1978 Democratic Midterm Conference

1978 conference in Tennessee February 2026 February 2026 1978 Democratic Walter Mondale, Joan Mondale, Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter at the Democratic Mid-Term Convention. - NARA - 182686.tif 250px President Carter, VP Mondale, and their wives at the conference December 7–10, 1978 Cook Convention Center Memphis, Tennessee 1,633 1974 1982 Midterm-Year Conference 1976 1980 The 1978 Democratic Midterm Conference a "mini convention" held by the Democratic Party following the 1978 midterm elections. It took place at the Cook Convention Center in Memphis, Tennessee, on December 7-10, 1978.Democrats to Meet in Memphis in 1978 https://www.nytimes.com/1977/12/10/archives/democrats-to-meet-in-memphis-in-1978-tennessee-city-chosen-as-site.html 2025-09-17 10 December 1977 Smith Terence The New York Times en At the time, the Democratic National Committee was in debt due to the cost of the Jimmy Carter 1976 presidential campaign. Compared to the previous midterm conference held in Kansas City in 1974, the Democratic National Committee voted to cut the number of delegates to be credentialed at the 1978 conference to 1,633 delegates. The Democratic National Committee voted in favor of Memphis as the location, choosing it over Denver, Honolulu, and Seattle. President Jimmy Carter attended the event and delivered a keynote speech despite his polling numbers declining. Memphis, Tennessee Remarks at the Opening Session of the 1978 National Democratic Party Conference https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/memphis-tennessee-remarks-the-opening-session-the-1978-national-democratic-party Memphis, Tennessee The American Presidency Project 2026-02-19 On December 9, Arkansas Attorney General, and then Arkansas Governor-elect, Bill Clinton moderated a health care panel meeting featuring Joe Califano, who was at the time serving in the Carter Administration as U.S. Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, and Senator Ted Kennedy, who was by then a fierce critic of the Carter Administration's health care policy.https://clintonwhitehouse5.archives.gov/library/hot_releases/January_11_2001_4.html Remarks by the President to the Northeastern University Community clintonwhitehouse5.archives.gov January 11, 2001 September 12, 2026 During this panel meeting, Kennedy delivered a speech which not only discussed health care, and criticized the Carter administration's fiscal and economic policies. The speech by Kennedy was regarded to be rousing enough to upstage the remarks Carter delivered to the conference.Smith Jack Z. Democrats Keep Up Tirades; Presidential Hopefuls Use Conference to Attack Reagan https://www.newspapers.com/image/635438346 Newspapers.com subscription Forth Worth Star-Telegram September 5, 2026 2 June 26, 1982 Clinton noted in January 2001 that while he was at the time "a big supporter of Carter," Kennedy's speech during the health care panel meeting "made an impression on me that day that had lasted over these 22-plus years;" despite this, he and Kennedy would only become better acquainted in the time after he became U.S. President in 1993. Journalists noted the quieter mood compared to 1974.1978-12-08 Democratic Conference at a Glance https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/08/archives/democratic-conference-at-a-glance-the-reason-the-agenda-the.html#:~:text=There%20will%20be%201,633%20delegates,only%20six%20hours%20in%20Memphis. 2025-09-17 en1978-12-10 Kennedy Assails Carter on Budget At Midterm Meeting of Democrats https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/10/archives/kennedy-assails-carter-on-budget-at-midterm-meeting-of-democrats.html 2025-09-17 en1978-12-10 Delegates Are Quieter and Less Seasoned https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/10/archives/delegates-are-quieter-and-less-seasoned-more-women-fewer-blacks.html 2025-09-17 en References Category:Democratic National Conventions Category:1978 in Tennessee Category:1978_in_American_politics Category:History of Memphis, Tennessee Democratic 1978