In 1968, Wilt Chamberlain was the biggest basketball star in the world and Richard Nixon was the Republican candidate for president.

That year, they collaborated in an effort to help Nixon win over Black voters and the 1968 presidential election, writes Shaun Assael for Politico.

It was April 9, 1968. The two had just attended Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral in Atlanta. Nixon wanted to make a quick exit of the procession following King’s casket to his burial site.

So, too, did Chamberlain, who asked if he could also catch a ride in a taxi that was nearby.

Chamberlain was eager to make a mark in politics and Nixon wanted to find a way to obtain more Black voters, leading Chamberlain becoming a “community relations” adviser to Nixon’s campaign.

By the time the Republican National Convention arrived in Miami in August 1968, Chamberlain had become the highest-profile Black surrogate in Nixon’s campaign.

During his first presidential campaign in 1960, Nixon won 32 percent of the Black vote, a number that has never been touched by a GOP candidate again.

His popularity among Black voters slipped considerably in 1968, but he still won the election with 15 percent of the Black vote.

While Chamberlain ultimately had little effect on swaying more Black voters to vote for Nixon, the partnership had people talking.

Read more about the Wilt Chamberlain, Richard Nixon partnership in Politico.

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