THE ELECTION OF 1980

Carter was able to win the 1980 Democratic nomination for president over a challenge from Edward Kennedy. Ronald Reagan, portraying himself as the spokesperson for the conservatives of America, won the Republican nomination. Carter was forced to campaign on his record, which was a very difficult thing to do. Reagan promised while campaigning to build up the military; at the same time he promised to cut taxes. He promised strong leadership from Washington and also pledged to take power from Washington and give it to the states. Reagan also pledged support for a renewed emphasis on family and patriotism. Reagan won the election by a decisive margin.

The 1980 election was the first totally successful assault on the New Deal Democratic coalition. Social issues of the era, such as the increasing rights of women, sexual freedom, and affirmative action, drew many blue-collar workers away from the Democrats and into the Republican camp. (Conservatives successfully convinced many Americans that the Democrats were the cause of the declining image of America abroad and the reason for the decline in traditional morality at home.) Members of the religious right supported the Republicans in large numbers (and would continue this pattern in elections that followed). Many Southerners saw the Republicans and Reagan representing their interests more than Jimmy Carter; others perceived Carter to be “soft on communism.” As a result of these factors, the New Right had become a major force in American politics; besides electing Reagan, they had also pushed the Republicans to the majority in the Senate in 1980.