United States elections, 1960

Partisan control of Congress and the presidency

	Previous party	Incoming party
President	Republican	Democratic
House	Democratic	Democratic
Senate	Democratic	Democratic

The 1960 United States general election was held on November 8, and elected the members of the 88th United States Congress. The Democratic Party retained control of Congress and won control of the presidency.

In the presidential election, Democratic Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts was elected to serve as the 35th President of the United States, defeating the Republican former vice president Richard Nixon. Kennedy carried a mix of Southern, Midwestern, and Northeastern states, while Nixon dominated the West and won a majority of states. Fourteen unpledged electors from Alabama and Mississippi voted for Democratic Senator Harry F. Byrd, as many Southern Democrats opposed the national party's stance on civil rights. Kennedy's popular vote margin of victory was the closest in any presidential election in the 20th century, with Kennedy garnering 0.17% of the popular vote over his opponent. Nixon, the first sitting vice president to win either party's nomination since Stephen A. Douglas did so in 1860, easily won his party's nomination. Sitting Republican President Dwight Eisenhower was the first president in American history to be legally ineligible for re-election, due to the 1951 ratification of the 22nd Amendment. Kennedy won the Democratic nomination on the first ballot, defeating Texas Senator Lyndon B. Johnson. Kennedy's general election victory made him the first Catholic president.

The Republican Party cut into the Democratic majority in both the House and the Senate, but Democrats retained a commanding majority in both chambers.

See also

• United States presidential election, 1960
• United States House of Representatives elections, 1960
• United States Senate elections, 1960