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Robert F. Kennedy 1968 presidential campaign - Quiz
Contributed by: Collins
  • 1. When did Robert F. Kennedy officially begin his 1968 presidential campaign?
A) March 16, 1968
B) March 31, 1968
C) January 30, 1968
D) April 27, 1968
  • 2. Which U.S. President did Kennedy initially challenge for the Democratic nomination?
A) Richard Nixon
B) Harry Truman
C) Lyndon B. Johnson
D) John F. Kennedy
  • 3. On what date did President Lyndon B. Johnson announce he would not seek re-election?
A) March 31, 1968
B) June 4, 1968
C) March 16, 1968
D) April 27, 1968
  • 4. Who was the Vice President that entered the race after Johnson's withdrawal?
A) Ted Kennedy
B) George McGovern
C) Eugene McCarthy
D) Hubert Humphrey
  • 5. Where was Robert F. Kennedy assassinated?
A) Good Samaritan Hospital
B) Kansas State University
C) Russell Senate Office Building
D) Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles
  • 6. On what date did Robert F. Kennedy pass away?
A) March 16, 1968
B) November 22, 1963
C) June 6, 1968
D) June 4, 1968
  • 7. Who served as U.S. Attorney General for several months following John F. Kennedy's assassination?
A) Hubert Humphrey
B) Robert F. Kennedy
C) Eugene McCarthy
D) Lyndon B. Johnson
  • 8. Which political office did Kennedy run for in 1964 as a potential launching pad for the presidency?
A) Governor of Massachusetts
B) Vice President of the United States
C) Mayor of New York City
D) U.S. Senator from New York
  • 9. Which family member was the leading voice against Robert Kennedy's 1968 presidential bid?
A) Joe Biden
B) Ted Kennedy
C) Ethel Kennedy
D) John F. Kennedy
  • 10. Who was the first person to announce a primary challenge against Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968?
A) George McGovern
B) Hubert Humphrey
C) Robert F. Kennedy
D) Eugene McCarthy
  • 11. Which city mayor told President Johnson about Kennedy's intention to run in January 1968?
A) Richard J. Daley
B) Hubert Humphrey
C) Robert F. Kennedy
D) George McGovern
  • 12. What report issued on February 29, 1968, focused on racial unrest in American cities?
A) The Senate Foreign Relations report
B) The Kerner Commission report
C) The Johnson Administration report
D) The Watts Commission report
  • 13. Whom did Robert F. Kennedy meet with in Delano, California, on March 10, 1968?
A) Arthur Schlesinger Jr.
B) César Chávez
C) Pete Hamill
D) Richard J. Daley
  • 14. Where did Kennedy officially announce his candidacy on March 16, 1968?
A) Caucus Room of the Russell Senate Office Building
B) The Ambassador Hotel
C) Kansas State University
D) The National Press Club
  • 15. What was the name of the lecture Kennedy delivered at Kansas State University?
A) Landon Lecture
B) Civil Rights Lecture
C) Senate Lecture
D) Vietnam Policy Lecture
  • 16. What 1960 candidate successfully used the strategy of winning through popular support in primary elections?
A) Hubert Humphrey
B) John F. Kennedy
C) Robert F. Kennedy
D) Lyndon B. Johnson
  • 17. In which state did Eugene McCarthy poll 42 percent of the vote against Johnson in 1968?
A) Kansas
B) New Hampshire
C) Indiana
D) California
  • 18. Who was the Republican incumbent that Robert F. Kennedy defeated for the U.S. Senate in 1964?
A) Lyndon B. Johnson
B) Richard Nixon
C) Alfred Landon
D) Kenneth Keating
  • 19. What was a core element of Robert F. Kennedy's 1968 campaign strategy?
A) Strict isolationism
B) Focus on tax cuts
C) Youth engagement
D) Traditional party endorsement
  • 20. How did Arthur Schlesinger describe the reaction to Kennedy's campaign?
A) Wild enthusiasm and deep anger
B) Universal support
C) Complete indifference
D) Skeptical but hopeful
  • 21. Why did the business community oppose Kennedy's candidacy?
A) He favored monopolies
B) He planned to ban corporations
C) He supported deregulation
D) He was viewed as a fiscal liability
  • 22. What was Kennedy's stance on the Vietnam War?
