Four televised debates in the 1960 presidential campaign pitting Democratic challenger John F. Kennedy against Republican vice-president Richard M. Nixon are widely considered a landmark in the history of American political campaigning. Although candidates vying for a party’s nomination had debated occasionally in the years following World War II, the 1960 debates marked the first time in American history that major-party candidates for president had debated against each other during a general election campaign. The next presidential debate would not occur until 1976, after which debates would become a regular feature of the fall presidential campaign.
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