Draft Eisenhower movement

During the 1948 presidential election, despite being asked repeatedly by various organizations and politicians, including former president Franklin D. Roosevelt's son James, Eisenhower rejected all requests to enter politics.

Despite attempts by several prominent Democratic politicians, Eisenhower refused to accept the nomination, which went to incumbent President Harry S. Truman.

Nominated by the Republican Party as their presidential candidate, Eisenhower defeated Democrat Adlai Stevenson to become the 34th president.

Dwight D. Eisenhower graduated in 1915 from the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, with "the class the stars fell on".

[6] In July 1947, President Harry S. Truman considered him an ideal candidate for the Democratic Party, and wanted to "groom the general to follow him".

[19] New York Representative W. Sterling Cole voiced his opposition to the nomination of Eisenhower or any other military leader for the presidency.

[20] In January 1948, a few Republican politicians from New Hampshire entered a group of delegates pledged to Eisenhower in the primary contest.

[18] President Franklin D. Roosevelt's son, James, campaigned for Eisenhower to contest the nomination and take Truman's place on the Democratic ticket.

[24] In early July, Democratic state organizations in Georgia and Virginia, and former New York Supreme Court Justice Jeremiah T. Mahoney, openly endorsed Eisenhower.

[25][26] On July 5, a survey conducted by The New York Times revealed that support for Eisenhower as Democratic nominee for president was increasing among the delegates, fueled by an "anti–Truman Group" led by James Roosevelt, Jacob Arvey, and William O'Dwyer.

[39] On July 8, Governor Strom Thurmond of South Carolina, who later walked out of the Democratic convention, publicly called and encouraged Eisenhower to run.

[33] Eisenhower replied, "No matter under what terms, conditions, or premises a proposal might be couched, I would refuse to accept the nomination.

[42] In his 1977 book, historian and author Herbert S. Parmet argued: "The Eisenhower boom was symptomatic of the abyss into which Democratic Liberals—and one must say not only Liberals—'had fallen'.

[48] Meanwhile, Dewey and Senator Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. began encouraging Eisenhower to run more than two years before the 1952 Republican National Convention.

[49] Dewey asked Lucius D. Clay—Eisenhower's former deputy—about his opinion on Eisenhower's potential presidential run, to which Clay replied: "I don't know.

[67][68] As Eisenhower's position on his candidacy for the New Hampshire primary remained unclear, Lodge sought help from William E. Robinson, the publisher of the New York Herald Tribune.

[69] On January 6, 1952, authorized by Clay and Robinson, Lodge placed Eisenhower's name on the New Hampshire primary ballot.

Senator Paul Douglas even suggested both parties to nominate Eisenhower with different vice-presidential running mates.

[72] The event planners expected no more than the arena's 16,000 person capacity, but over 25,000 showed up, and the New York City police and fire marshals could get very few people to leave.

[76] The editor of The Kansas City Star, Roy A. Roberts, called it "one of the biggest things that ever happened in an American political campaign".

"[81] A poll conducted by Gallup days before the Republican Convention showed Eisenhower leading by 25% over Truman and 16% over Taft.

[83] To counteract the issue of his age, his advisors advised him to select 39-year-old Senator Richard Nixon as his running mate.

[84] Eisenhower and Nixon won the 1952 presidential election in a landslide, defeating Democratic nominees Adlai Stevenson and John Sparkman by a margin of 353 electoral votes.

[93] Initially pessimistic about undertaking a second term, after being persuaded by various Republican leaders through another draft movement, he agreed to run for re-election.

[98] The "Citizens for Eisenhower" committee remained active even after the 1952 election, supporting the modernization of the Republican conservative agenda.

[101][102] In his 2000 book, Pickett wrote: In truth, Eisenhower's decision to become a candidate was less complicated, not to mention less devious, and more honorable.