With the outcome not a foregone conclusion, the balloting would be the most exciting it would be for the rest of the 20th century and into the 21st.
In 1976, 經曆半年多共和黨提名苦戰,裏根最終敗給福特。在GOP convention,裏根意外收到福特邀請上台發言。在毫無準備的情況下,裏根做了下述即興演講,團結了GOP, 同時奠定1982獲勝的基礎
這個即興演講是裏根著名講話之一,據當時記者報道,GOP的代表們聽過後開始意識到:“we nominated wrong guy."
Both Ford and Reagan's names were put into nomination.