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Former Vice-President Hubert Humphrey and Maine Senator Edmund Muskie made up the Democratic Party ticket in the 1968 presidential election. After Lyndon B. Johnson inherited the presidency following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963, he chose Humphrey to be his running mate against Republican Barry Goldwater. The Johnson/Humphrey ticket was elected in a landslide in 1964. Prior to serving as Vice-President, Humphrey was elected as mayor of Minneapolis in 1945 and served as Minnesota's representative in the United States Senate, from 1949 to 1964.

After Johnson decided not to run for re-election in 1968, Humphrey launched his campaign and secured the Democratic Party's nomination, partially through his strategy of avoiding the primary elections against fellow Democrats Robert Kennedy and Eugene McCarthy. The assassinations of Robert Kennedy and civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., combined with increased opposition to the Vietnam War, were harmful to the Humphrey/Muskie ticket, and they lost to Richard Nixon in the general election. 

After the 1968 election, Humphrey taught at Macalester College and University of Minnesota, before returning to the Senate in 1976, and remained in office until his death in 1978. Muskie was a candidate for the Democratic nomination in 1972, and returned to the Senate in 1974 before serving as Secretary of State under President Jimmy Carter from 1980 to 1981. 

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Joseph Taylor Robinson was the running mate of Alfred E. Smith in the 1928 United States presidential campaign. His pairing with Smith became the first time since the Civil War to feature a southern representative for national office, and the first time in history that a Catholic won a presidential nomination. The 1928 presidential race encouraged future Catholic and southern candidates such as John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. 

Robinson is known for the impassioned speeches about the country on behalf of Smith and the Democratic platform. In 1933, he became the first Democratic Senate majority leader. He is dubbed the “fightingest” man in the U.S. Senate because he defeated all challengers during his time in the Senate. 

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Maurice Clifford Townsend (1884–1954) served as the Governor of Indiana from 1937 to 1941.  Prior to his role as Governor, Townsend served as a school superintendent and the Lieutenant Governor. "Cliff" Townsend was credited with having all school buses painted yellow for instant identification. At the 1936 Democratic state convention, Townsend's mother placed his name in nomination for governor. The convention was bitterly divided between three candidates and a fist-fight broke out before the final vote took place. In the general election Townsend defeated Republican, Raymond Springer by over 180,000 votes.

Shortly after Townsend’s inauguration, the Midwest was engulfed in torrential rains which caused the Ohio River to rise 19 feet above flood stage in Indiana. The Great Flood of 1937 left 100 million people homeless, and 385 dead.  Townsend was praised by National Relief Administrator, Harry Hopkins for his administration of resources during the disaster.  Townsend retired from politics after an unsuccessful bid for the U.S. Senate in 1946. 

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“Win” is to be victorious. It is a fusion of the Old English word “winnan” which means “to work at or struggle for,” and the word “gewinnan” which means “to succeed by struggling.” Winnan and gewinnan are both from the Proto-Germanic word “wennanan” which means “to seek to gain.”
 

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Guy Brasfield Park (1872-1946) was the Democratic governor of Missouri from 1933-1937.  Governor Park earned his law degree from the University of Missouri, and worked as a lawyer in Denver, Colorado for a short time before returning to Platte County, Missouri in 1900 where he began a life in public service as the City Attorney.  He was a member of the Missouri State Constitutional Convention in 1922, and a Fifth Judicial Circuit Judge from 1923-1932. 

As Governor, Park helped establish state relief programs which coordinated with federal programs instituted by the Roosevelt administration during the Depression.  In his honor, Platte County established the Guy B. Park Conservation Area, which is a wildlife preserve offering bird watching, fishing, hiking and hunting to visitors. 

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Senator Brien McMahon (D) made a name for himself through chairing the Senate Special Committee on Atomic Energy, and he wrote the Atomic Energy Act of 1946. He announced his candidacy for the Democrat presidential nomination on May 1, 1952. His campaign slogan was, “The Man is McMahon,” and his main platform was to insure world peace through atomic weapons. Sadly, he died on July 28, 1952. Connecticut held a special election to fill McMahon’s vacant seat, won by Prescott Bush, father and grandfather of Presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush respectively. McMahon is memorialized in a stamp, a high school, and a residence hall at the University of Connecticut.

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Hubert Humphrey and Edmund Muskie were the Democratic nominees for the 1968 Presidential Election. Humphrey entered the race after the primaries and ran against Eugene McCarthy and Robert F. Kenned to seek the Democratic nomination.  With the assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr., and the escalating conflict in Vietnam, the 1968 race became very controversial for the American people and the candidates.

At the Democratic National Convention, Senator George McGovern stepped up to run as Robert Kennedy’s successor.  In Chicago, police and the National Guard worked to contain the rioting outside the convention.  Humphrey won the nomination on the first ballot, and chose Senator Edmund Muskie from Maine as his running mate.  Six foot four-inch tall Muskie was often compared to Abraham Lincoln.  In a close race, the pair narrowly lost the election to Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew. 

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Ronald Reagan, the 40^th President of the United States, was particularly well known for his economic policies. Dubbed “Reaganomics,” these polices sought to reduce government spending growth rate and government regulation, reduce federal income tax, and reduce inflation. People often debate over how successful Reaganomics were, but statistics do show several facts. By the time he left office, the unemployment and inflation rates shrunk, while the American economy grew. However, government spending increased, as did the public debt.

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In 1964, Incumbent President Lyndon B. Johnson ran for president against Republican Barry Goldwater with Hubert Humphrey as his Vice Presidential running mate. Johnson won in a landslide victory. He carried 44 states and 486 electoral college votes while Goldwater won 6 states and 52 electoral college votes. Additionally, Johnson's popular vote was 61% - the highest since James Monroe's 1820 re-election. Johnson's presidency is mainly known for the "War on Poverty," civil rights movement, and increased involvement in the Vietnam War, for which he garnered much criticism.

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James R. Thompson was the longest serving Governor of the state of Illinois.  The Republican was first elected in 1976 and served until 1991.  A graduate of Northwestern Law School, prior to his role as governor, Thompson served as the federal prosecutor for the state and convicted many high level politicians of corruption.  He was a popular governor and is credited with effectively handling the state’s finances by balancing the budget during a difficult national recession.  After leaving office, Thompson held high positions in private law firms, and was one of 10 members appointed to the 9/11 Commission.