1968 Horrors Haunt 2024
Last year, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) switched up the order of which states have their Primary Elections and caucuses first. Every presidential election since 1972, Iowa has kicked things off with its caucuses, and since 1920, New Hampshire has been the first state to hold a Primary. Both states have built a political brand around these facts, so the change caused controversy.
The DNC says they changed the order to have more racial diversity among voters at the start. Iowa and New Hampshire are both around 90% white whereas South Carolina, the new first-in-line, is about 70% white and 27% Black.
Unsurprisingly, Republicans had no interest in diversity-related changes. This caused a lot of confusion for voters across the country.
Iowa Democrats ultimately created a new mail-in voting process. Meanwhile, New Hampshire refused the calendar shake-up because of a state law that says they must hold the first Primary every presidential election year. They’ve followed this law since 1920 and yes, it’s ridiculous. But, since Democrats don’t control the state government in New Hampshire, any changes they propose will likely be unsuccessful. I feel for them.
The DNC did not. They removed President Biden from New Hampshire’s primary ballot entirely and took away all of the state’s convention delegates.
So, how did we end up with this way of choosing a nominee for President?
It originates from the 1968 Democratic National Convention — the culmination of an intense political saga.
The months before the 1968 convention went like this: On March 12th, Senator Eugene McCarthy nearly beat President Lyndon B. Johnson in the New Hampshire Primary. Just days later, Robert F. Kennedy joined the race. With two opponents and dwindling support, Johnson dropped out of the race. Then, Vice President Hubert Humphrey entered on April 27th — after the Primary Elections concluded.
The crazy campaign season hit a climax on June 5th with the assassination of Robert Kennedy. His death left the status quo candidate, Humphrey, pitted against the lesser-known McCarthy. Drama and death dominated the Democratic Party by the August convention.
The assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy, combined with the escalating Vietnam War, made the racial justice and anti-war movements desperate for representation. McCarthy's anti-Vietnam War stance offered a glimmer of hope.
The DNC chose Humphrey. Only 17 states held primaries in 1968, so it didn’t matter that he received zero votes. The other 33 states had groups of rich, well-connected white men who could be manipulated or persuaded into nearly anything. These men gave Humphrey their delegates at the convention, so he won.
Outside the convention center, the Chicago Police Department brutalized protesters with tear gas and batons. For people watching nationwide, the three-day fiasco was the perfect representation of a decade plagued by government dysfunction and violence.
In the fallout, DNC leaders realized major changes were necessary to maintain support. Primaries and caucuses were created in most states to give voters more power. By 1972, a new calendar emerged: the Iowa caucus first, with the New Hampshire Primary shortly after.
Over half a century later, history threatens to repeat itself as the Democratic convention finally returns to Chicago. Just as in 1968, battles over the nominating calendar and rules caused drama within the party.
Weirdly, Robert Kennedy is once again involved.
And depressingly, decision-makers clinging to dangerous habits are again ignoring a youth-led racial justice and anti-war movement.
Whether the Democratic Party can course-correct from this latest descent into self-destruction remains to be seen. But the eerie parallels should serve as a wake-up call that unresolved institutional flaws could still upend the future of U.S. politics if not finally addressed with radical reforms.
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