In this thread, I would like to present three alternate scenarios for the United States Presidential Election of 1940:
1. The GOP nominates Herbert Hoover for president in 1940. I was reading on Wikipedia that there was some talk about the GOP nominating Herbert Hoover to run against FDR. There had also been some talk about this in 1936, and in that year, Hoover had actually wanted to be nominated. Is it unlikely that Hoover could have been nominated again in 1940, despite his landslide defeat eight years before? If he had been nominated, who would be his running mate, and how would he do against Roosevelt/Wallace in the election? I think he would (once again) be defeated in a landslide, but would this have any effect on future politics?
2. The GOP nominates Robert Taft in 1940. This one seems likely to me. On the first ballot IOTL, Taft placed second behind Tom Dewey, and increased in strength until Wendell Willkie was nominated on the fifth ballot. WI Taft's forces grow stronger and he is nominated instead? Who would he choose as his running mate, and how would he do against Roosevelt/Wallace in November?
3. The GOP nominates Thomas Dewey in 1940. This one seems the most likely to me. On the first ballot IOTL, Dewey actually held a strong first, and led Robert Taft by 171 delegates. WI he was nominated to run against Roosevelt? Again, who would choose to be his running mate, and how would he do against FDR in November? If he lost, would the GOP still nominate him in 1944 and/or 1948?
I'm not sure whether FDR was beatable or not in 1940, because while his New Deal policies were still popular and he won OTL's election in an electoral landslide, keep in mind he did only win 54% of the vote IOTL 1940.