Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover (1874-1964) was the 31st President of the United States of America following Calvin Coolidge and preceding Franklin Roosevelt and was the United States Secretary of Commerce under President Calvin Coolidge, his predecessor.
Election to Presidency
Calvin Coolidge decided against running for reelection in 1928. As a member of his Cabinet, Hoover was nominated to the Republican ticket. He was able to use the popularity of the Coolidge Administration to win election.
He held office from 1929 to 1933 during the Great Depression. Hoover's success in fighting the economic disaster that was upon the US was not evident during his presidency, and that cost him his popularity as well as re-election. Unemployment was near 25% by 1932. [1]
Hoover's popularity takes a hit
Many people lost their jobs during the Great Depression and were forced to move into "shantytowns" that became known as "Hoovervilles", a mocking tribute to the President whom they blamed for their financial woes. [2] (This link contains pictures of several "Hoovervilles".) Hoover's popularity took a further hit when a group of veterans from World War I known as the Bonus Army marched on Washington, D.C. to demand their cash bonuses that they were to receive in 1945 for their military service. [3] Hoover deployed the Army to drive out these marchers, of whom there were up to 10,000, which was a further public relations nightmare. Hoover lost the 1932 election by a landslide to Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt, winning only 59 electoral votes. [4]
