Throughout his time campaigning and in his time as president, the late Jimmy Carter visited the Quad Cities. One of his first moves to get on the map was winning the Iowa caucus in 1976.
“He was able to get people, at the local level, at the grassroots level, to get excited about him and to help in his campaign that gave him the ability to get 27% of the caucus vote and he became recognized,” said former Davenport mayor Bill Gluba. “He got his ticket punch, as they say politically.”
Gluba attributes Carter’s success in Iowa to local volunteer Mary Ellen Chamberlin, who was a contact for Carter during his time campaigning in Davenport. His win in Iowa would drastically launch his campaign forward and by the time the National Democratic Convention came six months later, he was the democratic candidate.
“I was supporting a fellow named Fred Harris, who was a democratic populist, a lot like Bernie Sanders, and in 1976 I went to the national convention, but by then Jimmy Carter had wrapped it up, and so those of us who were there for other candidates obviously swung our support over,” said Gluba.
It wouldn’t be the only time President Carter visited the Quad Cities. Carter visited Davenport a second time in 1979, to speak with citizens over the radio. The program director recalls his brief moment with the former president.
“I effectively was the producer of the show, so I got the calls once they were made, because the league of women voters and secret service originated the calls, and then I put them through to the president, who was sitting right next to me,” said Jim O’Hara, a former program director at KSTT.
(Jim O’Hara)
Over 45 minutes, Carter spoke with 13 callers.
“I think that’s the thing that came off the most obviously in the talk show was he was just a regular guy,” said O’Hara.
Another former Iowa state representative from Davenport worked directly with President Carter.
“When he got elected I joined his administration,” said former Iowa state representative Thomas Higgins. “I started at what was then called the department of health education and welfare, and I became the regional director for the Midwest. Then I went to the white house and I served on the senior staff of the White House and deputy secretary to the cabinet and I stayed to the very last day.”
Higgins says Carter was an honest man with high expectations.
“I think it was fair to say we all felt honored to have the responsibility, but also to be honest, a little fearful that we might do something that would take away from or detract,” said Higgins. President Carter was a demanding president, and I mean that in the best possible way.”
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