Oral history interview with Terry Sanford, May 14, 1976. Interview A-0328-1

Terry Sanford begins the interview by describing early impressions of his hometown of Laurinburg, North Carolina, and his family background. He notes that his interest in politics was awakened early--both by his father's support of underdog and liberal candidates and by the 1928 Alfred Smith presidential campaign. Sanford describes the Democratic political dynasties and discusses how the Democratic Party maintained its political stronghold on North Carolina as a result of effective political organizations and the state's one-party politics. Sanford's political education began in earnest as a student at the University of North Carolina, where he became influenced by the progressive and liberal politics of UNC president Frank Porter Graham and sociology professor Howard Odum. UNC's law school also served as a political training ground for Democratic candidates, says Sanford; there, he learned organizing and campaigning strategies from the Chapel Hill-influenced political leadership. He ran as president of the Young Democrats, an established political training group. Sanford discusses the growing rift between the conservative and progressive factions within the Democratic Party, which