[157] Ahead of the Kansas City convention in August,[158] Reagan took John Sears' advice of choosing liberal Richard Schweiker as his running mate to distract Ford. Instead, conservatives were left alienated. Ford would pick up the uncommitted delegates and prevail, earning 1,187 to Reagan's 1,070. Before Ford gave his acceptance speech, he invited Reagan to address the convention. In his speech, Reagan emphasized individual freedom[159] and the dangers of nuclear weapons. In 1977, Ford told Cannon that Reagan's primary challenge contributed to his own narrow loss to Democrat Jimmy Carter in the 1976 United States presidential election.[160]

1980 election
Main articles: Ronald Reagan 1980 presidential campaign and 1980 United States presidential election
1980 electoral vote results
The Panama Canal Treaty's signing, the 1979 oil crisis, and rise in the inflation, interest and unemployment rates helped set up Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign,[161] which he announced in November 1979[162] with an indictment of the federal government.[163] He and many of his Republican primary opponents stressed his fundamental principles of tax cuts to stimulate the economy and having both a small government and strong national defense.