1976 Carter VS. Ford

"Biography"

Transcript

Museum of the Moving Image
The Living Room Candidate
"Biography," Ford, 1976

MALE NARRATOR: He was an Eagle Scout. He was an honor student. He was the Most Valuable Player at Michigan. He graduated in the top third of Yale Law School while holding a full-time job. He served courageously in World War II. He led his party in the Congress. And in two short years as President, he has brought us peace, helped turn the economy around, and made us feel proud again. Gerald Ford has always been best when the going was toughest. Let's keep him in charge.

Credits

"Biography," President Ford Committee, 1976

Original air date: 10/07/76

Video courtesy of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.

From Museum of the Moving Image, The Living Room Candidate: Presidential Campaign Commercials 1952-2012.
www.livingroomcandidate.org/commercials/1976/biography (accessed June 10, 2025).

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1976 Carter Ford Results

On August 9, 1974, after a Senate investigation revealed his direct involvement in the cover-up of the Watergate break-in, Richard Nixon became the first president in American history to resign from office. Nixon was succeeded by Gerald Ford, who had been appointed vice president after a bribery scandal forced Spiro Agnew’s resignation in October 1973. These scandals and the televised Watergate hearings, which resulted in the conviction and imprisonment of 25 Nixon administration officials, shattered the public's trust in the government. In a 1974 poll, 43 percent of respondents said that they had "hardly any" faith in the executive branch. As a result, the 1976 election was dominated by issues of integrity and character. Hoping to put the Watergate affair to rest, President Ford unconditionally pardoned Nixon in September 1974, but the move hurt Ford’s political standing. Ford won the Republican nomination only after fighting off a strong challenge from Ronald Reagan.

The Democrats nominated Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter, a former naval officer and peanut farmer. Carter, who promised, "I will never tell a lie to the American people," ran a brilliant campaign as an outsider, offering a fresh change from Washington politics as usual.

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