George McGovern, Democrats’ presidential nominee in 1972, dies
George S. McGovern, a three-term U.S. senator from South Dakota who was the Democratic Party’s nominee in the 1972 presidential contest, died today at age 90, the Associated Press reported.
McGovern’s campaign against President Nixon and the war in Southeast Asia attracted millions of angry, anti-establishment voters. But his bid for the White House was hurt by two factors: Nixon’s effort to sabotage the Democrats, which became known as the Watergate affair, and McGovern’s choice of Sen. Thomas Eagleton of Missouri as his running mate. Eagleton was dropped from the ticket when it was revealed that he had been treated for depression. On election day, McGovern won only Massachusetts and the District of Columbia.
McGovern was a longtime activist on the issue of world hunger, and in 2001 the United Nations made him its first global ambassador to ease hunger.
Related:
Photos: George McGovern through the years
Get the L.A. Times Politics newsletter
Deeply reported insights into legislation, politics and policy from Sacramento, Washington and beyond. In your inbox three times per week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
