1988 presidential election | |
  Nominees Dukakis and Bentsen | |
| Convention | |
|---|---|
| Date(s) | July 18–21, 1988 |
| City | Atlanta,Georgia |
| Venue | The Omni |
| Keynote speaker | Ann Richards |
| Notable speakers | Ted Kennedy Bill Clinton Jim Hightower Jimmy Carter Jesse Jackson |
| Candidates | |
| Presidential nominee | Michael Dukakis ofMassachusetts |
| Vice-presidential nominee | Lloyd Bentsen ofTexas |
| Voting | |
| Total delegates | 4,105 |
| Votes needed for nomination | 2,054 |
| Results (president) | Dukakis (MA): 2,877 (70.09%) Jackson (DC): 1,219 (29.70%) Stallings (ID): 3 (0.07%) Biden (DE): 2 (0.05%) Gephardt (MO): 2 (0.05%) Bentsen (TX): 1 (0.02%) Hart (CO): 1 (0.02%) |
| Ballots | 1 |
| ‹ 1984 · 1992 › | |
The1988 Democratic National Convention was held atThe Omni inAtlanta, Georgia, from July 18 to 21, 1988, to select candidates for the1988 presidential election. At the conventionGovernorMichael Dukakis ofMassachusetts was nominated forpresident andSenatorLloyd Bentsen ofTexas forvice president. The chair of the convention wasSpeaker of the U.S. House of RepresentativesJim Wright.
Speakers at the convention includedTexas State TreasurerAnn Richards, who gave a keynote speech that put her in the public spotlight and included the line thatGeorge H. W. Bush was "born with a silver foot in his mouth".Arkansas governorBill Clinton gave a very long and widely jeered nomination speech on the opening night that some predicted would ruin his political career,[1]Massachusetts senatorTed Kennedy's remarks contained the iteration "Where was George?", andTexas Agriculture CommissionerJim Hightower called Bush "a toothache of a man."
In one of the subsequent presidential debates, when questioned about the general alleged "negativity" of the campaign, Bush cited thead hominem attacks against him at the convention as the root cause.
The organizers for the convention chosepastel colors as a background in the belief that they would appear better on television. They were patterned after the colors of theAmerican flag insalmon,azure, andeggshell.[2] Republicans mocked the choice and used it to buttress their case that the Democrats were "soft" on the issues.[3] New Jersey governorThomas Kean claimed at theRepublican Convention that "The Dukakis Democrats will try to talk tough, but don't be fooled. They may try to talk likeDirty Harry, but they will still act likePee Wee Herman." Kean continued that Democrats and Republicans alike "have no use for pastelpatriotism... Theliberal Democrats are trying to hide more than the colors in our flag; they are trying to hide their true colors."[2]
The theme song for the convention was composed and performed by longtime supporter and folksingerCarly Simon originally for the'84 DNC with different verses. Entitled "Turn of the Tide", the original version was accompanied by many of the famous folk singers, soft rockers and other light-adult-contemporary stars of the period. Originally available only on a limited run single-sided promotional 45 RPM record along with the matching program and other memorabilia, this version with the new verses for 1988 was released primarily as the B-side of the hit single "Let the River Run" from the20th Century Fox motion pictureWorking Girl and was also used a few months later in the U.S./Russian co-production ofMarlo Thomas' andTatiana Vedeneyeva's Emmy Award-winning ABC television specialFree to Be... a Family. Finally, the cut closed out the award-winning soundtrack album on A&M Records, Cassettes and CDs.
A number of candidates withdrew from the race at the start of the convention as the rules stated that delegates won by withdrawn candidates could be replaced. The final contest for the nomination was between Michael Dukakis and Jesse Jackson.
| Democratic National Convention presidential vote, 1988[4] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage |
| Michael Dukakis | 2,877 | 70.09% |
| Jesse Jackson | 1,219 | 29.70% |
| Richard Stallings | 3 | 0.07% |
| Joe Biden | 2 | 0.05% |
| Dick Gephardt | 2 | 0.05% |
| Lloyd Bentsen | 1 | 0.25% |
| Gary Hart | 1 | 0.25% |
| Totals | 4,162 | 100.00% |
With Jackson's supporters demanding that he receive the vice-presidential nomination as his reward for coming in second, the Dukakis campaign decided to nominate Senator Bentsen by voice vote, rather than a roll call.[5] This would become the tradition.
The platform added "the fundamental right ofreproductive choice should be guaranteed regardless of ability to pay".
| Preceded by 1984 San Francisco, California | Democratic National Conventions | Succeeded by 1992 New York, New York |