A) He wanted an immediate withdrawal
B) He called for immediate escalation
C) He wanted to dissolve the South Vietnamese military
D) He did not support an immediate withdrawal
  • 23. What did Kennedy propose to reduce housing and employment problems?
A) Eliminating all private businesses
B) Lowering the minimum wage
C) Increased government cooperation with private enterprise
D) Complete state ownership of industry
  • 24. What group did Kennedy believe welfare spending should better support?
A) Farmers
B) Retired politicians
C) Foreign corporations
D) Factory owners
  • 25. What was Kennedy's position on the death penalty in 1968?
A) He remained neutral
B) He was willing to support its abolition
C) He wanted to expand its use
D) He wanted to make it mandatory for all violent crimes
  • 26. How did Kennedy suggest countering rising crime rates?
A) Through immediate deportations
B) Through stricter military enforcement
C) Through job and educational opportunities
D) Through increased surveillance
  • 27. Which groups opposed Kennedy's 1968 candidacy?
A) The farmers and the middle class
B) University students and intellectuals
C) The youth and the inner-city residents
D) Southern Democrats, organized labor, and the business community
  • 28. When asked how to fund new programs at Indiana University Medical School, who did Kennedy say would pay?
A) Foreign allies
B) Small business owners
C) The federal government
D) The medical students
  • 29. What was Kennedy's specific plan to end the Vietnam conflict?
A) Launching a full-scale invasion of North Vietnam
B) Surrendering to North Vietnam
C) Immediate nuclear deterrence
D) Strengthening the South Vietnamese military and reducing corruption
  • 30. According to the text, who did Kennedy believe should be prevented from purchasing firearms?
A) Criminals, those with mental health issues, and minors
B) Only those with a criminal record
C) Only the elderly
D) Only law enforcement officers
  • 31. In the fall of 1965, what percentage of respondents in a Gallup poll believed RFK wanted to become president?
A) 56%
B) 40%
C) 72%
D) 65%
  • 32. According to the August 1966 polls, by how much was RFK favored over President Johnson among independents?
A) 14%
B) 2%
C) 20%
D) 10%
  • 33. In the late March Gallup poll released just before his entry into the primary, what percentage did Kennedy receive compared to Johnson's 41%?
A) 41%
B) 44%
C) 47%
D) 38%
  • 34. What was Kennedy's lead over McCarthy in the early April Indiana primary poll?
A) 19 points
B) 30 points
C) 26 points
D) 15 points
  • 35. Which survey showed Kennedy with a three-to-one lead over McCarthy and Roger D. Branigin in Indiana?
A) Associated Press poll
B) Harris poll
C) Gallup poll
D) Oliver Quayle survey
  • 36. In the April 28 Gallup poll, how many points was Hubert Humphrey behind Kennedy?
A) 8 points
B) 3 points
C) 1 point
D) 5 points
  • 37. In the June 2 Gallup poll, what percentage of support did Kennedy have among Democratic county chairmen?
A) 67%
B) 6%
C) 35%
D) 19%
  • 38. In the June 3 poll, by how many points was Kennedy leading McCarthy in the California primary?
A) 6 points
B) 9 points
C) 12 points
D) 3 points
  • 39. On what date did Vice President Hubert Humphrey announce his candidacy?
A) April 2
B) April 23
C) April 27
D) April 30
  • 40. In the Massachusetts primary, what percentage of the total vote did Humphrey receive as a write-in candidate?
A) 6%
B) 18%
C) 28%
D) 35%
  • 41. How many write-in votes did Hubert Humphrey receive in the Massachusetts primary?
A) 28,000
B) 19,000
C) 56,000
D) 44,156
  • 42. Who was the 'favorite son candidate' in the Indiana primary?
A) John Bartlow Martin
B) Martin Luther King Jr.
C) Roger D. Branigin
D) Eugene McCarthy
  • 43. How many people were killed in riots across the country following King's assassination?
A) 10
B) 3,000
C) 43
D) 100
  • 44. Which city did not experience riots after King's death, despite Kennedy's visit to an African American neighborhood there?
A) Memphis
B) Atlanta
C) Indianapolis
D) Cleveland
  • 45. What strategy did Kennedy use to appeal to Indiana's more-conservative voters?
