1952 Democratic Nominee If Dewey Defeats Truman

[Amadeus]

Suppose that in 1948 Dewey had gone with his gut and aggressively counterattacked Truman during the fall election campaign. The President still gains ground against his opponent, but it is not enough to deprive Dewey of an electoral college majority. On January 20, 1949 Thomas E. Dewey is sworn in as the 34th American President. Who do the Democrats nominate for President in 1952?

 

[David T]

Stevenson is still a good possibility. He defeated incumbent Dwight Green for Governor of Illinois in 1948 by 14.51 points in OTL https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois_gubernatorial_elections#1948 so he would still almost certainly be elected governor by a large margin even if Dewey narrowly carried IL (and OH and CA) instead of narrowly losing these three states as in OTL.

 

[Doncaster]

William O. Douglas will likely make a more serious campaign given how much speculation there was around him in 1948 when Truman was the incumbent. Of course, his civil rights stances will do much to alienate the south along with his marital issues.

 

[dw93]

Estes Kefauver is a possibility.

 

[Amadeus]

I agree that Stevenson would still be a likely choice for the same reasons as OTL: he is the popular Governor of a large state (which just so happens to house the 1952 Democratic convention), a moderate liberal, and unoffensive to any wing of the party. If the ATL primaries see Kefauver face off against Harriman (who I could see getting elected Governor of New York in 1950 after Dewey resigns to become President), and Dick Russell and the convention deadlocks, then Stevenson would be a good compromise choice. Whether or not he wins the election would be determined by how President Dewey handles the Korean situation...