Republicans were divided in 1976 over who should carry the presidential banner, with liberals and moderates backing Nixon's appointed successor, Gerald Ford, and conservatives staunchly behind the former California governor, Ronald Reagan. Reagan's supporters claimed that Ford was tainted by Watergate and would be vulnerable in November, while Ford's supporters believed he deserved the party's loyalty for having led the nation out of arguably its darkest hour. This pinback was worn by Republicans who were willing to support either Reagan or Ford—whomever the convention put forward.