Robert Kennedy’s Last Day

On Tuesday June 4, 1968, Senator Robert F. Kennedy won the California Democratic presidential primary. Late that night, after his win was announced, he addressed supporters at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, ending with, “Now on to Chicago, and let’s win there!” But not long after midnight as the day turned into June 5, Sirhan Sirhan shot Kennedy while the candidate was exiting through the kitchen of the hotel.

Kennedy was rushed to the hospital. There, doctors performed brain surgery for several hours, but Kennedy’s condition got worse. He died at 1:44 a.m. on June 6. Kennedy was 42 years old.

Hubert Humphrey went on to win the Democratic nomination and represent the party in the election. In November, Humphrey lost to Richard M. Nixon.

Earlier in the day of the California primary, Bobby Kennedy gave an interview to ABC News from his campaign’s headquarters. Below, you may watch one of Kennedy’s last interviews, where he discusses that day’s primary, the current campaign, and his plans for the future.



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