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From March 11 to June 5, 1956, voters of theDemocratic Party chose its nominee forpresident in the1956 United States presidential election. FormerIllinois GovernorAdlai Stevenson was selected as the nominee through a series ofprimary elections[1] andcaucuses culminating in the1956 Democratic National Convention held from August 13 to August 17, 1956, inChicago,Illinois.[2] This was the party's second consecutive nomination of Stevenson.[3]
These candidates participated in multiple state delegate election contests or were included in multiple major national polls.
| Candidate | Most recent position | Home state | Campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) | Democratic nominee for President (1952) FormerGovernor of Illinois (1949–53) |  Illinois | (Campaign) | |
.jpg) | U.S. Senator from Tennessee (1949–63) U.S. Representative from Tennessee (1939–49) |  Tennessee |  Withdrew: June 1956 (Campaign) | |
_Edit.png) | Governor of New York (1955–58) United StatesSecretary of Commerce (1946–48) United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom (1946) United StatesAmbassador to the Soviet Union (1943–46) |  New York | ||
The following candidates ran only in their home state's primary or caucuses for the purpose of controlling its delegate slate at the convention and did not appear to be considered national candidates by the media.
Estes Kefauver sought the Democratic presidential nomination, as he had in 1952. Initially, he again won some Democratic Party presidential primaries.
In the March 13, 1956New Hampshire presidential primary, Kefauver defeated Stevenson, his only formidable opponent for the nomination, by a margin of 21,701 to 3,806.
A week later, Kefauver defeated Stevenson in the March 20, 1956Minnesota presidential primary, winning 245,885 votes compared to Stevenson's 186,723 votes. Kefauver was also victorious in theWisconsin presidential primary. Stevenson picked up his nativeIllinois in a landslide. By April 1956, "it appeared that Kefauver was on his way to a primary sweep matching the spectacular performance in 1952."[4]
One of the first televised United States presidential debates was held as an hour long one-on-one debate between the party's top-two contenders, Kefauver and Stevenson.[5][6] The debate was held inMiami,Florida ahead of the state's primary.[5][6]
Russell Baker ofThe New York Times wrote that the two contenders took near-identical stances on most of the issues discussed in the debate.[5]
The JuneCalifornia primary proved decisive for the nomination, delivering Stevenson a major victory and leading to the suspension of Kefauver's campaign for the nomination.
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| Poll source | Publication | Averell Harriman | Lyndon Baines Johnson | Estes Kefauver | Frank Lausche | Adlai Stevenson | Stuart Symington | Harry S. Truman |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gallup[7] | Aug. 1953 | – | – | 17% | – | 53% | 1% | 11% |
| Gallup[7] | Aug. 1954 | – | – | 22% | – | 57% | – | – |
| Gallup[7] | Nov. 1954 | 4% | – | 16% | 2% | 58% | – | – |
| Gallup[7] | Mar. 1955 | 14% | – | 48% | 2% | – | 5% | 1% |
| Gallup[7] | Apr. 1955 | 17% | – | 37% | 4% | – | 3% | 1% |
| Gallup[7] | Aug. 1955 | 6% | 1% | 16% | – | 55% | – | 1% |
| Gallup[7] | Oct. 1955 | 8% | – | 16% | 2% | 51% | 2% | – |
| Gallup[7] | Nov. 1955 | 10% | 1% | 11% | 1% | 48% | 1% | 1% |
| Gallup[7] | Nov. 1955 | 8% | – | 12% | – | 38% | – | – |
| Gallup[7] | Dec. 1955 | 8% | – | 17% | 3% | 51% | – | – |
| Gallup[7] | Jan. 1956 | 8% | 3% | 17% | 3% | 49% | – | – |
| Gallup[7] | Feb. 1956 | 8% | 2% | 18% | 2% | 51% | 1% | – |
| Gallup[7] | Apr. 1956 | 6% | 3% | 33% | 2% | 39% | 2% | – |
| Gallup[7] | Apr. 1956 | 6% | 4% | 29% | 3% | 41% | 2% | – |
| Gallup[7] | June 1956 | 8% | 4% | 26% | 3% | 42% | 3% | – |
| Gallup[7] | June 1956 | 12% | 4% | 16% | 3% | 45% | 4% | – |
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