Figure 1.--Former Alabana Governor George Wallace ran for governor again in 1970. President Nixon was concerned bout Wallace'd strong showing in 1968. He supported Wallace's opponent and order the IRS to invstigate the governor. Even so, Wallace won the Govrnorship again. The press caption read, "First Family of Alabama: With the inguration of George Wallace as the governor of Aabama Monday, this will be the first family of Alabama. From left are George Jr.-19, Peggy-20, Mrs. Cornelia Wallace, Jim Parsons Jr.-18 months, Lee-9, George Wallace, James Snivley-7, Josh Snively-6, and Bobby Joe and her husbband Jmes Parsons. The photograph was taken January 18, 1971.

The American Independent Party (AIP) was founded in 1967, basically as an election vehicle for Alabama Governor George Wallace who was symbol of resistance to desegreagation. With the passage of the Civil Rights Laws (1964-65), however, desegregation became a settled issue. And other issues begn to emerge. And with more blacks voting in he South, the political landscape began to change. The party had a strong states' rights platform expressing a desire "to restore to the states the powers and authority which rightfully belong to the state and local governments." It charged that "the federal government has in the past three decades seized and usurped" powers concerning such questions as the public school system, voter eligibility, and the sale and rental of property. To cope with "crime and disorder in the United States," the party urged "full support for law enforcement agencies and officers." Outside of the South, Wallace focused on California. He won 7 percent of the California vote, a total of over 482,000 votes. Wallace's popular vote overall was 9.9 million. The American Independent Party and the Wallace Campaign had differences, but they finally resolved in 1971 in preparation for the 1972 campaign. The Party was again the vehicle for Gov. Wallace presidential campign. We suspect That Wallce took more votes from Nixon and in the close election may have made a difference. President Nixon was concerned about a possible Wallace Democratic Nominatiom in 1972. The President supported the incumbent governor of Alabama in the gubernatorial primaries against Wallace in 1970. He alsp ordered IRS investigations of the Wallace campaign, but nothing resulted. . The AIP proved less important in 1972 becsuse the election was never close. And then Arthur Bremer who wanted to shoot Nixon, decided to shot Wallace who lad less security (May 15, 1972). The Governor's injuries were so severe that he was forced to withdraw from the campaign. The Party nominated Republican Congressman John G. Schmitz of California for president and Tennessee author Thomas Jefferson Anderson. Both were members of the John Birch Society. They received only a little more thn a million votes, a huge decline from the 1968 election. A reader writes, "Oh how well I remember that election. It was my first presidential vote and I voted for Nixon and we all know how that ended . Wallace did make a difference in 1968 and he is the last third party candidate to win states and garner electoral votes. I doubt if he would have made much of a difference in '72 what with Senator McGovern as the Democrat. President Nixon would have still won by a landslide."

Created: 10:37 PM 2/25/2019
Last updated: 10:37 PM 2/25/2019