President Nixon was renominated with only token opposition at the Republican convention at Miami Beach. In his acceptance speech Nixon stated:" It has become fashionable in recent years to point up what is wrong with the American system. The critics contend that it is unfair, so corrupt, so unjust that we should tear it down a substitute something else in its place. I totally disagree, I believe in the American system." Senator George McGovern was nominated after a long series of primary battles, that saw both Senator's Muskie and Humphrey withdraw from the campaign. Both were considered more moderate than McGovern. McGovern received the Democratic primary on the first ballot.
The Republicans successfully depicted Senator McGovern as a radical leftist. He was unable to shake that depiction. Thus regardless of the charges that McGovern made, most Americans paid little attention. Two weeks before the election Kissinger announced that "peace was at hand". The result one of the most one-sided elections in American history.
Participation of Eligible Voters: 55.2%
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