A presidential primary was held in the U.S. state of Alabama on May 4, 1976, with runoff elections on May 25 to elect delegates representing Alabama to the 1976 Democratic National Convention. In order to choose the state's thirty-five delegates, the state was divided up into twenty-seven delegate districts based on state house lines. Delegate districts were made up by grouping together three to five state house districts, based on their voting strength for national Democratic presidential nominees in 1968 and 1972, with weaker districts containing more House districts. The remaining eight delegates were hand-picked by the state Executive Democratic Committee in proportion to the winner's share of the popular vote.[1] Governor of Alabama George Wallace won a large majority of the state's delegates.
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May 4, 1976 (first round)
May 25, 1976 (runoff) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
35 Democratic National Convention delegates (27 pledged, 8 unpledged) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Allegiance of winning district delegates
George Wallace
Jimmy Carter
Uncommitted | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In the first round of the primary, nineteen were elected outright, seventeen pledged to Governor George Wallace and two uncommitted, both of whom were Black state legislators.[2] In the runoff, Wallace picked up four more delegates, two more uncommitted delegates were nominated, and Governor of Georgia and eventual nominee Jimmy Carter won his only two district delegates.[3] In response to the primary results, the Committee was set to choose six Wallace delegates, one uncommitted delegate, and one Carter delegate at a convention. Wowever, Wallace withdrew from the race and threw his support behind Carter before the Committee could convene.[4]
Results
edit| Candidate | Delegates | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pl. | Unpl. | Total | |
| George Wallace | 21 | 6 | 27 |
| Uncommitted | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| Jimmy Carter | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Frank Church | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fred R. Harris | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hubert Humphrey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mo Udall | 0 | 0 | 0 |
First round winners by district
edit| District | Elected delegate | Pledged to |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | James Hunt | Wallace |
| 5th | Sen. Robert T. Wilson | Wallace |
| 6th | Sen. Bingham Edwards | Wallace |
| 7th | Rep. Kerry Rich | Wallace |
| 8th | Rep. Ed Robertson | Wallace |
| 10th | Rep. Tony Harrison | Uncommitted |
| 11th | Rep. Jack Biddle | Wallace |
| 14th | James M. Campbell | Wallace |
| 15th | John Hollis Jackson Jr. | Wallace |
| 16th | Rep. Larry Morris | Wallace |
| 17th | Rep. Rick Manley | Wallace |
| 18th | Earl Goodwin | Wallace |
| 20th | Charles M. Crook | Wallace |
| 22nd | Joe McCorquodale III | Wallace |
| 23rd | Wallace Miller | Wallace |
| 24th | Mrs. S. A. Cherry | Wallace |
| 25th | Rep. Tommy Sandusky | Wallace |
| 26th | Rep. Cain Kennedy | Uncommitted |
| 27th | Mrs. L. W. Noonan | Wallace |
| Source: The Birmingham Post-Herald[5] | ||
Runoff results by district
edit| District | George Wallace | Jimmy Carter | Uncommitted | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % | Candidate | Votes | % | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
| 2nd | Mrs. Albert McDonald | 12,265 | 56.52% | Timothy W. Hudson | 9,435 | 43.48% | — | — | — | 21,700 |
| 3rd | Rep. Hartwell Lutz | 8,963 | 47.14% | Charles Cummings Jr. | 10,051 | 52.86% | — | — | — | 19,014 |
| 4th | George M. Barnett | 9,846 | 54.25% | Carol G. Richards | 8,302 | 45.75% | — | — | — | 18,148 |
| 9th | Joni Meeks | 5,535 | 50.58% | Charles J. McClees | 5,407 | 49.42% | — | — | — | 10,942 |
| 12th | — | — | — | Rep. Ron Jackson | 3,829 | 48.46% | Sen. J. Richmond Pearson | 4,073 | 51.54% | 7,902 |
| 13th | Rep. Bob Gafford | 5,154 | 66.44% | Mark Polson | 2,603 | 33.56% | — | — | — | 7,757 |
| 19th | — | — | — | Herman Harris | 4,086 | 51.58% | Rep. Alvin Holmes | 3,835 | 48.42% | 7,921 |
| 21st | Sen. Dudley Perry | 7,551 | 47.04% | — | — | — | Rep. Thomas Reed | 8,503 | 52.96% | 16,054 |
| Source: Alabama Official and Statistical Register, 1979 (p. 239–241)[6] | ||||||||||
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ "In Alabama -- Delegate districts for 1976 listed". The Birmingham News. 15 June 1975. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ↑ "Reagan, Wallace win delegates". Birmingham Post-Herald. United Press International. 8 May 1976. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ↑ "Walace captures 21 of state's 35 delegates". The Mobile Press. Associated Press. 26 May 1976. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ↑ "Carter Stands To Gain 7 State Delegates Today". Alabama Journal. Associated Press. 12 June 1976. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ↑ Bryant, Ted (7 May 1976). "Wallace wins clear delegate majority". Birmingham Post-Herald. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ↑ Howard Jr., Milo B. (1979). Alabama Official and Statistical Register, 1979. pp. 239–241. Retrieved 16 September 2025.