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Ronald Reagan 1976 presidential campaign

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For his 1980 and 1984 campaign, see Ronald Reagan 1980 presidential campaign and Ronald Reagan 1984 presidential campaign.
Ronald Reagan for President 1976
Campaign1976 United States presidential election
CandidateRonald Reagan
Governor of California
(1967–1975)
Richard Schweiker
U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania (1969–1981)
AffiliationRepublican Party
StatusAnnounced November 20, 1975[1]
Lost nomination August 18, 1976[2]
Key peopleJohn Sears (campaign manager)

Ronald Reagan announced his candidacy for President of the United States on November 20, 1975. He won primaries in several states, but eventually lost the nomination to incumbent president Gerald Ford at the 1976 Republican National Convention.

Background

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Reagan in 1976

When Time in November 1975 discussed possible running mates for incumbent President of the United States Gerald Ford, among them was Ronald Reagan. The magazine stated that the former Governor of California was the favorite of conservatives but "could enter a different race altogether", referring to possibly challenging Ford for the party's presidential nomination in 1976.[3]

Reagan did challenge Ford. He soon established himself as the conservative candidate with the support of like-minded organizations such as the Conservative Party of New York State[4] and the American Conservative Union, which became key components of his political base, while Ford was considered a more moderate Republican.[5]

Reagan had been viewed as a leading candidate for some time, and led a Gallup poll in October 1973 with 29% of the vote.[6] In polling in June 1975, Ford led Reagan by 41%-20% in a large field, or 61%-33% in a head-to-head matchup.[7]

At the height of the campaign, Reagan aide Edwin Meese conducted some research into the logistics of a presidential transition. Meese had conversations on the subject with people who had previously worked for Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford.[8]

Primaries

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Reagan's campaign relied on a strategy crafted by campaign manager John Sears of winning a few primaries early to damage the inevitability of Ford's likely nomination.[citation needed]

In the run-up to the New Hampshire primary, Ford attacked Reagan's plan to cut $90 billion from the federal budget, as well as Reagan's plans for Social Security.[9][10] Reagan's stump speeches included attacks on welfare queens, as well as other attacks on government welfare programs.[11][10] After a heated campaign, Reagan lost by 1317 votes, 54,824-53,507.[12]

Reagan would lose the next two competitive primaries, in Florida and Illinois. In Florida, Reagan lost 53%-47%[13] and in Illinois by 59%-40%.[14] Despite pressure to leave the race, Reagan pledged to stay in the race through the convention.[15]

The Texas campaign lent renewed hope to Reagan, when he swept all 96 delegates chosen in the May 1 primary, with four more awaiting at the state convention. Much of the credit for that victory came from the work of three co-chairmen, including Ernest Angelo, the mayor of Midland, and Ray Barnhart of Houston, whom Reagan as President would appoint in 1981 as director of the Federal Highway Administration.

Endorsements

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List of Ronald Reagan endorsements

All individuals are members or supporters of the Republican Party, unless otherwise stated.

U.S. Senators
U.S. Representatives
State Officials
Celebrities
Other People

Convention

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Reagan and President Gerald Ford shake hands on the podium after Reagan narrowly lost the nomination at the 1976 Republican National Convention

However, as the GOP convention neared, Ford appeared close to victory. Acknowledging his party's moderate wing, Reagan chose moderate Senator Richard Schweiker of Pennsylvania as his running mate if nominated. Nonetheless, Ford prevailed with 1,187 delegates to Reagan's 1,070.[21]

Reagan's concession speech emphasized the dangers of nuclear war and the threat posed by the Soviet Union. [citation needed]

Republican primary results

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Republican presidential primary results:
Red indicates a win by Reagan, blue a win by Ford.
Roll call vote for the presidential nomination by state delegations
1976 Republican Party presidential primaries[22]
* denotes incumbent
Party Candidate Aggregate votes % CW
Republican Gerald Ford* 5,529,899 53.29 27[a]
Ronald Reagan 4,760,222 45.88 240
Others 44,626 0.43 00
Unpledged 34,717 0.34 00

Republican National Convention

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1976 Republican presidential nomination[23][24]
* denotes incumbent
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Gerald Ford* 1,187 52.57
Ronald Reagan 1,070 47.39
Elliot Richardson 1 0.04

Aftermath

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Reagan campaigned for Ford in twenty states against the Democratic nominee, Jimmy Carter, who would win the general election.[25] However, in Washington state, a faithless elector gave Reagan one electoral vote instead of Ford.[26] In 1977, Ford told Lou Cannon that Reagan's primary challenge played a role in his own narrow loss to Carter.[25]

Notes

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  1. ^ Gerald Ford won primaries in 26 states plus the District of Columbia primary.

References

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  1. ^ Witcover 1977, p. 92
  2. ^ Witcover 1977, pp. 501–2
  3. ^ "A Brand New Race for 2nd Place". Time. 1975-11-17. Archived from the original on July 16, 2010. Retrieved December 25, 2010.
  4. ^ Lynn, Frank (21 October 1975). "Conservative Party To Support Reagan Over Ford for 1976". The New York Times.
  5. ^ "Biography of Gerald R. Ford". whitehouse.gov. Archived from the original on June 10, 2010. Retrieved March 29, 2007 – via National Archives. Ford considered himself as "a moderate in domestic affairs, a conservative in fiscal affairs, and a dyed-in-the-wool internationalist in foreign affairs."
  6. ^ "Reagan Leads, Rockefeller Is 2d In Gallup Poll on '76 Nomination". The New York Times. 21 October 1973.
  7. ^ Witcover 1977, p. 55
  8. ^ Brauer, Carl M. (1986). Presidential Transitions: Eisenhower Through Reagan. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 224. ISBN 0195040511.
  9. ^ Times, James M. Naughton; Special to The New York (20 February 1976). "Ford Intensifies Attack on Reagan". The New York Times.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ a b Witcover 1977, pp. 373–397
  11. ^ "'Welfare Queen' Becomes Issue in Reagan Campaign". The New York Times. 15 February 1976.
  12. ^ Witcover 1977, p. 396
  13. ^ Witcover 1977, p. 403
  14. ^ Witcover 1977, p. 408
  15. ^ "Reagan Will Stay in Race; Minimizes Florida Results". The New York Times. 11 March 1976.
  16. ^ a b c "US President - R Convention".
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "US President - R Primaries".
  18. ^ "US President - R Primaries7".
  19. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Critchlow, Donald (2013). When Hollywood was right : how movie stars, studio moguls, and big business remade American politics. New York : Cambridge University Press – via Internet Archive.
  20. ^ "US President - R Primaries".
  21. ^ "1976 New Hampshire presidential Primary, February 24, 1976 Republican Results". New Hampshire Political Library. Archived from the original on October 6, 2006. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  22. ^ Troy, Schlesinger & Israel 2012, p. 1386.
  23. ^ "US President – R Convention (1976)". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  24. ^ Troy, Schlesinger & Israel 2012, p. 1385.
  25. ^ a b Cannon 2003, pp. 433–434.
  26. ^ Agrawal, Nina (December 8, 2016). "All the times in U.S. history that members of the electoral college voted their own way". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 27, 2022. Retrieved December 27, 2022.

Bibliography

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