In protest of the proceedings that seemed to be handing the nomination to Maddox , Rusher and Viguerie were among those who did not attend the Saturday session where the voting took place . On the first ballot the party chose Maddox as its presidential nominee - beating challengers Morris and former Louisiana representative John Rarick ( previously a Democrat ) . Shearer had hoped to get his wife Eileen nominated as the Vice Presidential candidate , but the idea was opposed by Maddox who expressed his dislike of the idea of running with a woman . Shortly before the vote Maddox endorsed former mayor of Madison , Wisconsin William Dyke ( previously a Republican who had been that party 's nominee for Wisconsin governor in 1974 ) for Vice President candidate , which caused Eileen to withdraw . Dyke , who beat Viguerie for the Vice Presidential slot , had gained fame in Conservative circles for a hard-line stand against student unrest at the University of Wisconsin ( which included the Sterling Hall bombing ) during the Vietnam War . Late in the afternoon Dyke addressed the convention before the vote by telephone , telling them that " America is the last hope for the preservation of freedom in the world . " Before that year Dyke had no prior affiliation with the party and was woken up at 3 am by delegates who informed him in person of the nomination which he was happy to accept . Dyke admitted to reporters that he did not have a full understanding of the party 's platform , and when asked if his racial policies were segregationist like Maddox 's replied " Certainly not . I 'm not a segregationist , " and that he did n't believe in the " simplistic definition of segregation "
Sterling Hall bombing
Sterling Hall bombing
Richard Viguerie