WI: President Coolidge declines to run in 1924

The 1920s were, overall, some of the most contested primaries in a fair long time. The Democrats resorted to dark horse candidates (James Cox in 1920 and John W. Davis in 1924) to break progressive/conservative feuds. In 1920, so did the Republicans; only Harding's personal popularity and his endorsed successor kept the Republican Party in its straight line. Coolidge ran almost unopposed in 1924, receiving a direct majority in a three-way race, but let's remember: he was challenged for that nomination to begin with.

So let's pretend Coolidge repeats his 1928 stunt and decides to retire back to New England. Who runs, on which side? Hiram Johnson? Frank Lowden? Does Robert La Follette make a good shot at a third party?

I've been interested in 1920s situations before (Wood) but this seems ripe for potential.
 
The 1920s were, overall, some of the most contested primaries in a fair long time. The Democrats resorted to dark horse candidates (James Cox in 1920 and John W. Davis in 1924) to break progressive/conservative feuds. In 1920, so did the Republicans; only Harding's personal popularity and his endorsed successor kept the Republican Party in its straight line. Coolidge ran almost unopposed in 1924, receiving a direct majority in a three-way race, but let's remember: he was challenged for that nomination to begin with.

So let's pretend Coolidge repeats his 1928 stunt and decides to retire back to New England. Who runs, on which side? Hiram Johnson? Frank Lowden? Does Robert La Follette make a good shot at a third party?

I've been interested in 1920s situations before (Wood) but this seems ripe for potential.

What about Hoover? It is true that the Old Guard was still a little suspicious of him because of his being a Bull Mooser in 1912 and of appearing to back Wilson's call for a Democratic Congress in 1918. But he was widely respected as an engineer and humanitarian, and had won rave reviews as an efficient Secretary of Commerce. We know in retrospect how weak the Democrats would be in 1924, but the GOP couldn't be sure of that in advance, and someone like Hoover, who had remained scandal-free and actually gained prestige in the Harding cabinet, would have the best chance of winning in November.
 
The two conservative Senators that kept on trying to run during this time were Jim Watson and Charles Curtis. I wonder if they would have had a decent shot if Coolidge had declined to run.
 
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