Why Did Roosevelt Win the Election of 1932? (AQA GCSE History)
Revision Note
Why did Hoover Fail to Resolve the Great Depression? - Timeline & Summary
President Herbert Hoover faced significant challenges in trying to resolve the Great Depression. Ultimately, his efforts were unsuccessful for several reasons.
One key factor was Hoover's belief in the importance of limited government intervention in the economy. He believed that the economy would eventually fix itself. As a result, he did not want to implement large-scale government programmes to combat the Depression. Hoover was also responsible for placing high tariffs on imported goods. As a consequence, other countries placed tariffs on US products. This reduced international trade and increased unemployment which made the depression worse.
Hoover relied on volunteers and charities to provide social and economic help to citizens during the Depression. These organisations could not provide enough support. There was too much poverty and unemployment. Charitable organisations needed more resources to meet this demand.
Hoover's response to the Bonus Army turned many US citizens against him. The use of force to end the protest damaged Hoover's reputation. From then on, many US citizens did not trust that Hoover was the right person to lead the USA out of the Depression. The country elected Roosevelt as President in 1932.
Hoover's Actions as President
Before the Wall Street Crash, Hoover excelled at being the President during the economic boom
In his 1928 election campaign, Hoover stated that the Republican Party under President Coolidge had provided:
“a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage”
Hoover believed that:
The government interference in the economy should be minimal
Helping people too much makes them lazy and they should resolve their own problems
After the Wall Street Crash, Hoover’s beliefs made the Depression even worse
Hoover’s beliefs impacted the actions that he took during the Great Depression:
For many years, Hoover did nothing to help the economy or the US people
For example, Hoover blocked the passing of the Garner-Wagner Relief Bill in 1932 which would have used government money to create public jobs
When Hoover did act, his policies were too little and too late
In 1930, Hoover cut taxes but this did not have a big enough impact on the US people
Millions of people blamed Hoover for their issues
A popular phrase in the 1930s was:
“In Hoover we trusted and now we are busted”
The Bonus Marchers
The Bonus Army was a group of 20,000 former First World War soldiers
In March 1932, the members marched to Washington to ask for economic help to survive the Depression
The Bonus Marchers wanted the government to pay their war pension of $500 straight away, rather than in 1945
They created a Hooverville just in front of the White House
The US Congress refused to pay the Bonus Marchers
As a result, the Bonus Army and their families refused to leave
Hoover decided to remove the Bonus Army by force
Douglas MacArthur led the US troops
The Army used tear gas and tanks to move the Bonus Marchers
The US army killed two protestors and a baby
Over 1,000 people were injured
How did the Bonus Army impact Hoover’s presidency?
The actions of the Bonus Marchers made the USA look politically unstable
To the public, it looked like some groups were willing to stage a revolution against the government
People did not trust that Hoover could keep control of the USA
Hoover’s approach to dealing with the Bonus Army shocked many US citizens
The Bonus Army was made up of First World War veterans
US society treated veterans with the utmost respect due to their service
They believed that Hoover was wrong to use force against veterans
It showed that Hoover did not care about his people
He was unwilling to give support to ex-soldiers who served to protect the USA
The incident made people determined to vote against Hoover in the next election
1932 was an election year
Hoover’s actions patriotic Americans made himself even more unpopular with the public
Worked Example
Describe two problems with President Hoover’s actions in the years 1929 to 1932
[4 marks]
Answer:
One problem with President Hoover’s actions was that they were too little too late for the US public (1). An example of this is when he cut taxes in 1930. This did not have a big enough impact of the US people to make a difference to their lives (1).
Another problem with President Hoover’s actions was how he refused to help key groups of people during the Depression (1). An example of this is the Bonus Marchers in 1932. As veterans, Hoover should have treated them with respect. Instead, he sent the US army to attack and move them (1).
Exam Tip
Ensure you make your details as specific as possible to access all 4 marks. The details of this example include the year that Hoover lowered taxes and the Bonus Marchers.
Roosevelt's Campaign
Roosevelt developed a clever campaign that resulted in his election to president in 1932
Roosevelt’s Tactics for Election
Roosevelt’s tactic | Why was this tactic successful? |
|---|---|
Roosvelt was an excellent orator. He travelled 20,000km by train across the country, making speeches | People listened to Roosevelt’s vision for the USA. He seemed like he cared about the people of the USA |
Roosevelt promised that his government would help the ‘forgotten man’ | Many people in the USA felt like the ‘forgotten man.’ They trusted that Roosevelt would help them recover from the economic crisis |
Roosevelt highlighted his own struggles. He was disabled after suffering from polio at the age of 39 | The US public believed that Roosevelt understood what it was like to go through suffering. Hoover’s backstory as a self-made millionaire was unrelatable to most people in the USA |
Roosevelt promised a ‘New Deal’ to resolve the Depression. He promised to create government schemes to provide more jobs and revive industry and farming. He wanted to provide help for the poor and unemployed and improve worker protection. He promised to end the Prohibition | The US people liked Roosevelt’s ideas. They recognised that Roosevelt had listened to the concerns of the people and knew how to resolve them |
Exam Tip
Franklin D. Roosevelt is also known as FDR. Either version is acceptable in your exam answers. Whilst there are many abbreviations in this course, it may help in your exam answers to shorten Roosevelt’s name. When writing an answer, write “Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR)” once. This will allow you to write “FDR” throughout the rest of your answer.
The 1932 Presidential Election
The election took place in November 1932
Roosevelt won with eight million more votes than Hoover
It was the biggest landslide victory in US history
Hoover only won votes from six out of 48 states
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