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Carmichael was a delegate to the 1972 [[Republican National Convention]], which met in Miami Beach, [[Florida]], to re-nominate the [[Richard Nixon|President Nixon]]-[[Spiro Agnew|Vice President Agnew]] ticket. Carmichael was the Republican nominee in 1972 for the [[U.S. Senate]] against the veteran Democrat [[James Eastland]]. In the Republican primary, Carmichael easily defeated the African-American civil rights figure James Howard Meredith (born 1933). In the fall campaign, President Nixon directed that Carmichael not attend a Republican rally in Jackson hosted by Agnew, who endorsed two successful Republican candidates for the [[United States House of Representatives]], [[Thad Cochran]] and [[Trent Lott]]. Instead Carmichael was humiliated and had to remain at Republican headquarters two blocks away from the festivities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://jim-herring.blogspot.com/2010/05/rubel-phillips-gil-carmichael-and-jack.html|author=Jim Herring|title=Rubel Phillips, Gil Carmichael, and Jack Reed"|date=May 20, 2010|publisher=jimherring.blogspot.com|accessdate=July 1, 2020}}</ref> One of Eastland's press spokesmen was Larry Speakes, later the [[White House]] acting press secretary in the [[Ronald W. Reagan]] administration. ​

Carmichael was a delegate to the 1972 [[Republican National Convention]], which met in Miami Beach, [[Florida]], to re-nominate the [[Richard Nixon|President Nixon]]-[[Spiro Agnew|Vice President Agnew]] ticket. Carmichael was the Republican nominee in 1972 for the [[U.S. Senate]] against the veteran Democrat [[James Eastland]]. In the Republican primary, Carmichael easily defeated the African-American civil rights figure James Howard Meredith (born 1933). In the fall campaign, President Nixon directed that Carmichael not attend a Republican rally in Jackson hosted by Agnew, who endorsed two successful Republican candidates for the [[United States House of Representatives]], [[Thad Cochran]] and [[Trent Lott]]. Instead Carmichael was humiliated and had to remain at Republican headquarters two blocks away from the festivities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://jim-herring.blogspot.com/2010/05/rubel-phillips-gil-carmichael-and-jack.html|author=Jim Herring|title=Rubel Phillips, Gil Carmichael, and Jack Reed"|date=May 20, 2010|publisher=jimherring.blogspot.com|accessdate=July 1, 2020}}</ref> One of Eastland's press spokesmen was Larry Speakes, later the [[White House]] acting press secretary in the [[Ronald W. Reagan]] administration. ​

Carmichael finished the race against Eastland with 249,779 votes (38.7%). Prentiss Walker (1917-1998) of Smith County, the first Mississippi Republican to serve in the[[United States House of Representatives]] in the 20th century, ran as an Independent in the Senate general election and drew 14,662 votes (2.3 percent). Walker had run as a strongly conservative Republican against Eastland in 1966 and claimed that the veteran senator was too close to Democratic President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] and did little as chairman of the [[Senate Judiciary Committee]] to block the confirmation of liberal judges prone to enact [[Segregation|integrationist]] rulings. Eastland in his last victory at the polls won the race with 375,102 (58.1 percent);<ref name=campaigns>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/CandidateDetail.html?CandidateID=8573|title=Carmichael, Gil|publisher=ourcampaigns.com|accessdate=May 5, 2014}}</ref> he did not seek reelection in 1978 and was succeeded by Moderate Republican [[U.S. Representative]] [[Thad Cochran]].​

Carmichael finished the race against Eastland with 249,779 votes (38.7%). Prentiss Walker (1917-1998) of Smith County, the first Mississippi Republican to serve in the[[United States House of Representatives]] in the 20th century, ran as an Independent in the Senate general election and drew 14,662 votes (2.3 percent). Walker had run as a strongly conservative Republican against Eastland in 1966 and claimed that the veteran senator was too close to Democratic President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] and did little as chairman of the [[Senate Judiciary Committee]] to block the confirmation of liberal judges prone to enact [[Segregation|integrationist]] rulings. Eastland in his last victory at the polls won the race with 375,102 (58.1 percent);<ref name=campaigns>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/CandidateDetail.html?CandidateID=8573|title=Carmichael, Gil|publisher=ourcampaigns.com|accessdate=July 2. 2020}}</ref> he did not seek reelection in 1978 and was succeeded by Moderate Republican [[U.S. Representative]] [[Thad Cochran]].​

In 1973, Carmichael's friend, Tom Stuart (1936-2001) was elected as the first Republican mayor of Meridian, in which capacity Stuart sought to pave streets and resolve downtown traffic problems.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.franklincountytimes.com/2001/11/19/tom-stuart-former-mayor-dies/|title=Tom Stuart, former mayor, dies|author=Sheila Blackmon|publisher=''Franklin County Times''|accessdate=July 1, 2020}}</ref>​

In 1973, Carmichael's friend, Tom Stuart (1936-2001) was elected as the first Republican mayor of Meridian, in which capacity Stuart sought to pave streets and resolve downtown traffic problems.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.franklincountytimes.com/2001/11/19/tom-stuart-former-mayor-dies/|title=Tom Stuart, former mayor, dies|author=Sheila Blackmon|publisher=''Franklin County Times''|accessdate=July 1, 2020}}</ref>​