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The Election of 1924
Republican Calvin Coolidge, the incumbent victor of the 1924 presidential election, benefited from a split within the Democratic party.
Learning Objectives
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Describe how voter demographics were reconfigured in the 1924 election
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Identify the reasons why Coolidge won the 1924 election
Key Points
- Vice-President Coolidge took office in 1923 when President Harding died, and was given credit for a booming economy at home and no visible crises abroad.
- Democratic candidate John W. Davis was a conservative, and so many liberal Democrats backed the third-party campaign of Senator Robert M. La Follette, who ran as the candidate of the Progressive Party. This split in the Democratic party aided in Coolidge's victory.
- The 1924 election was the first presidential election in which all American Indians were recognized as citizens and allowed to vote.
Term
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Calvin Coolidge
John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. (1872–1933) was the 30th President of the United States (1923–1929).
Full Text
The United States presidential election of 1924 was won by incumbent President Calvin Coolidge , the Republican candidate. Coolidge was vice-president under Warren G. Harding and became president in 1923 when Harding died in office. Coolidge was given credit for a booming economy at home and no visible crises abroad.
Calvin Coolidge, 1923
Coolidge's campaign was aided by a split within the Democratic Party.
His candidacy was aided by a split within the Democratic Party. The Democratic candidate was John W. Davis , a little-known former congressman and diplomat from West Virginia. As Davis was a conservative, many liberal Democrats backed the third-party campaign of Senator Robert M. La Follette of Wisconsin, who ran as the candidate of the Progressive Party. With the disastrous Democratic Convention having badly divided the Democrats and with the economy booming, there was little doubt that Coolidge would win the election. His campaign slogan, "Keep Cool with Coolidge," was highly popular. Davis carried only the traditionally Democratic Solid South and Oklahoma.
Robert M La Follette
La Follette's progressive politics split the Democrats, hurting the Davis campaign.
John William Davis
Davis unsuccessfully challenged Coolidge on the Democrat ticket.
La Follette's appeal among liberal Democrats allowed Coolidge to achieve a 25.2% margin of victory over Davis in the popular vote (the second largest since 1824). In 12 states, the La Follette vote was greater than that cast for Davis. In one of these states, Wisconsin, La Follette defeated the Republican ticket also, thus winning one state in the electoral college.
This was the first presidential election in which all American Indians were recognized as citizens and allowed to vote. This candidacy, like that of Roosevelt in 1912, altered the distribution of the vote throughout the country and particularly in 18 states in the Middle and Far West. The Republicans did so well that they carried New York City, a feat they have not since repeated.The combined vote for Davis and La Follette over the nation was exceeded by Coolidge by 2,500,000, and the Coolidge vote topped the poll in 35 states, leaving the electoral vote for Davis in only 12 states.
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Key Term Reference
- Democratic Party
- Appears in these related concepts: Whigs and Democrats, Hispanics as a Political Force, and The Modern Era of Political Parties
- New York
- Appears in these related concepts: Land Policy, Settlers and Native Americans, and The Conquest of New York
- Progressive Party
- Appears in these related concepts: The Election of 1916, Taft and Roosevelt, and Progressive Resurgence
- Republicans
- Appears in these related concepts: Economic Hardship and Labor Upheaval During the Transition to Peace, Reform and the Election of 1872, and The Sectional Crisis Deepens
- The Electoral College
- Appears in these related concepts: The Election of 1936, The Populist Party and the Election of 1896, and The Republican Victory
- citizen
- Appears in these related concepts: From Property to Democracy, African American Migration, and "We the People"
- credit
- Appears in these related concepts: Debits and Credits, Honor and Violence, and The Current Account
- economy
- Appears in these related concepts: The Disadvantages of Socialism, The Baby Boom, and The Economy
- electoral college
- Appears in these related concepts: The Structure of the Government, The General Election Campaign, and Debate over the Presidency and the Judiciary
- republican
- Appears in these related concepts: Party Identification, Political Parties from 1800–1824, and Hamilton's Political Vision and the Federalist Papers
Sources
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Cite This Source
Source: Boundless. “The Election of 1924.” Boundless U.S. History. Boundless, 21 Jul. 2015. Retrieved 19 Sep. 2015 from https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/textbooks/boundless-u-s-history-textbook/from-the-new-era-to-the-great-depression-1920-1933-24/the-new-era-185/the-election-of-1924-1015-1978/