Alternate History 🇺🇸 November 2, 1976: President Nelson Rockefeller wins election to full 4-year term and the aftermath

Do you want this timeline to have major ramifications?

  • A.) YES

    Votes: 15 88.2%
  • B.) NO

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • C.) TBD

    Votes: 2 11.8%

  • Total voters
    17
She's Your Miss Universe
  • COMING SOON IN CHAPTER 5 OF THE AMERICAN REPUBLIC
    July 16, 1977: Janelle Commissiong of Trinidad and Tobago makes history as the first black woman to win the Miss Universe Pageant

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    Chapter 5: National and International Headlines (Summer 1977: Part VI)
  • *June 5, 1977: A big government scandal explodes, which involved alleged ROK influence peddling inside the United States which had been a target of three federal probes during the years, was fueled by a press account of statements made by Kim Hyung-uk, the former KCIA Director. Kim identified Korean businessman Park Tong-sun as a KCIA agent who since the early 1970s had illegally spent millions of dollars to influencing American policy toward the Republic of Korea.

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    *Touching off 30 feet near Windsor Castle, Queen Elizabeth II inaugurated a week of pageants, processions, fairs and other festivities honoring her 25-year reign as the British Monarch.

    *June 11, 1977: In synchronized assaults involving armored vehicles and jet fighters, the Royal Dutch Marines overcame South Molucaan terrorists who were holding 51 hostages on a hijacked train and 4 in a school in northern Netherlands.


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    *June 12, 1977: US First Lady Happy Rockefeller concluded a two-week tour of several Latin American and Caribbean countries: Jamaica, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, Brazil and the Argentine Republic, mixing goodwill and policy in what American officials considered to be highly successful diplomacy, making the Rockefeller administration's Good Neighbor Policy quite extremely popular among these countries.

    *June 20, 1977: The first oil from Alaska's frozen North slope began flowing into the Trans-Alaska pipeline on its 800-mile journey from Prudhoe Bay to the ice-free part of Valdez on the state's southern coast. The pipe was expected to fill completely with oil in 30-40 days.

    *June 25, 1977: President Rockefeller signed federal legislation officially making Juneteenth a federal holiday during a signing ceremony in the East Room of the White House. Among those present at the signing ceremony: United States Senator L. Douglas Wilder (D-VA), who authored the legislation.
     
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    Chapter 5: International trips of President Rockefeller
  • *May 5-11, 1977: United Kingdom (London and New Carter): President Rockefeller traveled to the United Kingdom to attend the 3rd G-7 Summit in London at 10 Downing Street. He also met with Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh at Buckingham Palace.

    Rockefeller also met with the Prime Ministers of Turkey, Greece, Belgium, Norway, the Netherlands and Luxembourg including the President of Portugal. President Rockefeller addressed the NATO Ministers Meeting.

    *May 9, 1977: Switzerland (Geneva): Official Visit.
    President Rockefeller met with Swiss President Kurt Furgler and also met with Syrian President Hafez al-Assad.

    *June 25-July 1, 1977: Republic of Korea (Seoul): State Visit where he met with Republic of Korea President Park Chung-hee and his daughter, defacto Republic of Korea First Lady Park Geun-hye. State Banquet inside the Blue House takes place on the evening hours of June 25th.

    Addressed joint session of the Republic of Korea National Assembly (June 26th); toured the DMZ later that day and visited UN Forces Command troops, later had lunch with US military personnel of US Forces Korea and Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

    *July 2-5, 1977: Sri Lanka (Sri Jayawandenepura Kotte)

    *July 6-8, 1977: Thailand (Bangkok)

    *July 13-16, 1977: Singapore (Singapore)

    *July 17-22, 1977: India (New Delhi; Daulatpur; Nasirabad): State Visit
    Met with Indian President Neelam Sanjiva and Indian Prime Minister Moraji Desai; addressed joint session of the Parliament of India.
     
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    Chapter 5: National and International Headlines (Summer 1977: Part VII)
  • TEXAS US SENATE SPECIAL ELECTION: WHITE WINS OVERWHELMINGLY WITHOUT RUNOFF
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    United States Senator Mark W. White, Jr., (D-TX) with US Defense Secretary John Tower at the Russell Senate Office Building.

