1958 John F Kennedy Ohio "Golden Donkey" Pre-Presidential Campaign Program

One of the more desirable types of early Kennedy political memorabilia, this original program commemorates the Second Annual Golden Donkey Dinner, held on Saturday, September 20, 1958, in the elegant Hall of Mirrors at Cincinnati's Netherland Hilton Hotel. Sponsored by the Hamilton County Democratic Party, the banquet featured U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy as the evening's principal speaker alongside Ohio Democratic leaders Stephen M. Young and Michael V. DiSalle.

The attractive cover features a portrait photograph of John F Kennedy and two State speakers, immediately identifying the event as an important gathering of Democratic leadership during the pivotal election year of 1958. At the time, Kennedy had already earned national prominence through his Pulitzer Prize-winning Profiles in Courage and was widely viewed as a leading contender for the Democratic presidential nomination. His appearance at this Cincinnati fundraiser came during the period when he was quietly strengthening relationships with state and local Democratic organizations across the country—connections that would prove invaluable during his successful 1960 presidential campaign. Original four page program, which includes the program lineup (which identified JFK as U.S. Senator, Massachusetts who provided the Principle Address. 

Unlike the far more common Kennedy campaign literature produced during the 1960 election, this program predates his presidential run and documents an earlier stage of his remarkable political ascent. Programs from county political dinners were produced in relatively limited quantities and were generally intended for one evening's use, making surviving examples considerably scarcer than later campaign brochures, posters, or buttons.

An outstanding addition to any collection of Kennedy, presidential, Ohio political, or Democratic Party memorabilia, and a fascinating snapshot of American politics just before one of the most consequential presidential elections of the twentieth century.