| Election Name: | 1972 Republican Party presidential primaries |
| Country: | United States |
| Type: | primary |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1968 Republican Party presidential primaries |
| Previous Year: | 1968 |
| Next Election: | 1976 Republican Party presidential primaries |
| Next Year: | 1976 |
| Election Date: | March 7 to June 6, 1972 |
| Candidate1: | Richard Nixon |
| Color1: | FF3333 |
| Home State1: | California |
| States Carried1: | 18 |
| Popular Vote1: | 5,378,704 |
| Percentage1: | 86.9% |
| Color2: | 000000 |
| Candidate2: | Uncommitted |
| Home State2: | N/A |
| States Carried2: | 0 |
| Popular Vote2: | 317,048 |
| Percentage2: | 5.1% |
| Candidate3: | John M. Ashbrook |
| Color3: | 1E90FF |
| Home State3: | Ohio |
| States Carried3: | 0 |
| Popular Vote3: | 311,543 |
| Percentage3: | 5.0% |
| Map Size: | 350px |
| Republican nominee | |
| Before Election: | Richard Nixon |
| After Election: | Richard Nixon |
From March 7 to June 6, 1972, voters of the Republican Party chose its nominee for president in the 1972 United States presidential election. Incumbent President Richard Nixon was again selected as the nominee through a series of primary elections and caucuses culminating in the 1972 Republican National Convention held from August 21 to August 23, 1972, in Miami, Florida.
| Candidate | Most recent office | Home state | data-sort-type="date" | CampaignWithdrawal date | Popular vote | Contests won | Running mate | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Nixon | President of the United States (1969–1974) | California | data-sort-value="0" | (Campaign) Secured nomination: August 23, 1972 | data-sort-value="5,378,704" | 5,378,704 (96.9%) | data-sort-value="18" | 18 | Spiro Agnew | |||
| Candidate | Most recent office | Home state | data-sort-type="date" | CampaignWithdrawal date | Popular vote | Contests won | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John M. Ashbrook | U.S. Representative from Ohio (1961–1982) | Ohio | data-sort-value="0" | data-sort-value="311,543" | 311,543 (5.0%) | data-sort-value="0" | 0 | ||||
| Pete McCloskey | U.S. Representative from California (1967–1983) | California | data-sort-value="0" | data-sort-value="132,731" | 132,731 (2.1%) | data-sort-value="0" | 0 | ||||
Nixon was a popular incumbent president in 1972, as he seemed to have reached détente with China and the USSR. He shrugged off the first glimmers of that, after the election, because of the massive Watergate scandal.
Polls showed that Nixon had a strong lead. He was challenged by two minor candidates, liberal Pete McCloskey of California and conservative John Ashbrook of Ohio. McCloskey ran as an anti-Vietnam war candidate dedicated to a much more clearer liberal position compared to Nixon's ambiguity approach within the party, while Ashbrook was dedicated to a much more clearer conservative position than Nixon and opposed Nixon's détente policies towards China and the Soviet Union. In the New Hampshire primary McCloskey's platform of peace garnered 19.7% of the vote to Nixon's 67.9%, with Ashbrook receiving 10.9% and comedian Pat Paulsen receiving 1.1%.[10] Having previously stated that he would withdraw from the race had he not achieved 20% of the vote, McCloskey did so.
Nixon won 1,347 of the 1,348 delegates to the GOP convention, with McCloskey receiving the vote of one delegate from New Mexico.[11]
See also: 1972 New Hampshire Republican presidential primary.