In the election , the McGovern/Shriver ticket suffered a 60.7 percent to 37.5 percent defeat to Nixon and Agnew . At the time , it was the second biggest landslide in American history , with Electoral College totals of 520 to 17 . McGovern 's two electoral vote victories came in Massachusetts and Washington , D.C. ; McGovern failed to win his home state of South Dakota , a state that had delivered for the Democrats in only three of the previous 18 presidential elections in the 20th century . The 1972 election was the first in American history in which a Republican candidate carried every Southern state . Nixon 's percentage of the popular vote was only slightly less than Lyndon Johnson 's record in the 1964 election , and his margin of victory was slightly larger . Barry Goldwater , who was defeated by Johnson in 1964 , sent McGovern a newspaper political cartoon depicting the two of them together " like Grandpa and Granny patterned after the painting '' American Gothic '' linked by our defeats " , with a note scribbled " George -- If you must lose , lose big . " In his telegram to Nixon conceding defeat , McGovern wrote , " I hope that in the next four years you will lead us to a time of peace abroad and justice at home . You have my full support in such efforts . " ' '' 1972 Democratic Presidential primaries ' '' ' '' 1972 Democratic National Convention ( presidential tally ) ' '' : ' '' 1972 Liberal Party Convention ( presidential tally ) ' '' : ' '' 1972 United States presidential election ' '' : McGovern 's campaign for the presidential nomination , and as the nominee , included fundraising , organizing , benefit appearances and/or other volunteer efforts by numerous celebrities . These included : During the campaign , actress Shirley MacLaine authored the book '' McGovern : The Man and His Beliefs '' . McGovern later wrote that MacLaine " campaigned virtually nonstop for two years " , and that actor Warren Beatty ( MacLaine 's brother ) " broke new ground " in organizing and producing the campaign 's benefit concerts
1972 Democratic National Convention
1972 Democratic National Convention
George McGovern 1972 presidential campaign