VII.

Presidential Campaign

When the national election of 1924 approached, Coolidge had no difficulty in being nominated for president. The Democrats, after a convention battle, nominated a corporation lawyer of New York, John W. Davis, for president, but only after a deadlock that lasted for 100 ballots. The rival candidates were former Treasury Secretary William Gibbs McAdoo and Alfred E. Smith, governor of New York. United States Senator Robert M. La Follette, Sr., of Wisconsin, also entered the race as the candidate of the Progressive Party.

The Democrats went into the contest badly divided because of their convention fight. They were further weakened by the fact that workers, who usually voted Democratic, were not enthusiastic about Davis, who had connections with high finance. A considerable portion of trade union leaders later swung their support to La Follette, and the American Federation of Labor openly endorsed him.

The Republicans, on the other hand, were unified and strong. They made effective use of their slogan “Keep Cool With Coolidge.” The paramount issue was the economic condition of the country, which had greatly improved under Coolidge. When the votes were counted, Coolidge had easily defeated Davis, collecting 382 electoral votes to 136 for the Democrat. Coolidge received 15,725,016 popular votes to Davis's 8,385,586. La Follette received the 13 electoral votes of his native Wisconsin and 4,822,856 popular votes.