    *Tuesday, June 14, 1977: In the special election to fill out the unexpired term of John Tower, who resigned his US Senate seat upon being confirmed as US Secretary of Defense on February 1st, United States Senator Mark W. White, Jr., (D-TX) easily won the election overwhelmingly without the need of a runoff. He sweeping all 254 counties garnering 72 percent of the statewide vote.

    White declared he'll be seeking reelection to a full six-year term in 1978. Experts view White, a staunch conservative Democrat and protege of Texas Governor Dolph Briscoe (D), as one of the rising stars of the Democratic Party in the coming years.

    *Texas US Senate Special Election (June 14, 1977)

    Mark W. White, Jr., (D-incumbent): 2,373,773 (72.23%)✔
    Alan Steelman (R): 688,656 (16.32%)
     
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    Chapter 5: Headlines (Summer 1977)
  • CAMPAIGN 77: HOLTON CAMPAIGNS FOR DALTON IN VIRGINIA; BATEMAN IN NEW JERSEY

    *Friday, June 24, 1977: Vice President Linwood Holton went on the campaign trail, campaigning for Virginia Lieutenant Governor John Dalton (R) in the Virginia gubernatorial election. Dalton is locked in a tough battle against former Virginia Lieutenant Governor Henry Howell (D). Holton told hundreds of supporters "It's important that Virginians elect John Dalton as their next Governor. He's got the experience, the record and knows how state government is being run."

    Outgoing Virginia Governor Mills Godwin (R) is prohibited from succeeding himself to a third term due to the Commonwealth's one-term rule.

    In New Jersey: Holton also campaigned for the Republican gubernatorial nominee, State Senator Raymond Bateman (R), who's challenging incumbent New Jersey Governor Brendan Byrne (D).

    Polling surveys show Byrne trailing as much as somewhere between 13-17 points. Political analysts believe the controversial tax raises that Byrne had pushed for alienated majority of New Jerseyans.
     
    Campaign 77: Polls
  • POLLS: BYRNE BADLY TRAILING BY DOUBLE DIGITS IN NEW JERSEY GUBERNATORIAL RACE

    *Monday, June 27, 1977: The Democratic Governors Association and the Democratic National Committee have privately expressed concern that incumbent New Jersey Governor Brendan Byrne (D) might be in huge trouble due to backlash against his administration's unpopular Income Tax that he pushed through.

    The Star Ledger has State Senator Raymond Bateman (R) leading by 17 points in their latest poll:


    Star Ledger (June 27, 1977) Who would you vote for in the New Jersey gubernatorial election?
    Bateman (R): 53%
    Byrne (D-incumbent): 36%

    When asked about the latest polling surveys , Byrne scoffed at them saying "These are the same experts who thought I had no chance four years ago. I won in a landslide and I'm confident the people of New Jersey will make the right decision by keeping this administration for four more years."
     
    Chapter 5: National and International Headlines (Summer 1977: Part VIII)
  • *July 7, 1977: The US Department of Defense expressed hope that within 18 months, neutron weapons would be deployed in West Germany as part of NATO's tactical defense system. The production and development of such weapons, already approved by NATO officials, are likely to be approved by US President Nelson Rockefeller and the US Congress.
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    *July 13, 1977: Several bolts of lightning triggered a series of massive power outages plunged Westchester County and New York City into total darkness at 9:34 PM EST. When word spread that power couldn't be restored until the following day, the sweltering heat and evening caused all Hell to break loose, turning the evening into near-total-chaos.

    Thousands of stores were looted of food, clothing, furniture and new cars. Police arrested some 3,200 looters, but the law enforcement agencies couldn't effectively contain the rampaging mobs. The situation escalated badly when New York State Governor Hugh Carey (D) deployed the New York State National Guard and State Troopers into the city and aggressively cracked down with excessive force on the rampaging mobs.

    *July 17, 1977: Israel's newly-formed government took quick, decisive action in checking the country's soaring inflation rate with the announcement of a major austerity policy, to include an unprecedented cut in government spending programs.

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    *Republic of Korea President Park Chung-hee released 14 out of the estimated 260 of his political opponents under detention in government prisons, a move that came on the 29th anniversary of the Northeast Asian country's first republican constitution. Among those released were four Christian clergymen arrested in 1976 on charges of plotting to overthrow the Park government. President Park cited the repetence and good behavior of the 14 and also indicated that other prisoners who behaved as well will also be released.
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    *July 18, 1977: Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Smith announced the immediate dissolution of the Rhodesian Parliament, calling for new elections to be held on August 31st.


