Because Goldwater had done well in the Deep South, delegates to the 1968 Republican National Convention would be more Southern and conservative than past conventions; there was a real possibility that the conservative Reagan would be nominated if there was no victor on the first ballot.
Delegates to the 1968 Republican National Convention would be more Southern and conservative than past conventions. Goldwater had done well in the Deep South. The conservative Reagan would be nominated. There was no victor on the first ballot. There was a real possibility this.