A) Avoided talking about the Vietnam War entirely
B) Toned down his rhetoric
C) Focused only on law enforcement
D) Increased his attacks on the federal government
  • 46. Where did Kennedy deliver a speech suggesting the 1968 election would determine the United States' direction?
A) University of Notre Dame
B) The Indianapolis real estate board
C) The City Club of Cleveland
D) Ball State University
  • 47. What percentage of the vote did Robert F. Kennedy receive in the Washington, D.C. primary?
A) 37.5 percent
B) 51.4 percent
C) 81 percent
D) 62.5 percent
  • 48. What percentage of the vote did Humphrey receive in the Washington, D.C. primary?
A) 37.5 percent
B) 31 percent
C) 62.5 percent
D) 51.4 percent
  • 49. What portion of Washington, D.C.'s 810,000 residents were African American in 1968?
A) Two-thirds
B) One-third
C) One-half
D) Three-quarters
  • 50. Which newspaper reported that the Washington, D.C. primary was only 'mildly interesting'?
A) The Nebraska Gazette
B) The Chicago Tribune
C) The New York Times
D) The Washington Post
  • 51. How many visits did McCarthy make to Nebraska during the campaign?
A) None
B) Two
C) One
D) Five
  • 52. What was the result of the Nebraska primary for Kennedy?
A) 31 percent
B) 51.4 percent
C) 62.5 percent
D) 37.5 percent
  • 53. How many counties did Kennedy visit ahead of the Nebraska vote?
A) 810
B) 31
C) 24
D) 25
  • 54. How many counties did Kennedy win in Nebraska out of the ones he visited?
A) 10
B) 1
C) 25
D) 24
  • 55. By how many votes did Kennedy lose the county housing the University of Nebraska?
A) Two votes
B) Thirty-one votes
C) Five votes
D) One vote
  • 56. What did Kennedy call the combined vote total of himself and McCarthy in Nebraska?
A) A mild test of popularity
B) A narrow victory
C) A smashing repudiation
D) A significant setback
  • 57. What was the combined vote percentage of Kennedy and McCarthy in Nebraska?
A) Over 80 percent
B) 51.4 percent
C) 62.5 percent
D) 31 percent
  • 58. Which state's primary did Kennedy hope to gain momentum for by winning Nebraska?
A) Washington, D.C.
B) Indiana
C) California
D) New York
  • 59. Who ran Robert F. Kennedy's campaign organization in Oregon?
A) Hubert Humphrey
B) Dary G. Richardson
C) Eugene McCarthy
D) Edith Green
  • 60. What voting record of McCarthy's did Kennedy's campaign highlight in Oregon?
A) Voting against the Vietnam War
B) Voting against environmental protection laws
C) Voting against a minimum wage law
D) Voting against federal school funding
  • 61. Where did Kennedy make an appeal for federal gun control legislation on May 27?
A) Los Angeles, California
B) San Francisco, California
C) Roseburg, Oregon
D) Sioux Falls, South Dakota
  • 62. What was the result of the televised debate between Kennedy and McCarthy on June 1?
A) McCarthy dominated the discussion
B) Observers considered it a draw
C) Kennedy won decisively
D) It was cancelled due to technical issues
  • 63. What caused the panic among Kennedy's entourage in San Francisco's Chinatown?
A) A protestor shouting
B) Actual gunshots
C) Celebratory firecrackers
D) A car accident
  • 64. Who referred to Kennedy's California victory as his "greatest"?
A) Bill Eppridge
B) Dary G. Richardson
C) Joseph Palermo
D) Edith Green
  • 65. How many total delegates did Kennedy have after the June 4 primaries?
A) 460
B) 393
C) 561
D) 447
  • 66. Who was the person responsible for shooting Robert F. Kennedy?
A) Lee Harvey Oswald
B) James Earl Ray
C) Arthur Bremer
D) Sirhan Sirhan
  • 67. What type of weapon was used to shoot Robert F. Kennedy?
A) Shotgun
B) .38 caliber pistol
C) Rifle
D) .22 caliber revolver
  • 68. Where was Robert F. Kennedy's body laid to rest?
A) St. Patrick's Cathedral
B) The Ambassador Hotel
C) Arlington National Cemetery
D) Central Receiving Hospital
  • 69. Where did Robert F. Kennedy lie in repose before his funeral mass?