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    *July 19, 1977: Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards (D), who delivered the Democratic Party Response to President Rockefeller's 1976 State of the Union Address, did a full in-depth interview with ABC News: where he talked about his accomplishments and achievements in office; the appointments of women and minorities in state government; his political future as rumors are swirling around Edwards potentially seeking the 1980 Democratic presidential nomination in three years.

    *July 21, 1977: A border battle escalated between heavily-armed Cambodian and Thai troops, which resulted in 17 Thai soldiers and an estimated 50 Cambodians killed. The battle erupted along the Thai-Cambodian frontier in the vicinity of Aranayaprathet, the main regional Thai town. The clash also involved Thai tanks and air support, was described by the Thai military command as a sharp escalation of the border skirmishes that had been almost daily occurring since the communists took over Cambodia in 1975.

    *July 28, 1977: The first oil from Alaska's Prudhoe Bay oil fields, originally scheduled to reach the southern port of Valdez in 7 1/2 days, finally reached its terminus after more than 38 1/2 days. Accidents, faulty welds and sabotage required several shutdowns during the transport of the oil.

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    *July 29, 1977: The Gerald Rudolph Ford Presidential Museum on the campus of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan opens during special ceremony.

    *July 31, 1977: Squeaky Fromme, the infamous Manson devotee, who was found guilty of killing then-US President Gerald Ford on September 5, 1975 in Sacramento, California, is executed at the San Quentin Female Prison via lethal injection.

    Gallup (July 28, 1977)
    Opinion of President Nelson Rockefeller:

    Approve: 76%
    Disapprove: 16%

    Opinion of First Lady Happy Rockefeller:
    Approve: 73%
    Disapprove: 19%

    Opinion of Vice President Linwood Holton:
    Approve: 64%
    Disapprove: 25%

    Opinion of Second Lady Jinks Holton:
    Approve: 60%
    Disapprove: 28%

    Opinion of US Secretary of State Malcolm Wilson:
    Approve: 57%
    Disapprove: 32%

    Opinion of US Defense Secretary John Tower:
    Approve: 52%
    Disapprove: 36%

    Opinion of US Attorney General Edward Brooke:
    Approve: 68%
    Disapprove: 16%
     
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    Upcoming Installments in the American Republic
  • I'll be working on the upcoming Installments about the following folks:
    1.) New Jersey Governor Brendan Byrne (D)
    2.) United States Senator L. Douglas Wilder (D-VA)
    3.) North Carolina Governor James B. Hunt, Jr., (D)
    4.) West Virginia Governor Jay Rockefeller (D)
    5.) Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards (D)
     
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    Personal PoV's
  • "How that uppity n***** defeated Senator Harry F. Byrd, Jr., in the 1976 Virginia US Senate race continues to drive me mad. That boy thinks he's all uppity eh? Gonna find a way to undermine him."
    ---Albert L. Philpott
    Virginia House of Delegates
    Summer 1977

    "The election of L. Douglas Wilder as Virginia's first African American United States Senator in 1976 opened the door for African Americans to be courageous in seeking higher political office, statewide offices. I am inspired by Wilder's hardworking campaign in reaching out and personally meeting with Virginians all over the Commonwealth, especially Southwest Virginia.

    I was impressed by the way Wilder spent more than five months over there: doing one-on-one meetings with folks, face-to-face town halls and doing the hardwork.

    It proves if he could pull it off, anybody else can do it. I am still trying to figure out how Doug put up with the segregationists like Thurmond, Eastland, Hill, Sparkman, Hollings, Long, etc., because had I ran for the Senate down here in Georgia and was successful, I'm not sure how I wouldn't turned the other cheek when confronted by the likes of Long and Helms for that matter."
    ---Andrew Young
    Spring 2004
    Member, US House of Representatives from Georgia's 5th Congressional District (1973-1977)
    US Ambassador to Brazil (1977-1979)
    Chairman, US Civil Rights Commission (1979-1981)
    Mayor of Atlanta, Georgia (1982-1990)

    "From the minute the Democrats nominated Wallace, the liberals and progressives revolted violently. I was like "You've had other alternatives, who could've given Rockefeller at least a hard-working dogfight. Now, let's be clear: nobody was beating Rocky in 1976.

    And I had assumed if we had nominated anyone else, the margin could've narrowed somewhere between 16-19 points at least. But losing by 37 fucking points? It makes Nixon's 1972 landslide victory look like a choirboy.

