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| 1932 presidential election | |
  Nominees Roosevelt and Garner | |
| Convention | |
|---|---|
| Date(s) | June 27 – July 2, 1932 |
| City | Chicago,Illinois |
| Venue | Chicago Stadium |
| Candidates | |
| Presidential nominee | Franklin D. Roosevelt of New York |
| Vice-presidential nominee | John N. Garner ofTexas |
| ‹ 1928 · 1936 › | |
The1932 Democratic National Convention was held inChicago, Illinois June 27 – July 2, 1932. The convention resulted in the nomination ofGovernorFranklin D. Roosevelt ofNew York for president andSpeaker of the HouseJohn Nance Garner fromTexas for vice president.Beulah Rebecca Hooks Hannah Tingley was a member of theDemocratic National Committee and Chair of theDemocratic Party of Florida. She seconded the nomination of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, becoming the second woman to address a Democratic National Convention. According to theWhite House Historical Association,Happy Days Are Here Again was the campaign song of the convention.[1]
The three major candidates:
| Candidate | Born[2] | Office Held | State | Delegates, 1st ballot | Final ballot |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Franklin D. Roosevelt | January 30, 1882 (age 50) Hyde Park, New York | 44th Governor of New York (1929–1932) |  New York | 666.25 | 945 |
 Al Smith (campaign) | December 30, 1873 (age 58) Manhattan,New York | 42nd Governor of New York (1919–1920, 1923–1928) | New York | 201.75 | 190.25 |
 John Nance Garner | November 22, 1868 (age 63) Detroit, Texas | 39th Speaker of the House of Representatives (1931–1933) |  Texas | 90.25 | Nominated for Vice President |
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The three major contenders for the presidential nomination were Roosevelt, Garner and former Governor of New York and 1928 presidential candidate,Al Smith, who roughly represented three competing factions of the Democratic Party:
The new Democratic coalition would begin at this convention: Roosevelt brought into the Democratic fold western progressives, ethnic minorities, rural farmers, and intellectuals. Supporters of Roosevelt pushed for the abolition of the two-thirds rule (which required the presidential nominee to win at least two-thirds of the delegate votes), but backlash from Southern delegates forced them to drop the proposal.[3]
After three ballots, Roosevelt was 86.75 votes short of the 769.5 votes required to win the nomination, and his campaign feared that his support had peaked: as none of New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts or Connecticut supported Roosevelt, he needed McAdoo, who led the California delegation, and Garner, who led the Texas delegation.
Roosevelt's campaign was able to persuade Garner to have his delegates vote for Roosevelt, possibly with the help of Hearst: while Hearst disliked Roosevelt, he hated Smith andNewton D. Baker, a possible compromise candidate. After McAdoo (who had been denied the nomination by the two-thirds rule at the 1924 convention) announced that California would back Roosevelt, the convention realized Roosevelt had reached the required 769.5 delegates to win the nomination, which was greeted by wild celebrations. Roosevelt received 945 votes on the fourth ballot to Smith's 190.5.[3]
Garner was nominated for vice-president by acclamation, likely as part of a deal for his delegates.[4] McAdoo had hoped to be on the ticket, but he withdrew after his inclusion was opposed by Hearst.[5]
| Presidential Balloting | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th |
| Roosevelt | 666.25 | 677.75 | 682.75 | 945 |
| Smith | 201.75 | 194.25 | 190.25 | 190.50 |
| Garner | 90.25 | 90.25 | 101.25 | 0 |
| White | 52 | 50.50 | 52.50 | 3 |
| Traylor | 42.25 | 40.25 | 40.25 | 0 |
| Reed | 24 | 18 | 27.50 | 0 |
| Byrd | 25 | 24 | 25 | 0 |
| Ritchie | 21 | 23.50 | 23.50 | 3.50 |
| Murray | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rogers | 0 | 22 | 0 | 0 |
| Baker | 8.50 | 8 | 8.50 | 5.50 |
| Cox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Not Voting | 0 | 5.50 | 2.50 | 5.50 |
Presidential Balloting / 5th Day of Convention (July 1, 1932)
For his acceptance speech, Roosevelt broke tradition and established the precedent of formally accepting the nomination in person at the convention. In his speech, he pledged "aNew Deal for the American people".[4]
Pietrusza, David 1932: The Rise of Hitler & FDR: Two Tales of Politics, Betrayal, and Unlikely Destiny Guilford CT: Lyons Press, 2015.
| Preceded by 1928 Houston, Texas | Democratic National Conventions | Succeeded by 1936 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
