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1976 - Carter vs. Ford

In January, the U.S. Supreme Court rules in Buckley v. Valeo, a case challenging the constitutionality of portions of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1974 that was filed by Republican Senator James L. Buckley of New York, former Democratic senator (and presidential candidate) Eugene J. McCarthy of Minnesota, and 10 other persons and groups. (The Valeo in the title is Francis R. Valeo, the secretary of the U.S. Senate and an ex-officio member of the Federal Election Commission.) The justices leave intact the limits on individual contributions to candidates, but decide that spending restrictions for congressional and presidential candidates infringe on the First Amendment guarantee of freedom of expression. There’s one exception: The court allows a cap on spending by presidential candidates who accept public financing, since those candidates are free to turn down the money if they prefer to spend an unlimited amount. (Nearly a quarter-century will pass before a general election candidate, Republican Governor George W. Bush of Texas, will actually choose to do that.)

The Supreme Court also strikes down the limits on how much a candidate and his family can contribute to the campaign. Finally, the court also decides that the composition of the Federal Election Commission — which includes the Secretary of the Senate, the Clerk of the House, four commissioners chosen by Senate and House leaders, and two selected by the president — violates the presidential powers outlined in Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution. From now on, all commissioners must be appointed by the White House..

Congress rewrites the law to conform with the court’s ruling, eliminating spending limits and the cap on how much candidates may contribute to their own campaigns. Congress also enacts additional restrictions on corporate political action committees (PACs), specifying who can be asked for funds and how such solicitations are conducted. In addition, a single contribution limit is put in place for all PACs established by the same labor union or corporation.

President Gerald R. Ford, who was appointed to the vice presidency when Spiro T. Agnew resigned in 1973 and then took over the presidency when Richard Nixon resigned in 1974, decides to seek election for the first time. But he faces a stiff primary challenge from former California Governor Ronald Reagan, who manages impressive upsets in the North Carolina and Texas primaries despite nearly running out of campaign funds. At the Republican National Convention in August, Ford ekes out a narrow first-ballot victory for the nomination, but only after Reagan alienates some conservative delegates by announcing that Senator Richard Schweiker of Pennsylvania, a moderate, would be his running mate.

On the Democratic side, Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter bests a large field of candidates that includes U.S. Representative Morris Udall of Arizona, California Governor Jerry Brown, and Alabama Governor George C. Wallace, who previously ran as a third-party candidate in 1968 and as an independent in 1972. Carter’s fundraising shows the impact of campaign finance reform laws; he needs contributions from at least 45,000 donors to raise his $5 million war chest for the primary campaign. Four years earlier, for his presidential campaign, Democratic Senator George McGovern of South Dakota was able to amass about half as much money from just 14 donors.

In the general election campaign, Ford and Carter have the choice of either raising all their own money or making do with a limited amount of public funding. Both opt for the latter, accepting $22 million apiece.

The November election turns out to be a squeaker, with Carter winning the popular vote over Ford by a slim 50.1 to 48.0 percent margin, and beating him in the Electoral College 297 to 240. (An elector from Washington state casts a lone protest vote for Reagan.).