A) Union Station
B) The White House
C) The U.S. Capitol
D) St. Patrick's Cathedral
  • 70. What was the nationality of Sirhan Sirhan according to the text?
A) American
B) Egyptian
C) Lebanese
D) Palestinian-born Jordanian
  • 71. Which author did Edward Kennedy paraphrase in his eulogy?
A) George Bernard Shaw
B) William Shakespeare
C) Mark Twain
D) Robert Frost
  • 72. Which hospital was Kennedy transferred to before his death?
A) Ambassador Medical Center
B) St. Patrick's Hospital
C) Arlington Hospital
D) The Good Samaritan Hospital
  • 73. What percentage of the black vote did Robert F. Kennedy secure in the Indiana primary?
A) 90%
B) 86%
C) 40%
D) 94%
  • 74. Which journalist noted that Kennedy's speech on the King assassination helped Indianapolis avoid riots?
A) Larry Tye
B) Samuel Lubell
C) Will Higgins
D) Michael A. Cohen
  • 75. What percentage of black respondents agreed that Robert F. Kennedy shared the qualities of his late brother in a late May poll?
A) 94%
B) 86%
C) 40%
D) 90%
  • 76. Where did Kennedy hold a midnight session with Black Panthers days before the California primary?
A) Omaha
B) Oakland
C) Indianapolis
D) Los Angeles
  • 77. What percentage of the black vote did Kennedy win in the California primary?
A) 86%
B) 90%
C) 94%
D) 40%
  • 78. Who described Robert F. Kennedy as 'the most trusted white man in black America' at the time of his death?
A) Will Higgins
B) Samuel Lubell
C) Michael A. Cohen
D) Larry Tye
  • 79. Which group of voters provided Kennedy with broad support during his 1968 campaign?
A) College professors in the Northeast
B) Wealthy corporate executives
C) Rural agricultural business owners
D) Blue-collar white voters
  • 80. Where did Samuel Lubell note that Kennedy carried support among low-income white workers?
A) North Philadelphia
B) East Omaha
C) South Chicago
D) West Detroit
  • 81. Which strike did Kennedy support to endear himself to farmworkers?
A) California lettuce boycott
B) Central Valley fruit strike
C) Delano grape strike
D) Western agricultural worker walkout
  • 82. Who told students in California that Kennedy was the candidate for farmworkers?
A) Marshall Ganz
B) Robert F. Kennedy
C) Samuel Lubell
D) Cesar Chavez
  • 83. Who arranged for Kennedy to speak to farmworkers after his California primary victory?
A) Roger A. Bruns
B) Marshall Ganz
C) Cesar Chavez
D) Schmitt
  • 84. What percentage of voting Hispanics in the California primary supported Kennedy?
A) 75%
B) 100%
C) 50%
D) 95%
  • 85. How did Roger A. Bruns describe the death of Robert Kennedy in relation to the farmworker community?
A) A turning point for political reform
B) A minor setback for the UFW
C) An inevitable political disaster
D) A profoundly tragic loss
  • 86. What did Kennedy say upon hearing that Johnson was withdrawing?
A) The joy is premature
B) I have won the nomination
C) Finally, the war will end
D) This is a great victory
  • 87. What did Ted Kennedy want McCarthy to do in exchange for Robert Kennedy staying out of the race?
A) Endorse Robert Kennedy
B) Withdraw from the New Hampshire primary
C) Speak out on domestic problems
D) Join the Kennedy campaign staff
  • 88. What was Hubert Humphrey's official position when Kennedy entered the race?
A) Senator from Minnesota
B) Vice President
C) Mayor of Chicago
D) Attorney General
  • 89. Where was Kennedy when Humphrey entered the presidential race?
A) Indiana
B) California
C) Chicago
D) Nebraska
  • 90. How did Kennedy perform in polls against Nixon during the latter part of 1967?
A) Nixon led by a significant margin.
B) They were tied.
C) They were both polling lower than Lyndon Johnson.
D) Kennedy led by a significant margin.
  • 91. Who did Nixon tell his family he would likely be facing in the general election after the California primary?
A) Eugene McCarthy
B) Hubert Humphrey
C) Bobby
D) Lyndon Johnson
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