As in the Democratic primary, no candidate won a majority of the vote in the 1966 general election. Callaway, in fact, won a plurality of the votes, defeating Maddox by just over 3,000 votes.
However, because write-in candidate Ellis Arnall received 7.1% of the vote, neither Maddox nor Callaway received a majority, as required by the Georgia constitution.
According to the election rules detailed in the Georgia Constitution, the failure of either candidate to receive a majority of the popular vote meant that the election was to be decided by the Georgia Assembly, who were to select from between the top two candidates, Callaway and Maddox.
Photo: Maddox is seen here with Graham Jackson, a notable musician famous for, among other things, having entertained a long string of U.S. Presidents. Jackson, in fact, lived here in Atlanta in a replica of FDR's Little White House, located in nearby Warm Springs.
Photo source: Speaking Out: The Autobiography of Lester Maddox , Doubleday (1975)