Jimmy Carter for President in '76 Illinois

Jimmy Carter's face in black ink in the center of a thin white outline of the state of Illinois. White text surrounding the outer edge of the button on a green background. 

Jimmy Carter was the Democratic nominee for the United States Presidency in 1976. He won the popular vote at 50.1 percent and took 297 electoral votes over Republican Gerald Ford. In Illinois, Ford won the popular vote with 50.1 percent, taking 26 electoral votes. Carter served as the 39th president from 1977 to 1981. He lost the 1980 race to President Ronald Reagan. Prior to his first run for president, Carter grew up in Plains, Georgia. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1943 to 1953. He was a Georgia State Senator from 1963 to 1967 and the Governor of Georgia from 1971 to 1975. Following their time in the White House, Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, returned to Plains.