The Early Political Skills of Franklin Roosevelt

From Groton School to the 1920 Presidential Election

Aug 16, 2009

FDR cultivated the political techniques he used as President during his school years, his work in state and national government, and his run for Vice President in 1920.

A home-schooled child with no companions his age, group hierarchy was new to Franklin Roosevelt when he first arrived at Groton School in 1896. He was fourteen years old, two years older than most boys who started. Right away, FDR sought to be the focus of his social groups, possibly to emulate the home environment in which he was raised.

At Groton, team sports (particularly football and baseball) were the key to stardom, but due to his solitary upbringing and slight build, Roosevelt didn't perform especially well at either game. He still sought to get along though, and became the manager of the school's baseball team in 1899. This was the first position he held in which he was directly subordinate to no one. Many of his future endeavors would follow suit.

FDR at Harvard University, 1900 - 1904

FDR was determined to prove himself at Harvard University. He started off by trying out for Harvard football. Although he only made it onto one the school's intramural scrub teams, he was voted captain - the only freshman captain that year, he told his parents. He was also elected an editor for the Harvard Crimson, and the secretary of the freshman glee club. Additionally, he became stroke on one of the intramural rowing teams.

In 1903, he became the Crimson's managing editor, and even stayed on at Harvard several months past his graduation requirements in order to fulfill the role as president.

His leadership skills at the Crimson received lukewarm reviews. Some of the staff felt him mediocre in the role, but others, such as Walter Russell Bowie, who filled the managing editor position after FDR, felt that, "in his geniality, there was a kind of frictionless command." Nevertheless, it was clear he was refining his social and political skill sets by persistent practice.

FDR in New York State Politics, 1910 - 1913

At this early stage in his political career, FDR took many of his cues from his fifth cousin, former president Theodore Roosevelt. T.R. was still tremendously popular at the time Franklin was running for office, and the younger Roosevelt was not shy about borrowing his more famous cousin's techniques. He made liberal use of token T.R. language, such as 'bully', and he always remembered to smile.

In 1911, the Tammany Hall political machine told New York Democrats they were to vote in as Senator the corrupt ex-lieutenant governor, Billy Sheehan. Not one to take orders, FDR said 'no', and organized a small group of rebels to support him.

Tammany Hall offered a slightly less corrupt candidate in Sheehan's stead, but Roosevelt and his followers again said 'no'. Tammany then proposed a more respectable candidate in State Supreme Court Justice James Aloysius O'Gorman. FDR finally agreed, demonstrating that he did have some vision and mettle.

Assistant Secretary of the Navy, 1913 - 1920

On March 17, 1913, the Senate confirmed Franklin Roosevelt as Assistant Secretary of the Navy. This marked one of the few times in FDR's life when he had to answer directly to a superior, Secretary of the Navy, Josephus Daniels. His post in the Navy Department was a reward for working hard during Woodrow Wilson campaign, and he was thrilled: his role-model, Theodore Roosevelt, had once held the same office.

After his 1914 plans for running for United States Senate fell through (Tammany candidate James W. Gerard earned 210,765 votes in the Primary to FDR's meager 85,203), Roosevelt waited until 1918 before considering office again. This time, the thirty-six year old set his sights on New York's Governorship. Failing to rally President Wilson's support early enough in the campaign, Roosevelt instead kept his post in the Navy Department.

Although anxious to advance in politics, Roosevelt was also canny enough to realize that he was young, and could wait until the right opportunity presented itself.

FDR as Vice Presidential Candidate, 1920

After eight years in the Wilson Administration, the 1920 Presidential election found FDR considered for Vice President not once, but twice. In January, FDR agreed to run as Vice President on a Hoover-Roosevelt ticket, but Herbert Hoover could not be persuaded to run in a year in which the Democrats were sure to lose. Roosevelt temporarily fell back by the wayside.

When Ohio Governor James Cox became the Democratic candidate in July, his Vice Presidential picks seemed paltry. Cox, who was a rather plain and unassuming man himself, quickly selected Roosevelt as a running mate. FDR's background in New York complimented Cox's Ohio political geography, and by the standards of the time, he was also unusually good-looking, which Cox felt might attract the newly-won female vote. As a bonus, his young running mate bore the winning surname 'Roosevelt'.

Although the Democrats eventually lost to Warren G. Harding, Roosevelt used this campaign experience to forge important contacts that he would later use in his successful bids for the Presidency. These contacts included James Cox himself, who later worked to help FDR into the White House four times.

Bethell, J. T. (1996, November). Frank Roosevelt at Harvard: And What Became of Him Later. Retrieved August 14, 2009, from Harvard Magazine: http://harvardmagazine.com/1996/11/frank.html

Pietrusza, D. (2007). 1920: The Year of the Six Presidents. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers.

Ward, G. C. (1989). A First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc.

Ward, G. C. (1985). Before the Trumpet: Young Franklin Roosevelt 1882 - 1905. New York: HarperCollins.

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