    We haven't won the White House since 1964 when LBJ punked Goldwater's crazy ass. The one question I wanted to ask was if we'll ever win the Presidency anytime soon?"
    James Carville: Political strategist
    Private telephone conversation with Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards (D)
    Spring 1977
     
    Chapter 5: National and International Headlines (Summer 1977: Part IX)
  • PUERTO RICO ADMISSIONS ACT PASSES EASILY; PRESIDENT ROCKEFELLER SIGNS IT INTO LAW

    *On June 13, 1976, US Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY St) and United States Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) filed legislation called the Puerto Rico Statehood Act, which calls for the US territory to be granted statehood and become the 51st State.

    Supporters view this legislation as necessary for the Commonwealth being granted full benefits such as the other 50 states and they cite Alaska and Hawaii as examples. However, opponents blasted the bill calling it "government overreach".

    White House Chief of Staff Ann C. Whitman said President Rockefeller will be closely watching the progress of the legislation, which is likely to be debated during the summer and especially this fall.

    In the fall of 1976, Puerto Ricans voted in favor of Statehood with 59% of the vote.

    During the lame-duck legislative session of 1976, the Puerto Rico Statehood Admissions Act was passed in the US House of Representatives by a vote of 276-25, but was stalled in the United States Senate until March 13, 1977 which was signed into law by President Rockefeller in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

    Puerto Rico was admitted to the Union as the 51st State on June 16, 1977.

    MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCES HAPPENING IN THE ARGENTINE REPUBLIC AS MILITARY JUNTA VIOLENTLY CRACKS DOWN ON OPPOSITION

    *A group of 573 people calling themselves "Families of the Disappeared" marched in the streets of downtown Buenos Aires, demanding the military government give answers on the whereabouts of their loved ones: ranging from the elderly, parents, children and family relatives.

    In response to the two-week protests, Argentine Republic President Lieutenant General Jorge Rafael Videla ordered the protests to be violently crushed by any means necessary. The troops assisted by law enforcement agencies did just that on the afternoon of July 13th, arresting 300 of those protesting; the remaining opponents of the Videla dictatorship were hunted down like animals and violently roughed up, beaten and arrested.

    Reports began to detail how several of these protesters were taken to detention centers: where they endured violent, graphic torture such as electric shock, cattle-prod poking, stabbings, beatings via baseball bats, teeth pulled out, forced whippings, even majority of these extreme methods resulted in death.

    Videla justified these extreme methods by saying "We need to cleanse the Argentine Republic of all social ills because this country is currently at war. And I will NEVER apologize for doing whatever is necessary!"

    ASSASINATION ATTEMPT ON FORMER ARGENTINE REPUBLIC PRESIDENT ISABEL MARTINEZ DE PERON IN SPAIN

    *The Associated Press and ETV both reported that a group of assassind placed a bomb underneatg the vehicle of former Argentine Republic President Isabel Martinez de Peron in Madrid, Spain which exploded upon the start of the ignition.

    Peron was not injured nor was she at the residence when the assassination attempt took place. Rumors circulate that the former President was taken to another residence, this one in the outskirts of Madrid.

    Former Argentine Ambassador to Mexico Hector Campora blasted the Videla dictatorship by calling them out, particularly President Videla by mentioning his name: "It seems that President Videla is hell-bent on exterminating anyone who is living in exile. How far will this monster go?"
     
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    Chapter 5: The Political Scoop (Summer 1977)
  • BREAKING NEWS OUT OF SACRAMENTO: EMBATTLED CALIFORNIA LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR MERVYN DYMALLY (D) NOT SEEKING REELECTION IN 1978 FOLLOWING FEDERAL INDICTMENTS

    *July 14, 1977: During a defiant and fiery press conference inside his Capitol office in Sacramento: embattled California Lieutenant Governor Mervyn Dymally (D) announced he wouldn't be seeking reelection to a second term as the Golden State's second-highest statewide officeholder in the 1978 elections.

    Dymally blasted the federal indictments as politically-motivated and took aim at US Attorney General Edward Brooke "The Justice Department has gone after me because I called out those conservatives, who push for budget cuts on domestic programs. I am also not surprised that the FBI has had wiretaps inside government buildings here in the Capitol City because if the Feds can go after yours truly, the Lieutenant Governor of California. They could target other political officials in other parts of the country."

