Roosevelt had an excellent campaign team, and he himself was a brilliant campaigner. He was excellent at speechmaking. One of his most infamous quotes is probably:
"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."
This wonderful speech spoke volumes to the American public as they were living in terror, the needed to be reassured and encouraged. Many of Roosevelt's speeches did this:
"Millions of our citizens cherish the hope that their old standards of living have gone forever. Those millions shall not hope in vain. I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a New Deal for the American people…Give me your help, not just to win votes alone, but to win this crusade to restore America."
Roosevelt dished out propaganda, much of it mocking Hoover. For example, the cartoon below:
This cartoon is mocking Hoover, it is suggesting that Hoover thinks, if you smile, then everything will seem alright. Hence "smile away the depression". This is a very rich source, as it shows us, not only how great Roosevelt's election campaign team were, but also how he managed to exploit the current situation to his advantage.
he mass anti-Hoover propaganda sent out, convinced and encouraged the American's that Hoover was a lazy, uninterested and uncaring president. This worked very much in Roosevelt's favour.
Roosevelt's social and economic polices were completely different to Hoover's. His social policies very much encouraged helping those in need. He also promised to spend a lot of government money in helping the needy. This was very well liked among the Americans, as they were in great depression, and needed a lot of help. Hoover's laissez-faire attitude was of no use to them. They needed action, and Roosevelt promised them this:
"Action, and action now".
Roosevelt had had past experience of politics, so this gave him the upper hand. He entered politics as a democrat in 1910 when he was elected as a Senator for New York State. Three years later, FDR was a member of president Wilson's Cabinet and in 1920 he was vice presidential candidate for the Democrats. During his struggle with polio, he left politics, but was elected Governor for New York in 1928. As Governor of New York, Roosevelt started taking action with his policies that he would later promise the whole of America. He proved he was wiling to take positive action to relieve the suffering caused by the depression. He persuaded the New York State to spend $20 million on home and work relief. As early as 1928, Roosevelt had urged a pension scheme and unemployment insurance scheme to be set up.
His success as governor, not only made him popular amongst the American people as they had seen what he could do, and that he would stick to his promises, but it also helped him develop ideas on how best to fight the depression.
Of course, it was not only Roosevelt himself that contributed to his victory. There were other factors. One of the other main contributors to Roosevelt's victory was his opponent, Herbert Hoover. We have already seen, from the cartoon source what Roosevelt thought of Hoover, but what did the American public think?
Hoover had a very different attitude to those in trouble to Roosevelt. He believed in "rugged individualism", where Americans looked after themselves, and made their own keep. This "rugged individualism" was one of the causes for the depression, so most lost this idea during it, realising their mistake. Hoover did not make this realisation, and kept his attitude to the end.
"Our system is founded on the conception that only through freedom to the individual, will his initiative and enterprise be summoned to spur the march of progress."
Hoover is very closed-minded and old fashioned in his approach to the matters of the times (i.e. The Great Depression).Most people blamed Hoover for the Wall Street Crash and Depression. The Wall Street Crash, without doubt, contributed in destroying the Republican Party's chances of victory. That of course, and Roosevelt's effort. Unlike Roosevelt, Hoover did not have good campaigning skills. He did not portray himself as in control, or a good role model at all: We see this as a historian describes him:
" The president Hoover, white-faced, exhausted, stumbling in his speech, repeatedly losing his place in his manuscript, swayed on the platform."
Hoover simply could not manage the workload and the responsibility he took on when he entered the Whitehouse. Hoover's reputation reached an all time low after the Bonus Army affair. The Bonus Army were unemployed WW1 veterans who marched on Washington DC, to demand early payment of the "bonuses" which they were not due to receive until 1945. Hoover was unsympathetic. He sent an army advancing upon the Bonus Army, equipped with tanks, guns and tear gas. Two babies died of tear gas, and many people including children were injured. The Bonus Marchers were forced out of Washington but the actions of the army made Hoover even more unpopular. One political commentator spoke after the Bonus Marchers had been cleared out:
"Never before in this country has a government fallen so low a place in popular estimation or been so universally an object of cynical contempt. Never before has a president given his name so freely to latrines and offal dumps, or had his face banished from the cinema screen to avoid the hoots and jeers of children."
Hoover's failure as a president had become obvious to the public and there was a need for change. This was where Roosevelt sidled in, and took advantage of the situation.
The Americans had a fear of revolution, and as this was becoming more and more inevitable under Hoover's power.America, up until the depression, had a very prestigious reputation, and this was falling. The American public were worried that this would reach in ultimate low if revolution was to come. Revolution did indeed seem inevitable, as John Simpson, the president of the National farmers union (a group that were in particular trouble during the depression) warned the Senate in January 1933:
"The biggest and finest crop of revolution is sprouting all over the country right now."
Hoover's laissez-faire attitude was bouncing back against him. As he did little to help those suffering from the Depression, frustration mounted. Protest turned to violence. The unemployed protested, workers protested. They were sick of the starvation level wages they were paid. This led to bitter clashes in many American cities. These riots, made revolution seem unavoidable, but Roosevelt came along, right on cue.
Roosevelt's wife, was a big influence in his politics and also in his social status. Being the niece of President Theodore Roosevelt, he was off to a good start with Eleanor by his side. She herself, was a very able politician and helped Franklin Roosevelt reach the incredibly high status he reached in his political campaign. Eleanor very much encouraged Roosevelt with his politics. FDR's mother, wanted him to give up politics when he had polio and come home and rest. This was not at all in Roosevelt's ambitious character. Eleanor argued with FDR's mother, very much sticking up for Roosevelt, to give him a chance in life.
In conclusion, I think Roosevelt contributed greatly to his election victory with his wonderful campaign team, vocal talents, and socially accepted policies, but I do not think he was wholly responsible.Many factors contributed to the election victory, I think one of the very important factors was the public hatred of Hoover. This led them to look for a way out. Roosevelt had a great talent in exploiting the situation of the times to his favour. He even used his disability in his favour:
"His legs actually became something of a political asset. They won him sympathy, something he might never have had otherwise. Millions of Americans were electrified in later years by Roosevelt's public appearances- the tense, painfully awkward approach to the centre of the stage climaxed with Roosevelt's radiant smiles and vigorous gestures."
Roosevelt's ambition to continue politics through his paralysis, shows his determination, and this is a wonderful quality to benefit the Americans as they knew they can rely on him to get them out of the hole they were in.Roosevelt had a great talent, and this contributed greatly, but not entirely to his election victory in the presidential election, 1932.