Lyndon Baines Johnson Day 2023: Date, History, Facts about Lyndon Baines Johnson

Lyndon Baines Johnson Day is celebrated annually on August 27 to commemorate this former president’s birthday. Lyndon Baines Johnson, also known as L.B.J., was an American educator and politician who served as the 36th President of the United States from 1963 to 1969 and the 37th Vice President from 1961 to 1963. After his death in 1973, the Texas State Legislature enacted a lawful state holiday to honour the 36th President of the United States and a native of the state.

The background of Lyndon Baines Johnson Day

Lyndon Baines Johnson was born in Texas, a few miles from Johnson City, which his family helped establish, on August 27, 1908. Prior to entering politics, Johnson taught at the secondary school level. On November 17, 1934, Johnson wed Claudia Alta Taylor, nicknamed “Lady Bird.” The couple met after he had attended Georgetown University Law Centre for a number of months, but he left after the first semester in 1934. He had proposed to her on their first date. She initially refused, but eventually consented. Lynda Bird, born in 1944, and Luci Baines, born in 1947, were their daughters.

He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1937. In the 1960 presidential election, Johnson ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination. Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy secured the nomination and chose Johnson as his running mate. They went on to win the election, and on January 20, 1961, Vice President Johnson was inaugurated. In 1963, following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Johnson became president.

Johnson ran for a full term in 1964 and defeated Arizona Senator Barry by an overwhelming margin. Johnson won 61% of the vote and was elected president. Johnson was inaugurated as the 36th President of the United States to establish “A Great Society” for American citizens.

In 1968, Johnson did not seek re-election after Senator Eugene McCarthy, a first for a party with an incumbent president, proclaimed his candidature for the Democratic presidential nomination. Shortly thereafter, Johnson announced on television that he would neither pursue nor accept his party’s presidential nomination.

Johnson perished of a heart attack at his Texas ranch on January 22, 1973. The Texas State Legislature designated August 27 as a legal state holiday to honour his legacy after his death.

5 FACTS CONCERNING LYNDON BAINES JOHNSON

In his first State of the Union address in 1964, Johnson pledged a “unconditional attack” on poverty in the United States.

Johnson’s Senate career flourished, but he nearly died in 1955 after experiencing a severe heart attack.

In his first two decades as a lawmaker, Johnson opposed every civil rights measure.

Johnson was one of only four individuals in history to have held four distinguished political positions.

During World War II, Johnson came perilously close to being killed, but a last-minute trip to the loo spared his life.

LYNDON BAINES JOHNSON DAY DATES