answersLogoWhite

0


Best Answer

Kennedy felt Johnson would help the Democrats win votes in Texas and other southern states where Kennedy was not as popular. Johnson was regarded as a master at getting legislation passed.

User Avatar

Wiki User

12y ago
This answer is:
User Avatar
More answers
User Avatar

Wiki User

14y ago

As Lyndon Johnson came from Texas. Kennedy came from the North and wanted the Democratic Party to maintain its hold in the South. However, whereas most Southern congressmen opposed any form of Civil Rights legislation (hardly surprising as Black Americans were denied the vote), Johnson was a strong anti-racist.

This answer is:
User Avatar

User Avatar

Wiki User

12y ago

Johnson could bring in the Southern vote and Kennedy needed that, despite a personal distaste for LBJ.

He disgusted the entire Kennedy family on personal level, and the feeling was pretty close to mutual.

Meanwhile, Johnson had been a Southern Congressman and Senator, and a popular one, for 29 years, and was the senate Majority Leader.

He had connections with all the governors and big politicians in Southern states who would campaign for a Kennedy/Johnson combination in their home states, but probably not for Kennedy and anyone from the Northeast.

As the Senate Majority leader, LBJ could garner a lot of similar support in all of the states outside of Kennedy influence.

Politics Make Strange Bedfellows.

This answer is:
User Avatar

User Avatar

Wiki User

12y ago

The 1960 presidential election was predicted to be extremely close. JFK had won the nomination against Johnson, and some say he actually wanted Senators Stuart Symington of Missouri or Henry M. Jackson of Washington to be his running mate. However, he realised he needed Johnson on the ticket to carry the southern states, as Johnson was Senator from Texas, and a powerful figure in Congress. JFK's choice proved victorious against the Republican ticket, consisting of Vice-president Richard Nixon and US Ambassador to South Vietnam Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr.

This answer is:
User Avatar

User Avatar

Wiki User

12y ago

There are many plausible reasons. One is that, as a northern democrat from Massachusetts, he wanted LBJ because he was a sourthern (Texas) democrat. This would supposedly make it easier for Kennedy to pass the bills he wanted through Congress, although there was still a lot of issues with "dixiecrats" and JFK's inability to get them to approve his programs. Another possibility is that JFK was young and experienced and weak, so he chose Johnson because LBJ was a better and more experienced politician. Also it is possible he chose LBJ because he figured LBJ would be such a poor president, no one would want to kill JFK lest LBJ succeed him (although that obviously didn't work). Some suggest Kennedy didn't want LBJ at all but Johnson forced him into being his running mate.

This answer is:
User Avatar

User Avatar

Wiki User

10y ago

Johnson was a contender for the nomination, was a long-time senator with a lot of following, particulary in his Texas and the South. Kennedy was a Catholic and from the Northeast and needed Texas to win, so Johnson was an obvious choice for VP.

This answer is:
User Avatar

User Avatar

Wiki User

13y ago

Kennedy choose Johnson, because he thought he'll help him win southern states in the selection.

This answer is:
User Avatar

User Avatar

Wiki User

12y ago

To get the southern vote in presidential election

This answer is:
User Avatar

User Avatar

Wiki User

14y ago

Johnson could deal with the US Congress.

This answer is:
User Avatar

Add your answer:

Earn +20 pts
Q: Why did Kennedy choose Lyndon B. Johnson?
Write your answer...
Submit
Still have questions?
magnify glass
imp
Related questions

Who did Kennedy choose for his running mate?

Lyndon B. Johnson


Who became President when Kennedy was shot?

Lyndon Johnson.


What VP took over when JFK died?

Lyndon B Johnson was the successor of President John F Kennedy.


Who was able to push through many of Kennedy's programs?

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon B. Johnson


Who was the president after Kennedy was assassinated?

Lyndon B. Johnson


Who was the president before Lyndon Johnson was elected?

John F. Kennedy preceded Lyndon Johnson as President of the USA.Lyndon Johnson was elected as John F. Kennedy's Vice President. So technically, Lyndon B. Johnson was president before Lyndon B. Johnson was elected as president.


Who took over when John F. Kennedy got shot?

Lyndon Johnson.


Who took over the presidency after the assassination of Kennedy?

Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson succeeded Kennedy and became the 36th President of the United States after being sworn in on Air Force One at about 1:20 p.m. on November 22, 1963.


Was Lyndon B. Johnson Kennedy's vice president?

Yes, he was.


How did Lyndon B. Johnson become president of the US in 1963?

John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Texas, and Lyndon B. Johnson was his vice president.


What was the name of the president that after Kennedy died?

Lyndon Baines Johnson was the US President after John Fitzgerald Kennedy.Lyndon B. Johnson was the 36th President of the United States from 1963 November 22 to 1969 January 20. He was originally John F. Kennedy's Vice President and assumed the presidency after Kennedy's assassination in 1963.


Was president after president Kennedy?

LBJ took over for Kennedy after his death.