John F. Kennedy

Color portrait photograph of John F. Kennedy

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, often referred to as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States and started his term in January of 1961. Despite his youth, lack of foreign policy experience, and Catholic upbringing, Kennedy managed to capture the nomination from the democratic party in advance of the 1960 presidential election. His opponent—Republican nominee Richard Nixon—campaigned on the success of the Eisenhower administration, to which he was vice president.

After the debates between Nixon and Kennedy—the first televised debates in US history—nearly all the criticism leveled at Kennedy for being either too 'young' or 'inexperienced' seemingly vanished overnight. His strong performance invariably helped Kennedy capture the remaining votes needed to catapult him to the White House. Kennedy narrowly won the election, but many historians cite his success in urban and industrial districts for the victory.