1932: Hoover, FDR, and the New Deal Campaign

The 1932 election unfolded amid the depths of the Great Depression, in a nation where industrial production had plummeted and nearly 25% of Americans were out of work. The two major candidates offered voters very different solutions to the crisis. President Herbert Hoover argued that government's role was to encourage business to fix itself, while his challenger Franklin Roosevelt declared that bold government action was the only way to restore prosperity. Voters agreed, and Roosevelt — and his vision of a "New Deal" with the American people — won, fundamentally changing the relationship between citizens and the state.
Lynn M. Thomas, Professor and Chair, UW Department of History
John M. Findlay
Margaret Pugh O'Mara, Associate Professor, UW Department of History
10/17/2012