    Sources in Sacramento reported that several key California Democrats such as California Governor Jerry Brown (D), California Superintendent of Public Instruction Wilson Riles (D), California Secretary of State March Fong-Eu (D) and United States Senator Alan Cranston (D-CA) personally lobbied Dymally to abandon his reelection campaign.

    This leaves the California Democratic Party in a political lurch as Republicans are secretly pushing for potential candidates on winning back the Lieutenant Governorship next fall.
     
    Chapter 5: National and International Headlines (Summer 1977: Part X)
  • BREAKING NEWS ALERT: SHOTS FIRED AT US SECRETARY OF STATE MALCOLM WILSON IN PARIS, FRANCE

    *July 14, 1977: During a working visit to France, an estimated 16+ shots rang out while US Secretary of State Malcolm Wilson left the Georges Pompidou Grand Hotel after he had delivered an address before the US/France Friendship Youth Council.

    Agents of the Diplomatic Foreign Security Service shoved Wilson into the limousine and sped off toward an unknown destination. It's unknown on whether Wilson was targeted or someone else was the target.

    More details will be coming in once available.......

    PUERTO RICO ELECTS TWO UNITED STATES SENATORS AND 2 US HOUSE MEMBERS

    *August 21, 1977: The people of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico voted to elect two United States Senators and also two members of the US House of Representatives in the same concurrent special elections.

    In the Commonwealth's two US Senate seats (Class 1; Class 2):
    Class 1: United States Senator

    Juan H. Cinton Garcia (D): 656,677 (57.57%)✔
    Luis Ernesto Ramos Yordan (CWD): 505,525 (38.73%)
    DEMOCRATIC GAIN

    Class 2: United States Senator
    Luis A. Ferre (NP/R): 673,457 (54.83%)✔
    George Becker (PPD/D): 481,525 (43.32%)
    REPUBLICAN GAIN
     
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    Chapter 5: National and International Headlines (Summer 1977: Part XI)
  • *August 5, 1977: Following two days of bilateral talks with Tanzanian President Julius Nyertre, US President Nelson Rockefeller said the two Heads of State had reached "almost complete agreement" on a diplomatic solution which would promote a peaceful transition to black majority rule in both Rhodesia and Nambia.

    *South African Prime Minister BJ Vorster scolded the Rockefeller administration's Africa Policy and bitterly characterized US President Nelson Rockefeller's recent statements as an effort to placate US blacks, who overwhelmingly voted for him in the 1976 presidential election. Vorster's remarks raised doubts about his continued willingness to help end white minority rule in Rhodesia, which has been dependent on South Africa for oil, weapons and access to the sea.

    *August 10, 1977: As part of the Silver Jubilee celebrating Queen Elizabeth II's 25 years as the British Monarch, began two-day visit to Northern Ireland under heavy security. Roman Catholics, protesting English rule in Northern Ireland, set off bombs and clashed with police when the protesters attempted to reach Hillsborough Castle, where the Queen received her guests.

    *The military government of the Argentine Republic announced that the cost of living rose 7.6% during the month of July for a total increase of 64.1% during the first seven months of the year. The predicted inflation rate of 140% for the entire year, would, however, be a dramatic improvement over the 347.3% reported for 1976.

    *August 13, 1977: Members of the right-wing National Front and hundreds of supporters moved into Lewishawn, a multiracial neighborhood of London, to protest widespread muggings in the city. A bloody street fight followed when the marchers were confronted by angry counter-demonstrators in the area. Some 100 persons, including many police officers, were injured during the disturbance.

    *August 17, 1977: The Egyptian government suspended trade with the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia after claiming that recent trade agreements had been deliberately violated.

    *August 18, 1977: Under massive pressure, embattled Bermudian Premier John Sharpe announced his resignation after two years in office effective August 26th. Earlier in the year, most of the Cabinet ministers denounced Smith as incompetent and resigned from their posts.

    *August 19, 1977: Following a week-long strike by some 3,000 postal workers in Sydney, the Australian Parliament responded by passing legislation outlawing strikes by government employees.

    *August 25, 1977: During the World Peace Through Law Conference held in Manila, some 2,000 people defied a 1972 martial law decree by holding a three-hour rally followed by a protest march to denounce alleged human rights violations in the Philippines. Law enforcement agencies used water cannons and nightsticks to dispersing the marches, some 100 of whom were injured in the melee.
     
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