1978 Tennessee Proposal 1 was a proposed amendment to the Constitution of Tennessee to repeal the state's unenforceable ban against interracial marriage. The amendment was symbolic, as the Supreme Court of the United States had ruled such bans to be in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment in Loving v. Virginia in 1967, making the ban unenforceable. Placed on the ballot by the 1977 Tennessee Constitutional Convention, the amendment received the endorsement of Governor Ray Blanton, as well as numerous newspapers throughout the state. With a voter turnout of ~15%, the amendment narrowly passed, with 51.02% of voters casting a ballot in favor.
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March 7, 1978
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Elimination of Prohibition of Interracial Marriages. | ||||||||||
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Background
editTennessee's constitutional ban on interracial marriage dated back to 1870.[1] By 1945, thirty U.S. states had adopted anti-miscegenation laws in statute form or in their state constitutions, including all states in the South.[2] In 1967, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled interracial marriage bans to be in violation of the Equal Protection and Due Process clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, thereby striking down all state laws that had banned such marriages.[3] On August 9, 1977, delegates to the 1977 Tennessee Constitutional Convention voted 85–3 to place an amendment on the ballot to repeal the ban, making it the first amendment approved by the convention.[1]
Endorsements
editState officials
- Ray Blanton, governor of Tennessee (1975–1979) (Democratic)[4]
State legislators
- Victor Ashe, state senator from the 7th district (1975–1984) (Republican)[5]
Newspapers
Contents and amendment
editContents
editThe amendment, which was decided by Tennessee voters on March 7, 1978, alongside 12 other amendments referred by the 1977 Tennessee Constitutional Convention,[7] had the following information shown to voters for it:[8]
Proposal 1: Elimination of Prohibition of Interracial Marriages.
Be It Resolved, That Article XI, of the Constitution is hereby amended by deleting therefrom in its entirety Section 14 prohibiting interracial marriages.
For Constitutional Amendment []
Against Constitutional Amendment []
Amendment
editThe amendment repealed Article XI, Section 14 of the Tennessee Constitution, which had stated:[9]
Sec. 14 Intermarriage between whites and negros
The intermarriage of white persons with negroes, mulattos, or persons of mixed blood, descended from a negro to the third generation inclusive or their living together as man and wife in this State is prohibited. The legislature shall enforce this section by appropriate legislation.
Results
edit199,742 people voted in favor (51.02%) and 191,745 (48.98%) voted against.[10]
County
editBy county, the highest percentage of votes cast in favor came from Anderson County, with 64.30% in favor, and the lowest came from Pickett County, with 21.38% in favor.[10]
The following table details the results of the referendum by county:[10]
| County | Yes | No | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | |
| Anderson | 4,337 | 64.30% | 2,408 | 35.70% |
