Born in a farmhouse in Stonewall, Texas to a local political family, Johnson worked as a high school teacher and a congressional aide before winning election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1937. He won election to the United States Senate from Texas in 1948 after narrowly winning the Democratic Party's nomination. He was appointed to the position of Senate Majority Whip in 1951. He became the Senate Democratic leader in 1953 and majority leader in 1954. In 1960 Johnson ran for the Democratic nomination for president. During the convention he came into conflict with the Democratic front-runner, fellow senator John F. Kennedy. The two men compromised and the Kennedy-Johnson ticket won in the 1960 presidential election. Vice President Johnson would assume the presidency on November 22, 1963 after President Kennedy was assassinated. The following year Johnson was elected to the presidency when he won in a landslide against Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater. Johnson received 61.1% of the popular vote in the 1964 presidential election; this makes his victory the largest share of the popular vote of any candidate since James Monroe's victory in 1820.