidential election.
President Lyndon Johnson, who had not officially entered the race for president, won the primary, but finished with a surprisingly low total of 49%.[1] [2] Eugene McCarthy, then a little-known senator from Minnesota, won 42% of the primary vote. McCarthy's strong showing gave his campaign legitimacy and momentum.[3] In addition, McCarthy's superior coordination led to a near sweep of the state's twenty-four pledged delegates. Since Johnson had no formal campaign organization, a number of competing pro-Johnson delegate candidates split his vote, allowing McCarthy to take twenty delegates.
On March 16, 1968, four days after the New Hampshire primary, Robert F. Kennedy announced his candidacy.[4] On March 31, 1968, President Lyndon Johnson announced that he would not seek reelection.[5] Vice President Hubert Humphrey went on to be nominated after Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in June.[6]
This primary election was a nonbinding vote and described as being a "Presidential preference poll".[7]
| Candidate | Number of votes | % of the vote | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lyndon B. Johnson | 27,243 | 49.4% | |
| Eugene McCarthy | 23,280 | 42.2% | |
| Richard Nixon | 2,529 | 4.6% | |
| Robert F. Kennedy | 600 | 1.1% | |
| Nelson Rockefeller | 248 | 0.4% | |
| George C. Wallace | 197 | 0.4% | |
| Other candidates | 1,089 | 1.9% | |
| Total | 55,186 | 100% |