FDR: January 30th 1882-October 12th 1944

Exactly what it says on the tin. In this timeline, FDR dies on the date described in the title. What are the consequences, both in terms of American politics, and the war/post-war negotiations? Henry Wallace obviously succeeds to the Presidency. How does the election of 1944 unfold with the Democratic nominee dead less than a month before the election? Is there any time to alter the ticket, for example, having President Wallace take Roosevelt's place on the ticket? If not, how does the Democratic Party handle the last stages of the 1944 campaign? Similarly, how does Thomas Dewey react to his political opponent's death? Does Roosevelt's death, and the Presidency of Henry Wallace, change Dewey's political tone in the last period before the election?
 
Given the circumstances, I suppose a Democratic victory in the 1944 election is slightly more likely than a Dewey victory, since there isn't much time between Roosevelt's death and the election. But I'm not sure what the contingencies are for this sort of circumstance. In this timeline would FDR be the first posthumously reelected President?
 
Elections are held with the meeting of the Electoral college on December 15.

Wallace would become president, no problem there.

I am not sure but the I believe the issues that resulted in Wallace being removed from the ticket in the first place and replaced with Truman had already be widely known, and might result in a loss if Wallace being on top of the ticket. Either way, there would be a meeting of major players in DC and Roosevelt would be replaced on the top of the ticket by someone else, but not Wallace. Truman is a possibility, but US vice presidents aren't really chosen as the face of the party.

Anyway, the Democrats will have someone other than wallace as the head of the ticket December 15. And maybe a replacement for truman as well.

The republicans made huge inroads in 44, and Wallace was one of the reasons. He was a pretty notorious whack job. If Wallace is not replaced as the presidential candidate by Nov 1, Willkie wins.
 
Wait why would the election be delayed until December? Or am I merely confused as to what you mean by the term election? Also, since Dewey had already received the nomination it would be him and not Wendell Wilkie who would stand to benefit. My question is with such a late death is there time to alter the ticket. If so is Wallace given the nod? If the anti Wallace faction prevails who migh their pick be?
 
The election is not delayed. First tuesday after first monday is the day the electors are chosen by the states.

It is the electors, who vote Dec 15, who vote for president.

It depends on the state. Here in Oregon the electors are listed on the ballot. The Ballot will read something like Republican candidate for president :Herman Cain. Republican candidates for Elector : Joe blow, Jane Doe, Robert Roe, Hu Go, Endora Stevens, Patrick Furrilio, Archie Bunker.


Henry Wallace was way ahead of his time (He refused to speak as segregated venues) was anathema in the south. They might have just refused to cast their votes for him.

Since there is no law that binds the electors, they can and on rare occasions do vote any which way.

So, Wallace would be president, but the party leadership would hold a meeting about what to do before November 7 and Wallace would not be the candidate. The election would go as scheduled.

Wallace would not get any votes in the south. I don't know where the would go. Just not to Willkie or Wallace. So Wallace is out



In the North, Wallace had problems because of his Guru letters. He was a laughingstock because of them.

If wallace is the choice, Northern voters vote for Willkie.

Democrats might prevail on General Marshal to resign as cinc and Run for office. He would be the most likely candidate to appeal to folks to stay the course for the rest of the war.
 
Alright, I thought you were talking about the electoral/popular vote distinction there, but I wasn't sure. Anyway, Wendell Wilkie was already dead by the point of divergence. Wilkie died on October 8th, and here FDR dies on October 12th. In any case, the Republican nominee was Thomas Dewey. I'm not sure why you keep mentioning Dewey. In any case, I don't think we can talk about what happens on December 15th 1944 without discussing what happens in November. There is at least a possibility that in the confusion of FDR's death, Dewey emerges as the victor in November. As you note, the electors aren't bound by the result of the votes in the states, but the outcome in November does have a considerable influence. The other thing is whether or not the Democrats could replace Roosevelt on the ticket. If they can, that makes the maneuvering around who the electors vote for a lot easier presuming a "Roosevelt" victory in November. The quicker the Democrats can unify around a new candidate, the better off they'll be.

 
Dewey is going to win. I have absolutely no idea how this would affect anything past the election, however.

I wouldn't say a Dewey victory is an absolute certainty here. After all, there is going to be an outpouring of grief for President Roosevelt. Since the election is less than a month after his death, the Democrats could conceivably turn that into votes in November. Conceivably, they could claim that electing Dewey would entirely alter the nation's foreign policy apparatus in the middle of war, that at the very least, Roosevelt's cabinet should be kept and not thrown out in favor of Dewey's. Also, Dewey's more disparaging comments towards FDR could be used against him. I'd say the election is a tossup, maybe with Dewey at a slightly greater advantage, simply because he is not running against the unbeatable FDR. The real problem is that there isn't much time from October 12th to the election.
 
I think it is possible that they might go with either William Douglas (Roosevelt's other preferred choice) or Alben Barkley to be the new head of the ticket; there is also a chance they may simply put Harry Truman at the head as well and the two I mentioned above would simply become his Running Mate (though with Douglas this would be unlikely), with Henry Kaiser and James Byrnes also possibly filling this role.​
 
In the '40s, there's still enough time to get another candidate on the ballot. They probably have a two-week window, and could even pass legislation to delay the election to, say, late November.

The Democrats have great leeway in getting almost whoever they want. That said, you'll have the usual back-and-forth between factions (Southerners/Northerners). And, of course, the Wallace situation.

Henry A. Wallace, the outgoing Vice President (everyone knew this): He's going to be President of the United States for three months (about a month before Election Day). An incumbent, and an incumbent in the middle of a war, is a strong candidate. One they might not want to pass up, even with his differences.

Of course, Truman, the running mate on the Roosevelt ticket, was arguably picked because many expected FDR might pass on soon. So, given that Roosevelt *did* die (earlier than wanted), Truman still can fulfill his original goal and simply "take over" the ticket, and probably get elected quite handily.

The best bet is to just promote running mate Truman on the ticket, and people will vote out of sympathy.
 
The Democratic National Committee meets to select a substitute nominee. The Chairman of the DNC at the time was Bob Hannegan, a Missourian who was instrumental in securing Truman's selection as VP and who detested Henry Wallace. While Truman's selection is far from assured in this kind of scenario, given the time constraints involved, it would, in my opinion, be the most likely outcome. So, you get a Truman-Dewey contest in '44 rather than '48. I think Truman wins here on the wave of grief over FDR's death by pledging to carry on FDR's program and continue his policies to win the war.

How this all plays out after the inauguration is anyone's guess. It means, for one thing, that Truman rather than FDR is at Yalta in February. That could, in turn, have far-reaching repercussions for the shape of the post-war world.
 
There may be a chance the DNC may not meet until after the Funeral (which may not be until the 16th of October). By this point, many states will already sent the ballot to the press with FDR listed for President (this includes sample ballots to be used by schools and at city hall). If the Democrats do not agree who to vote for for president, some states could flip over to Dewey, and if Dewey gets into the 150-200 vote range, it could very well come down to the house to elect FDR successor. (there may be the possibility the Democrats will split between Wallace, Truman, and others in the EC)
 
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