| Bedford | 1,522 | 45.43% | 1,828 | 54.57% |
| Benton | 517 | 33.97% | 1,005 | 66.03% |
| Bledsoe | 236 | 28.57% | 590 | 71.43% |
| Blount | 4,345 | 51.56% | 4,082 | 48.44% |
| Bradley | 2,362 | 53.14% | 2,083 | 46.86% |
| Campbell | 658 | 39.21% | 1,020 | 60.79% |
| Cannon | 324 | 36.45% | 565 | 63.55% |
| Carroll | 852 | 41.06% | 1,223 | 58.94% |
| Carter | 1,558 | 38.76% | 2,462 | 61.24% |
| Cheatham | 617 | 39.81% | 933 | 60.19% |
| Chester | 378 | 37.69% | 625 | 62.31% |
| Claiborne | 334 | 27.18% | 895 | 72.82% |
| Clay | 191 | 23.64% | 617 | 76.36% |
| Cocke | 944 | 48.04% | 1,021 | 51.96% |
| Coffee | 2,029 | 49.45% | 2,074 | 50.55% |
| Crockett | 300 | 32.68% | 618 | 67.32% |
| Cumberland | 1,947 | 47.91% | 2,117 | 52.09% |
| Davidson | 30,062 | 57.52% | 22,203 | 42.48% |
| Decatur | 340 | 39.04% | 531 | 60.96% |
| DeKalb | 462 | 40.78% | 671 | 59.22% |
| Dickson | 1,058 | 39.88% | 1,595 | 60.12% |
| Dyer | 1,021 | 44.43% | 1,277 | 55.57% |
| Fayette | 632 | 40.80% | 917 | 59.20% |
| Fentress | 334 | 33.40% | 666 | 66.60% |
| Franklin | 1,246 | 45.52% | 1,491 | 54.48% |
| Gibson | 1,677 | 44.67% | 2,077 | 55.33% |
| Giles | 733 | 47.35% | 815 | 52.65% |
| Grainger | 280 | 30.63% | 634 | 69.37% |
| Greene | 2,512 | 54.80% | 2,072 | 45.20% |
| Grundy | 293 | 36.08% | 519 | 63.92% |
| Hamblen | 1,777 | 49.87% | 1,786 | 50.13% |
| Hamilton | 15,119 | 59.56% | 10,267 | 40.44% |
| Hancock | 110 | 33.85% | 215 | 66.15% |
| Hardeman | 1,284 | 49.21% | 1,325 | 50.79% |
| Hardin | 719 | 49.01% | 748 | 50.99% |
| Hawkins | 1,168 | 42.17% | 1,602 | 57.83% |
| Haywood | 789 | 48.35% | 843 | 51.65% |
| Henderson | 600 | 45.73% | 712 | 54.27% |
| Henry | 1,538 | 60.60% | 1,000 | 39.40% |
| Hickman | 532 | 32.11% | 1,125 | 67.89% |
| Houston | 226 | 38.31% | 364 | 61.69% |
| Humphreys | 561 | 39.82% | 848 | 60.18% |
| Jackson | 221 | 29.95% | 517 | 70.05% |
| Jefferson | 1,015 | 47.85% | 1,106 | 52.15% |
| Johnson | 499 | 48.92% | 521 | 51.08% |
| Knox | 15,852 | 51.00% | 15,231 | 49.00% |
| Lake | 145 | 32.88% | 296 | 67.12% |
| Lauderdale | 661 | 34.18% | 1,273 | 65.82% |
| Lawrence | 1,054 | 38.13% | 1,710 | 61.87% |
| Lewis | 430 | 47.88% | 468 | 52.12% |
| Lincoln | 715 | 40.40% | 1,055 | 59.60% |
| Loudon | 949 | 44.28% | 1,194 | 55.72% |
| McMinn | 1,985 | 55.37% | 1,600 | 44.63% |
| McNairy | 718 | 44.62% | 891 | 55.38% |
| Macon | 420 | 42.77% | 562 | 57.23% |
| Madison | 3,033 | 51.20% | 2,891 | 48.80% |
| Marion | 841 | 45.91% | 991 | 54.09% |
| Marshall | 1,101 | 38.81% | 1,736 | 61.19% |
| Maury | 1,975 | 46.29% | 2,292 | 53.71% |
| Meigs | 331 | 54.98% | 271 | 45.02% |
| Monroe | 904 | 40.21% | 1,344 | 59.79% |
| Montgomery | 3,711 | 56.78% | 2,825 | 43.22% |
| Moore | 138 | 36.70% | 238 | 63.30% |
| Morgan | 506 | 42.85% | 675 | 57.15% |
| Obion | 790 | 39.70% | 1,200 | 60.30% |
| Overton | 398 | 31.17% | 879 | 68.83% |
| Perry | 200 | 29.85% | 470 | 70.15% |
| Pickett | 90 | 21.38% | 331 | 78.62% |
| Polk | 1,812 | 60.16% | 1,200 | 39.84% |
| Putnam | 1,632 | 45.57% | 1,949 | 54.43% |
| Rhea | 925 | 52.65% | 832 | 47.35% |
| Roane | 2,299 | 50.48% | 2,255 | 49.52% |
| Robertson | 1,013 | 36.13% | 1,791 | 63.87% |
| Rutherford | 3,534 | 52.75% | 3,166 | 47.25% |
| Scott | 391 | 43.98% | 498 | 56.02% |
| Sequatchie | 314 | 38.72% | 497 | 61.28% |
