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The 1970 Alabama gubernatorial election was marked by a competitive Democratic primary battle between incumbent moderate Governor Albert Brewer and segregationist former governor and 1968 independent presidential candidate George Wallace. The Alabama Constitution was amended in 1968, allowing a governor to serve two consecutive terms.
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County results Wallace: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Cashin Jr.: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Despite Wallace's popularity, Brewer was seen as an early front-runner. Brewer, who had been elected lieutenant governor in 1966, had become governor after the death of Governor Lurleen Wallace, George's wife. A moderate, he became the first gubernatorial candidate since Reconstruction to openly court black voters.[1] Brewer, hoping to build a broad alliance between blacks and white working class voters, unveiled a progressive platform and accused Wallace of spending too much time outside the state, saying "Alabama needs a full-time governor.".[2]
Republican President Richard Nixon endorsed Brewer in order to break Wallace's political career and secure Deep South votes for himself in the next presidential election.[3][4] It was later discovered that Nixon had directed his reelection campaign to donate $400,000 to Brewer in secret cash payments.[5]
Wallace, whose presidential ambitions would have been destroyed with a defeat, ran a very aggressive and dirty campaign using racist rhetoric while proposing few original ideas of his own.[6] The Wallace campaign aired TV ads with slogans such as "Do you want the black block electing your governor?" and circulated an ad showing a white girl surrounded by seven black boys, with the slogan "Wake Up Alabama! Blacks vow to take over Alabama."[7] Wallace called Brewer a sissy[8] and promised not to run for president a third time.[9]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Albert Brewer (incumbent) | 428,146 | 41.98 | |
| Democratic | George Wallace | 416,443 | 40.84 | |
| Democratic | Charles Woods | 149,987 | 14.71 | |
| Democratic | Asa Carter | 15,441 | 1.51 | |
| Democratic | Jim Folsom | 4,123 | 0.40 | |
| Democratic | Coleman Brown | 2,836 | 0.28 | |
| Democratic | Shorty Price | 2,804 | 0.28 | |
| Total votes | 1,019,780 | 100 | ||
Despite Brewer's victory in the first round, he failed to win a majority and was forced into a runoff with Wallace.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | George Wallace | 559,832 | 51.56 | |
| Democratic | Albert Brewer (incumbent) | 525,951 | 48.44 | |
| Total votes | 1,085,783 | 100 | ||
At the time, the Democratic primary in Alabama was regarded as more important than the general election, as Alabama was still essentially a one-party state in non-presidential elections. The Republican Party did not field a candidate, and Wallace easily won the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | George Wallace | 637,046 | 74.51 | |
| National Democratic (Ala.) | John L. Cashin Jr. | 125,491 | 14.68 | |
| Independent | A. C. Shelton | 75,679 | 8.85 | |
| Prohibition | Jerome B. Couch | 9,705 | 1.14 | |
| Independent | Menter G. Walker | 3,534 | 0.41 | |
| Whig | John Watts | 3,497 | 0.41 | |
| Total votes | 854,952 | 100 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
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