Ray Blanton - Tennessee in The Early 1970s

Tennessee in The Early 1970s

Tennessee lost a congressional district after the 1970 census, and the legislature decided to eliminate Blanton's district in time for the 1972 elections. Much of Blanton's district, including his home, was merged with the neighboring 8th District of fellow Democrat Ed Jones. The redrawn district retained Blanton's district number—the 7th—and Jackson was the biggest city in the district. However, the district contained more of Jones' former territory than Blanton's. Jones was very popular in this area and would have probably proven very difficult if not impossible to defeat. At the same time, Republican Senator Howard Baker was running for reelection. Even though Baker was a heavy favorite, the Democrats needed a serious candidate to oppose him. Blanton sought the Democratic nomination and won, but was heavily defeated in November. This was the year of a massive Republican landslide that saw President Richard Nixon carry 90 of Tennessee's 95 counties. Under the circumstances, Blanton faced nearly impossible odds, though Baker was so popular that Blanton would have been a heavy underdog in any case. He later stated that his problems in 1972 were "the two M's – money and McGovern" (although Blanton held views similar to McGovern's on the Vietnam War). His willingness to take on a popular Republican opponent against long odds greatly increased his name recognition in the state, setting him up as the principal Democratic candidate for governor in 1974.