Presidential Campaign
In 1975 and 1976, Mo Udall ran against Jimmy Carter for the Democratic nomination for President, thus, embarking on an extensive campaign tour of the continental United States. Most of the original ten candidates dropped out of the race by the time of the Wisconsin primary in April 1976; what followed was an incredibly close 1% margin in which Carter was declared the winner of the primary.
Despite finishing second to Carter at the 1976 Democratic National Convention in New York, Mo's speech received a hearty reception and applause; his campaign efforts did not go unnoticed by his peers.
Mo was highly regarded by his contemporaries, which is illustated in his correspondence with notred journalist, John Chancellor, Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater, and South Dakota Senator George McGovern, all of whom congratulated Mo Udall on his strong campaign despite his loss.
2 Aug 1976
340 E. 22nd St. NY
Dear Congressman Udall,
Thank you for your very thoughtful note. I think you ran a splendid campaign, and I wish we had more like you.
John
June 4, 1976
Dear Mo,
You are still my favorite candidate. Your courage and tenacity inspire me more each day. Do not give up. If that convention deadlocks, you have as good a chance as everyone.
Thanks for your note of May 23.
All the best,
George
December 3, 1974
The Honorable Morris K. Udall
House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Mo:
This may sound very strange coming from such a conservative Republican as me, but I want you to know how proud I am of you as a fellow Arizonan and a friend of many years standing that you have entered the Presidential primaries. I can tell you from personal experience it will be no picnic. On the other hand, you will never regret doing it and, who knows, you may become the first Arizonan to ever be elected President.
While I can't offer you any help, I can tell you this, I'm not throwing any rocks in your path. So the best of luck to you. And again, I'm proud of you.
Warm wishes,
[signature]
Barry Goldwater
Mo's campaign featured a wide array of memorabilia, such as this series of creative, simplistic pins that captured his essence as an unconventional, witty, civil and bipartisan spirit at a time when the pendulum of U.S. politics began to swing toward the political right.
It is noteworthy that Mo was close friends with established conservative Arizonan Senator Barry Goldwater at this genesis of rightward partisan turn in U.S. federal governance that would manifest in the Nixon administration and beyond. Mo would author or contribute to numerous legislation relating to environmental law, Native American rights, campaign reform, and congressional ethics.
It bears mentioning too that Mo was the first major Democrat to oppose President Johnson on the Vietnam War, beginning in with an October 22, 1967 speech in Tucson, AZ, before the Sunday Evening Forum, a local young adult discussion group that became at one point the largest community forum in the U.S., active from 1947-1984 (and revived in 2014). This opposition amplified in 1969 when Mo learned through a letter from journalist Ronald Ridenhour of the Mỹ Lai Massacre of unarmed south Vietnamese civilians conducted by U.S. troops in Sơn Tịnh, southern Vietnam, on March 16, 1968.
Mo Udall attended the 1976 Democratic National Convention in New York where he, California Governor Jerry Brown, and Jimmy Carter were in the nomination. Although Carter won the Democratic Party nomination as Presidential Candidate with 74.39% of votes, Mo achieved second place with 10.96%. Graceful in his defeat, Mo's speech at the convention received thunderous applause, and his campaign's appeal to upper-income, liberal white suburbanites foreshadowed that demographic's role in the future of the U.S. Democratic Party.