American History

And yes it would have been a struggle. But the Kennedys did have support even among traditional Democrats (that is to say, not Peacenik McCarthy supporters) and they also had access to an incredible ground game apparatus, both outside and inside the convention. RFK was that rare candidate who had support among white working class Dems, antiwar Dems, and people of color.

But Chicago would have been a mess, no matter what the outcome. I often wonder though if there might not have been a Humphrey/Kennedy ticket. Humphrey was after all secretly conflicted about the war, and certainly after Tet but even before only publicly supported it out of loyalty to LBJ (who went out of his way to screw him anyway). Aside from his red baiting past in the 50s, Humphrey was to the left of LBJ, which is generally forgotten now because of his association with that disastrous war.

But it's all now a game of what-if.