The Republican Party decided to keep Nixon as their vice-presidential candidate and when Eisenhower won the election, Nixon became vice-president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During his vice-presidency, he was very busy and traveled across the world to places like South America. While he was vice president, he went to the Soviet Union and had a debate with the Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. They were both arguing that their country was better.