| Sevier | 1,416 | 43.91% | 1,809 | 56.09% |
| Shelby | 35,917 | 55.39% | 28,930 | 44.61% |
| Smith | 410 | 33.52% | 813 | 66.48% |
| Stewart | 275 | 41.42% | 389 | 58.58% |
| Sullivan | 5,635 | 58.42% | 4,010 | 41.58% |
| Sumner | 3,155 | 48.61% | 3,336 | 51.39% |
| Tipton | 1,224 | 43.45% | 1,593 | 56.55% |
| Trousdale | 240 | 40.54% | 352 | 59.46% |
| Unicoi | 590 | 53.06% | 522 | 46.94% |
| Union | 273 | 32.16% | 576 | 67.84% |
| Van Buren | 114 | 29.23% | 276 | 70.77% |
| Warren | 848 | 38.35% | 1,363 | 61.65% |
| Washington | 4,025 | 57.81% | 2,937 | 42.19% |
| Wayne | 303 | 40.84% | 439 | 59.16% |
| Weakley | 774 | 39.71% | 1,175 | 60.29% |
| White | 582 | 41.57% | 818 | 58.43% |
| Williamson | 2,933 | 55.95% | 2,309 | 44.05% |
| Wilson | 1,902 | 39.82% | 2,874 | 60.18% |
| Total | 199,742 | 51.02 | 191,745 | 48.98 |
Congressional district
editBy congressional district, the highest percentage of votes cast in favor came from the eighth district, with 58.53% in favor, and the lowest came from the fourth district, with 43.63% in favor.[10][11]
The following table details the results by congressional district:[10][11]
| County | Yes | No | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | |
| One | 21,529 | 50.99% | 20,697 | 49.01% |
| Two | 25,691 | 49.28% | 26,440 | 50.72% |
| Three | 29,082 | 56.86% | 22,069 | 43.14% |
| Four | 23,848 | 43.63% | 30,813 | 56.37% |
| Five | 31,692 | 55.97% | 24,927 | 44.03% |
| Six | 27,112 | 49.01% | 28,211 | 50.99% |
| Seven | 19,645 | 45.45% | 23,576 | 54.55% |
| Eight | 21,171 | 58.53% | 15,003 | 41.47% |
Analysis
editSee also
editReferences
edit- 1 2 "Nashville Acts to End Mixed‐Marriages Ban". The New York Times. Associated Press. August 10, 1977. Retrieved March 26, 2026.
- ↑ Altman, Micah; Klinker, Philip A. (10 May 2007). "Measuring the Difference Between White Voting and Polling on Interracial Marriage". Cambridge University Press. Retrieved 28 December 2025.
- ↑ "Loving v. Virginia". Oyez. Archived from the original on 3 October 2025. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- 1 2 3 Kellett, Robert (March 8, 1978). "Cheers For Vote Results Muted". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved March 26, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Urges "Yes" vote". The Tomahawk. February 8, 1978. Retrieved March 26, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 3 4 "Newspapers Divided Sharply Over Issues In Constitutional Referendum". Knoxville News Sentinel. United Press International. March 5, 1978. Retrieved March 26, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 "County voters OK all proposals". Johnson City Press. March 8, 1978. Retrieved March 26, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Official Sample Ballot". The Tomahawk. March 1, 1978. Retrieved March 26, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Constitutional amendments". The Daily News Journal. United Press International. February 2, 1978. Retrieved March 26, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Constitutional Ratification Referendum Election—Tennessee—March 7, 1978. TN Secretary of State.
- 1 2 "Statewide Vote: Proposals 1 Through 6". The Tennessean. March 8, 1978. Retrieved March 26, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.