1960
Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley places the full weight and muscle of the Cook County Democratic machine behind Kennedy’s bid for the White House. The voter turnout in Cook County is 89.3 percent and Kennedy carries Illinois on his way to a remarkably slim victory over the Republican Presidential nominee, Richard M. Nixon.
1963
On November 22, President Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas, Texas.
1967
Membership in the IFC reaches an all-time low, prompting Chicago Mayor (and former IFC President) Richard J. Daley to recruit his Chief of Staff, Neill Hartigan, and saloonkeeper Butch McGuire to reorganize the Club. Hartigan and McGuire draw on their experiences running Daley’s re-election campaign to spark interest in the Club and fill its rolls with some of Chicago’s most prominent Irish-Americans.