Jimmy Carter

=== 1966 and 1970 gubernatorial campaigns ===
{{see also|1966 Georgia gubernatorial election|1970 Georgia gubernatorial election}}

In the 1966 gubernatorial election, Carter ran against liberal former governor [[Ellis Arnall]] and conservative segregationist [[Lester Maddox]] in the Democratic primary. In a press conference, he described his ideology as "Conservative, moderate, liberal and middle-of-the-road ... I believe I am a more complicated person than that."<ref>Bourne, pp. 149–153.</ref> He lost the primary, but drew enough votes as a third-place candidate to force Arnall into a [[runoff election]] with Maddox, who narrowly defeated Arnall.<ref name="bourne-153" /> In the general election, Republican nominee Callaway won a plurality of the vote, but less than a majority, allowing the Democratic-majority [[Georgia House of Representatives]] to elect Maddox as governor.<ref name="bourne-153" /> This resulted in a victorious Maddox, whose victory—due to his segregationist stance—was seen as the worse outcome to the indebted Carter.<ref name="bourne-153">Bourne, pp. 153–165.</ref> Carter returned to his agriculture business, carefully planning his next campaign. This period was a spiritual turning point for Carter; he declared himself a [[born again]] Christian, and his last child [[Amy Carter|Amy]] was born during this time.<ref>Bourne, pp. 165–179.</ref><ref>Hayward, pp. 39–46.</ref>

In the 1970 gubernatorial election, liberal former governor [[Carl Sanders]] became Carter's main opponent in the Democratic primary. Carter ran a more modern campaign, employing printed graphics and statistical analysis. Responding to polls, he leaned more conservative than before, positioning himself as a [[populist]] and criticizing Sanders for both his wealth and perceived links to the national Democratic Party. He also accused Sanders of corruption, but when pressed by the media, did not provide evidence.<ref name="bourne-180">Bourne, pp. 180–199.</ref><ref name="hayward-46">Hayward, pp. 46–51.</ref> Throughout his campaign, Carter sought both the black vote and the votes of those who had supported prominent Alabama segregationist [[George Wallace]]. While he met with black figures such as [[Martin Luther King Sr.]] and [[Andrew Young]], and visited many Black-owned businesses, he also praised Wallace and promised to invite him to give a speech in Georgia. Carter's appeal to racism became more blatant over time, with his senior campaign aides handing out a photograph of Sanders celebrating with Black basketball players.<ref name="bourne-180" /><ref name="hayward-46" />

Carter came ahead of Sanders in the first ballot by 49 percent to 38 percent in September, leading to a runoff election. The subsequent campaign was even more bitter; despite his early support for civil rights, Carter's appeal to racism grew, and he criticized Sanders for supporting [[Martin Luther King Jr.]] Carter won the runoff election with 60 percent of the vote, and easily won the general election against Republican nominee [[Hal Suit]]. Once elected, Carter changed his tone, and began to speak against Georgia's racist politics. [[Leroy Johnson (Georgia politician)|Leroy Johnson]], a black state senator, voiced his support for Carter: "I understand why he ran that kind of ultra-conservative campaign. I don't believe you can win this state without being a racist."<ref name="bourne-180" />