page_title: Electoral history of Ronald Reagan
section_title: 1976 presidential election
hierarchical_section_title: Electoral history of Ronald Reagan / 1976 presidential election
context_page_description: This is the electoral history of Ronald Reagan. Reagan, a Republican, served as the 40th President of the United States and earlier as the 33rd Governor of California. At 69 years, 349 days of age at the time of his first inauguration, Reagan was the oldest person to assume the presidency in the nation's history, a distinction now held by Donald Trump, who was 70 years, 220 days old at the time of his 2017 inauguration. Even so, Reagan remains the oldest person ever elected president, in 1984 at 73.
  Having been elected twice to the presidency, Reagan reshaped the Republican Party, led the modern conservative movement, and altered the political dynamic of the United States. His 1980 presidential campaign stressed some of his fundamental principles: lower taxes to stimulate the economy, less government interference in people's lives, states' rights, and a strong national defense.
  During his presidency, Reagan pursued policies that reflected his personal belief in individual freedom, brought changes domestically, both to the U.S. economy and expanded military, and contributed to the end of the Cold War.
context_section_description: In 1976, Reagan challenged incumbent President Gerald Ford in a bid to become the Republican Party's candidate for president. Reagan soon established himself as the conservative candidate with the support of like-minded organizations such as the American Conservative Union which became key components of his political base, while President Ford was considered a more moderate Republican. Though Reagan lost the Republican nomination, he received 307 write-in votes in New Hampshire, 388 votes as an Independent on Wyoming's ballot, and a single electoral vote from a faithless elector in the November election from the state of Washington, which Ford had won over Democratic challenger Jimmy Carter. Ford ultimately lost the general election to Carter.
caption: Republican presidential primary results:
  Red indicates a win by Reagan, blue a win by Ford.