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In 1940, things were looking up in America. Though many had become disillusioned with the ideological premises of the New Deal, and wanted nothing more to do with Roosevelt, everyone agreed that he had done a lot of good. Many, including the conservative Southern Democrats and most of the Republican Party, also agreed that he should not be elected for a third term. After all, interventionist economic policies were all well and good during an economic crisis, but had they ever served America in a time of prosperity? No, sir! As well, internal crises racked the so-called New Deal coalition, with many Southern conservatives defecting to the Republicans, and many Democrats publicly opposing Roosevelt's quasi-socialist policies. But what star, from the Republican party or otherwise, would rise to defeat Roosevelt? The answer was Wendell Willkie.



Wendell Willkie was a surprise candidate for the presidency, having only been nominated because of the dreadful infighting over the other three candidates: Robert Taft, Arthur Vandenberg, and Thomas E. Dewey. Certainly a dark horse among the Republicans, Willkie was a former Democrat and Wall Street-based industrialist. He was one of the few who had not lost everything in the crash. His nomination was especially surprising because of his relative lack of political acumen. A May 8 Gallup poll showed that Willkie had the support of only 3% of the Republican Party, partially because of his "in-between" internationalist stance on the War in Europe. However, in June, his friend Ogden Reid, owner of the New York Herald Tribune, persuaded him to change his stance to a firmly war-based policy. (For those not in the know, this is the POD) This gained him many supporters, in both the Republican and Democratic Party, who thought that he had the perfect combination of social and economic policies. He won the nomination election with 60% of the vote. In a surprising turn, just a few days later, Roosevelt announced that he was pulling out of the race; his heart was acting up again, and his wife had advised him to leave. This paved the way for an easy victory for Willkie, and on January, 1941, Willkie was inaugurated as the 33rd President of the United States.

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This is my first ATL, and I know I may sound rather...well, new. So. Thoughts?
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