Editing Ronald Reagan (section)

==Early political activities==
[[File:Goldwater-Reagan in 1964.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Reagan speaking for presidential candidate Barry Goldwater in Los Angeles, 1964|Reagan [[Barry Goldwater 1964 presidential campaign|campaigning]] with [[Barry Goldwater]], 1964]]

Reagan began his political career as a [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]], viewing [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] as "a true hero".{{sfn|Yager|2006|pp=12–13}} He joined the [[American Veterans Committee (1943–2008)|American Veterans Committee]] and [[Hollywood Independent Citizens Committee of the Arts, Sciences and Professions]] (HICCASP), worked with the [[AFL–CIO]] to fight [[right-to-work law]]s,{{sfn|Woodard|2012|p=28}} and continued to speak out against racism when he was in Hollywood.{{sfn|Pemberton|1998|p=139}} In 1945, Reagan planned to lead an HICCASP anti-nuclear rally, but Warner Bros. prevented him from going.{{sfn|Lettow|2006|pp=4–5}} In 1946, he appeared in a radio program called ''Operation Terror'' to speak out against rising [[Ku Klux Klan]] activity, calling it a "capably organized systematic campaign of fascist violence and intimidation and horror".<ref name="Racism">{{cite journal |last=Vaughn |first=Stephen |year=2002 |title=Ronald Reagan and the Struggle for Black Dignity in Cinema, 1937–1953 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1562493 |journal=The Journal of African American History |volume = The Past Before Us(Winter, 2002) |issue = 87 |pages = 83–97 |doi=10.1086/JAAHv87n1p83 |jstor=1562493 |s2cid=141324540 |access-date=May 1, 2023 |issn = 1548-1867 }}</ref> Reagan supported [[Harry S. Truman]] in the [[1948 United States presidential election|1948 presidential election]],{{sfn|Woodard|2012|p=49}} and [[Helen Gahagan Douglas]] for the [[1950 United States Senate election in California|U.S. Senate in 1950]]. It was Reagan's belief that communism was a powerful backstage influence in Hollywood that led him to rally his friends against them.{{sfn|Woodard|2012|p=28}}

Reagan began shifting to the right when he supported the presidential campaigns of [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] in 1952 and [[Richard Nixon]] in 1960.{{sfn|Cannon|2000|p=53}} When Reagan was contracted by [[General Electric]] (GE), he gave speeches to their employees. His speeches had a positive take on [[free market]]s.{{sfn|Woodard|2012|pp=42–43}} In 1961, Reagan adapted his speeches into [[Ronald Reagan Speaks Out Against Socialized Medicine|another speech]] to criticize [[Medicare (United States)|Medicare]].{{sfn|Skidmore|2008|p=103}} In his view, its legislation would have meant "the end of [[individual freedom]] in the United States".{{sfn|Onge|2017|p=240}} In 1962, Reagan was dropped by GE,{{sfn|Cannon|2003|p=112}} and he formally registered as a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]].{{sfn|Cannon|2000|p=53}}

In the [[1964 U.S. presidential election]], Reagan gave a speech for presidential contender [[Barry Goldwater]]{{sfn|Woodard|2012|p=55}} that was eventually referred to as "[[A Time for Choosing]]".{{sfn|Cannon|2003|p=132}} Reagan argued that the [[Founding Fathers]] "knew that governments don't control things. And they knew when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose"{{sfn|Reagan|1990|p=27}} and that "We've been told increasingly that we must choose between left or right".{{sfn|Reagan|1990|pp=99–100}} Even though the speech was not enough to turn around the faltering [[Barry Goldwater 1964 presidential campaign|Goldwater campaign]], it increased Reagan's profile among conservatives. [[David S. Broder]] and [[Stephen H. Hess]] called it "the most successful national political debut since [[William Jennings Bryan]] electrified the [[1896 Democratic National Convention|1896 Democratic convention]] with his famous [[Cross of Gold speech|'Cross of Gold' address]]".{{sfn|Woodard|2012|p=55}}

===1966 California gubernatorial election===
{{further|1966 California gubernatorial election}}
[[File:Ronald Reagan and Nancy Reagan at victory celebration for 1966 Governor's election (cropped).jpg|thumb|alt=The Reagans celebrating Ronald's victory in the 1966 California gubernatorial election at The Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles|Ronald and Nancy Reagan celebrating his gubernatorial election victory, November 1966]]

In January 1966, Reagan announced his candidacy for the [[governor of California|California governorship]],{{sfn|Cannon|2003|p=141}} repeating his stances on individual freedom and [[big government]].{{sfn|Brands|2015|p=148}} When he met with black Republicans in March,{{sfn|Brands|2015|p=149}} he was criticized for opposing the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]]. Reagan responded that bigotry was not in his nature{{sfn|Cannon|2003|p=142}} and later argued that certain provisions of the act infringed upon the rights of property owners.{{sfn|Brands|2015|p=150}} After the [[Supreme Court of California]] ruled that the initiative that repealed the [[Rumford Act]] was unconstitutional in May, he voiced his support for the act's repeal,{{sfn|Cannon|2003|p=147}} but later preferred amending it.{{sfn|Putnam|2006|p=27}} In the Republican primary, Reagan defeated [[George Christopher (mayor)|George Christopher]],{{sfn|Cannon|2003|pp=147–148}} a moderate Republican{{sfn|Cannon|2003|p=135}} who [[William F. Buckley Jr.]] thought had painted Reagan as extreme.{{sfn|Brands|2015|p=148}}

Reagan's general election opponent, incumbent governor [[Pat Brown]], attempted to label Reagan as an extremist.{{sfn|Pemberton|1998|p=69}} Reagan portrayed himself as a political outsider,{{sfn|Cannon|2003|p=149}} and charged Brown as responsible for the [[Watts riots]] and lenient on crime.{{sfn|Pemberton|1998|p=69}} In numerous speeches, Reagan "hit the Brown administration about high taxes, uncontrolled spending, the radicals at the [[University of California, Berkeley]], and the need for [[accountability]] in government".{{sfn|Woodard|2012|p=59}} Meanwhile, many in the press perceived Reagan as "monumentally ignorant of state issues", though [[Lou Cannon]] said that Reagan benefited from an appearance he and Brown made on ''[[Meet the Press]]'' in September.{{sfn|Cannon|2003|pp=158–159}} Reagan won the governorship with 57 percent of the vote compared to Brown's 42 percent.{{sfn|Woodard|2012|p=60}}