In 1976 , Ronald Reagan made a serious challenge against President Gerald Ford for the Republican Party nomination for President of the United States . Immediately before the opening of the Republican National Convention , Reagan attempted to attract moderate delegates by promising to name Schweiker , who had a moderate voting record in the Senate , as his candidate for Vice President . This move was unusual because Reagan did not follow the usual convention of naming a running mate after winning the nomination . In response , conservative Republicans including U.S. Senator Jesse Helms of North Carolina encouraged a movement to draft Conservative Party U.S. Senator James L. Buckley of New York as the G.O.P. nominee . Ford won the nomination on the first ballot by a razor-thin margin , and then selected Bob Dole for vice president
Republican National Convention
1976 Republican National Convention
Richard Schweiker