Walter Mondale 1984 presidential campaign

Mondale's opponents in the race for the Democratic nomination in 1984 included Reubin Askew, Jesse Jackson, George McGovern, and Gary Hart.[9] In early polls, Mondale had a comfortable lead over his primary rivals, and he was considered the front-runner for the nomination by odds makers.[9][10] John Glenn was considered Mondale's closest rival early in the race, but Glenn's campaign collapsed early on, as did most of the other Democratic candidates' campaigns.[9] In 1983, Mondale was endorsed by almost all AFL–CIO leaders, as well as by the National Organization for Women, who had not endorsed a candidate since they were founded 17 years earlier.[11][12]

After Mondale trounced Hart in the February 20, 1984 Iowa caucuses, getting 48% of the vote to Hart's 16%, many in the media thought that the primaries were effectively over.[10] Mondale's fate soon began to turn, however, after Hart won the New Hampshire primary, which cost Mondale his front-runner status. In an attempt to regain it, he effectively deployed the phrase "Where's the beef?" to cast doubt on Hart's claim that he offered "new ideas."[9] During the course of all the primaries, Mondale got about 6.8 million votes, Hart 6.5 million, and Jackson 3.3 million.[10]

Mondale clinched the nomination in June 1984 by receiving significantly more votes from superdelegates than Hart did. Lautenberg then stated, "I believe it is time for Gary Hart to come home to the Democratic party and behind the nomination of Walter Mondale." Nevertheless, Hart refused to concede and instead announced his intention to challenge the results at the party's upcoming convention.[5]

Shortly before the 1984 Democratic National Convention, Mondale chose Bert Lance to be his campaign's general chairman, and unsuccessfully attempted to remove Charles Manatt from his position as party chairman. Mondale and his campaign stopped their effort to oust Manatt in response to protests from party leaders. On Mondale's decisions, one anonymous Democratic Party aide told the New York Times: "It's a disaster. People are gulping hard. No one knows why he did it."[13] His choice of Lance proved controversial because Lance had previously left his job in the Carter administration amid charges of bank fraud (of which he was later exonerated).[14]

Mondale picked three-term Congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro to be his running mate on July 12, 1984, making her the first woman nominated for president or vice president by a major U.S. political party.[15] The pick was intended to energize Mondale's campaign, which it did at first. This effect proved short-lived, however, as it was soon overshadowed by a scandal involving Ferraro's and her husband's finances.[9]

Shortly before the general election, Mondale defended his choice of Ferraro as his running mate against Reagan, who had recently said that her nomination was not a major breaking point. Mondale replied that he chose Ferraro "because she's the best," adding that "She is far better prepared for her position than Mr. Reagan was when he was elected president of the United States."[16]

Mondale officially accepted the Democratic Party's nomination at the 1984 Democratic National Convention. He delivered his acceptance speech on the night of July 19, 1984, climaxing that year's convention.[17] During the speech, Mondale controversially vowed to raise taxes but claimed that Reagan would also do so: "He won't tell you. I just did."

Many observers were surprised by Mondale's decision to call for raising taxes on millions of voters openly during a presidential election, with Reagan campaign consultant Stuart Spencer telling CBS, "I've never heard a politician say he is going to raise taxes to 30 million, 40 million, 50 million people in a campaign."[18] Some of Mondale's fellow Democrats also distanced themselves from his tax plan.[19]