Every man wants to be President. Since the election of Andrew Jackson, every little boy grew up thinking one day,
he could become President.
He could be a hero and remembered in history books. Even old dying men held that belief, from Vice-President down to County Executive, all believing that if fate shone on them they could have their day in the sun.
The reality of being President hits you much harder then a stern lecture by a parent or a reality check by a wife. John Weeks was a man who wanted to be President, who arranged himself carefully in 1912 and 1916, getting the Secretaryship in exchange for future support from President Underwood, and felt like God was punishing him for his moral failures. A horrid economy, revolutions overseas, anarchists and socialists parading in his streets, it was a ghastly sight for an old banking man like him.
For others it was an inspiring sight, young Norman Thomas had been an eager member of the NY Socialists for a decade now, quickly rising up as chairman of the National Civil Liberties Bureau, and even elected as a 1 Term Secretary of State. He saw the world as cleansing itself of the old order, whether by the bullet or by the ballot. Like his running mate, and unlike many old socialists, he was never a conventional Marxist, considering himself somewhat of a Christian Socialist. Indeed his appeal to the gospel attracted many rural voters that were otherwise hardcore Populist, his job on the ticket was to appeal to New Yorkers and Southerners. La Follette's job was to attract progressives and people tired of the political same-old. There was one group they forgot to appeal to: the founding Socialists.
Regardless they still managed to obtain the highest share of the vote the Socialists had gotten yet, the Republicans taken aback by their strength in urban areas (nearly taking New York of all places, but splitting between them, the Populists, and a rump Communist party assured that didn't happen), and the Populists were amazed how they took some western states, or their vote power in the South (narrowly beating them in Texas and handing the state to the Republicans).
Despite their superb showing, they were still in third place, far from victory in a normal situation. But this situation itself was far from normal, with no candidate receiving 266 votes the election fell to Congress. Weeks was unpopular, Smith a cranky old Bryanite, and La Follette still the Speaker. How he managed to twist enough arms to get himself in the Oval Office is not that hard to decipher. Smith was the eldest major party candidate yet, at 75. Older then Weeks (61) and La Follette (65), he was chosen as a compromise candidate (Tom Johnson and Charles Bryan his major adversaries) and his gaffes as candidate established him as a gloomy fatalist (more then once he told people he expected to die in office and would prefer that Hunt take over when he does). Weeks had rarely appeared on the campaign trail, minimizing the chances of his personal unpopularity jeopardizing the Republicans chances in November. La Follette campaigned like a man who
wanted to be President, not resigned to let others do the work for them.
While the House choose third place La Follette, the Senate choose second place Hunt as Vice-President. Hunt had served as numerous positions in Arizona, most recently Senator as a Populist Party Member. Despite this he rarely had a Socialist opponent, his membership with the IWW, his pro-Labor policies and votes secured his safety from their organization. Now Vice-President he could safely mock all those would called him a turncoat, or closet communist for his loyalties.
A lot of people were enraged at the turn of events. The Republicans, who for better or for worse,
had won the popular vote (and barely lost the electoral vote), and despite that they had the Presidency taken from them. With barely a quarter of the vote he was sworn in on March 4th, 1921 as America's first Socialist President. His opponents hated him for betraying his party and stealing the election, his friends were upset the old man had abandoned his old values of honesty and fair play, while achieving the Presidency in such an underhanded method, Socialists hated him for tarring them with the brush of illegitimacy. It would be a rough 4 years, if he even survived them.
1890 Lodge Bill Timeline:
1892 Presidential and Congressional elections
1894 Congress/1896 general elections
1898 Congress/1900 general election
1902 Congress/1904 general elections
*John Calhoun Bell biography
1906 Congressional elections
1908 General Elections
1910 Congress/1912 general election
1914 House elections
1916 General Elections
1918 House elections
