How Far Was Roosevelt Himself Responsible For His Election Victory In 1932?

Roosevelt had two terms as Governor of New York before his election (1929-1933). This would have give FDR experience for solving the problems of the Depression but on a smaller scale. As Governor, FDR could also experiment with different policies and solutions such as relief for the elderly and unemployed. Roosevelt established a good reputation for his work as governor and this would have encouraged people to vote for him to be President. Roosevelt was rich enough to never have to work, this wealth could have created confidence in Roosevelt. If anything went wrong in the election he did not have to worry because he had his wealth to fall back on. The personal wealth would have also meant he could have spent a lot of money on his campaign.

Roosevelt's opposition in the 1932 election was Herbert Hoover, a Republican who had been president before. When the Depression occurred Hoover was overwhelmed and thought it would pass by. Hoover had been running the Country with the "laissez-faire" approach, but this did not work now due to the Depression. The failure of Hoover and the Republicans to solve the Depression meant they became very unpopular. Hoover tried to sit out the Depression and hoped the economic cycle would pick up. When giving speeches Hoover gave the impression of being out of control. The Republicans and Hoover's lack of action to solve the Depression was not popular, as people wanted action from the government to help solve their problems.

Roosevelt's campaign was very different from Hoover's and would have made a great contribution to his election. It had an upbeat tone that would have encouraged and created excitement in the people. FDR's campaign schedule was very busy. He covered most of America by train making up to 15 speeches a day. This would have made him popular as he was going out and meeting ordinary Americans. In FDR's campaign the policies of the New Deal where not outlined, so people would have been voting for FDR on faith and the American people had faith in him. This is because of the way he came across in his campaign as a genuinely good person who was under control and could bring the change they wanted.

Roosevelt's family provided him with plenty of support during the campaign and even though the work they did was mainly behind the scenes they were essential in FDR's election. Eleanor Roosevelt was FDR's wife, she had to put up with his well-known affairs but she remained by his side to give him the much-needed support. Eleanor was very well respected for her outstanding charity work, this could have been reflected in Roosevelt to make him look better. Roosevelt also had a physical reliance on his sons due to his crippling disease. The support of his whole family gave Roosevelt the strength to win the election as he relied heavily on them. Roosevelt's disease could also have provided him with support as it could have created sympathy in the people.

Roosevelt was an excellent public speaker; this will have made him more popular and have been a great advantage. Roosevelt had a strong voice, during his speeches his style and choice of phase was similar to that of Hitler or Mussolini as he used powerful words and phrases like, "crusade" and "a call to arms." This style of speech is very emotive and would have been encouraging to the people and it was very different from Hoover who gave the impression of being out of control. The campaign was one of personality and Roosevelt's personality shone through, ha had a big smile and infectious humor, it was easy to see that the energy of the campaign came from him. In his speeches Roosevelt captured the imagination of many Americans and provided hope at a time of despair for many.

The Democratic Party is also partly responsible for FDR's election, as they fully backed him. The Party organization will have organized rallies and other such events to get people to vote for him. There will have been many other people working for the Democratic Party that will also have made great contributions to the success of the campaign. With out the big Party machine behind him, it would have been very difficult for Roosevelt to get to the position he had.

Roosevelt was only partly responsible for his own election as there are many other circumstances that have to be taken into consideration. The Depression and circumstances of the time changed what people wanted in a government and caused the major unpopularity of Hoover and the Republicans as the Depression had not fitted with the "laissez-faire" approach. The unpopularity of the Republicans made way for the Democrats and Roosevelt. Roosevelt would have had to win the party's presidential nomination by using his personality and experience as Governor but also his connections with in the party. With out the support of his family Roosevelt may not have got as far as he did. Roosevelt's experience and personality would have contributed to his election victory but to many Americans he was the only choice as Hoover had done such a poor job of solving the Depression.