1962 California gubernatorial election
November 6, 1962
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Brown: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 80–90% Nixon: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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| Elections in California |
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Personal U.S. Representative from California U.S. Senator from California 36th Vice President of the United States
Post-vice presidency 37th President of the United States Appointments Policies Tenure
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The 1962 California gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1962. The Democratic incumbent, Pat Brown, won re-election over former U.S. vice president and 1960 Republican presidential nominee Richard Nixon.
Brown faced nominal opposition throughout the Democratic primary. Emphasizing his record as governor, and following a successful public relations campaign to make Brown appear forceful and decisive, Brown would crush his opponents and won with over 80 percent of the vote.
Nixon was drafted by the California Republican Party in the hopes that it would revitalize his political career following his narrow loss to John F. Kennedy in the 1960 election.
In his concession speech the following morning, Nixon accused the media of favoring his opponent Brown, stating that it was his "last press conference" and "You won't have Nixon to kick around any more." Six years later, Nixon was elected President of the United States, and ten years after this press conference, he was re-elected in a landslide.