The Democratic National Committee in the Campaign of 1960

• Date: 01 September 1961
• Author: Daniel M. Ogden
• Published date: 01 September 1961
• DOI: 10.1177/106591296101400350
• Subject Matter: Articles

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THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE IN THE
CAMPAIGN OF 1960
DANIEL M. OGDEN, JR.
Washington State University
To the Democratic National Committee, the campaign of 1960 brought both
victory and basic organizational changes. In the year from February 1960 to
February 1961 three successive national chairmen provided three very different
concepts of administrative leadership and of the proper role of the chairman.
During the same period, the basic theory guiding committee activity was changed
from the &dquo;party responsibility&dquo; concept of American parties to the &dquo;arena of
compromise&dquo; theory. In adjusting to the campaign and readjusting to electoral
victory, the committee staff was twice reorganized and nearly completely re-
placed. Many of the early programs were abandoned or substantially altered.
The Pre-Convention Committee
.
The pre-convention National Committee was led by Paul M. Butler, a
determined advocate of the &dquo;party responsibility&dquo; theory who believed that the
national chairman should be his party’s spokesman when it is out of executive
office. But Butler also attempted to exercise personal, minute direction over every
phase of National Committee activity. The staff accordingly was organized pri-
marily to move the party toward &dquo;responsibility.&dquo;
The designation of Henry M. Jackson as chairman at the close of the Demo-
cratic National Convention of 1960 meant the victory of Butler’s opponents
within the party. After he left office July 16, 1960, Mr. Butler was not consulted
about the affairs of the National Committee. After the election, his works were
swiftly undone.
The Committee During the Campaign
The Democratic presidential campaign of 1960 was an integrated organiza-
tional enterprise. But the agreement to use the National Committee as the in-
tegrative unit created a basic organizational problem. The well-established
Kennedy family campaign organization had long before designated Robert
Kennedy as campaign...