A Catholic First

Joe Biden made history today by becoming the first Catholic to hold the office of vice president of the United States. Edmund Muskie would have become the first Catholic vice president if his running mate, Hubert Humphrey had beaten Nixon. Nixon had been defeated a few years earlier by the first, and only, Catholic president in history, John F. Kennedy.

George McGovern’s running mate was also Catholic. But Thomas Eagleton dropped out of the race after it became public knowledge that he had been hospitalized for mental health problems. Another Catholic took his place, Sargent Shriver. But McGovern and Shriver lost to Nixon as well.

Geraldine Ferraro ran along side Walter Mondale a few years later. While she was the first woman to run on a major party national ticket, the pair was defeated by Ronald Reagan.

Finally, the last Catholic to appear on the national ticket was John Kerry. He ran unsuccessfully for president in 2004.