Many U.S. Presidents have showcased their interest in stock car racing by attending races or by inviting drivers to the White House. But these were more transactional events to cater to the regional vote bank rather than an actual passion for NASCAR. The case was different with the 39th President, Jimmy Carter.
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Carter was born in the Southern State of Georgia in a family of peanut farmers. Growing up in the hotbed of motorsports in the 1940s and 50s, he was irrevocably attracted to the steel wills of drivers who were putting it all on the line for the sake of speed. This affinity later led him to repeatedly visit the Atlanta Motor Speedway to watch heroes like Richard Petty in action.
Following a deployment to the U.S. Navy, Carter got back to his family farm and stepped into politics in 1962. It would be an understatement to say that he was star-struck when he got the chance to meet his favorite drivers years later in 1970. It was at a time when he was campaigning for the Peach State’s Governor’s office.
He promised his wife, Rosalyn, “If I am elected, I’m going to have those guys out to the mansion the first time I get a chance.” He lived up to his words just months later after winning the seat. Carter invited 26 drivers, including Petty and A.J. Foyt, to the governor’s mansion and honored them.
When Carter legitimized NASCAR through an invitation to the White House
As much as Carter loved stock car drivers, they equally loved him back. His rural upbringing and Southern roots resonated strongly with the core audience of NASCAR, and he ended up getting huge support from them.
Icons like Cale Yarborough, Buddy Baker, and Junior Johnson were pretty open in their approval of him when he decided to run for president.
Carter became the leader of the free world in 1977 and kept the fanboy in him alive. He’d made yet another promise during the 1976 election campaigns that he would invite NASCAR stars to the White House if he became president. He honored those words in 1978 by celebrating the sport in the country’s capital.
Drivers including Yarborough, Benny Parsons, and David Pearson were among the stars on the White House’s South Lawn in the company of the first lady. The president himself was away on business, brokering a peace deal between Egypt and Israel in the nearby Camp David. The event gave NASCAR a significant boost in popularity.
Carter passed away on December 29, 2024, at the age of 100. He will forever be remembered as a staunch NASCAR fan who honored drivers and the sport in a way that no other president has.
