Al Smith 1928 presidential campaign
American political campaign
Al Smith, Governor of New York, was a candidate for President of the United States in the 1928 election. His run was notable in that he was the first Catholic nominee of a major party, he opposed Prohibition, and he enjoyed broad appeal among women, who had won the right of suffrage in 1920.
Background
Al Smith was the governor of New York from 1919 to 1920 and 1923 to 1928. His running mate, Joseph Taylor Robinson, was a senator from Arkansas and future Senate Majority Leader.
After failing to secure the nomination at the 1924 Democratic National Convention, which featured a 103-ballot deadlock between Smith and William McAdoo, Smith ran again for the presidency in 1928.
Primary campaign
Soon after the 1924 election, Smith's supporters began laying the groundwork for a 1928 effort. Smith enjoyed continued popularity in the North, and was further helped by the endorsement of Philip La Follette. Philip was son of 1924 Progressive Party presidential candidate Robert M. La Follette, who died in 1925 seven months after receiving 16.62 percent of the popular vote in the previous November's presidential election. As a third-party presidential candidate only former President Millard Fillmore in 1856, incumbent Vice President John C. Breckinridge in 1860, former President Theodore Roosevelt in 1912, and independent Ross Perot in 1992 have ever exceeded La Follette's 1924 vote share. Whilst Phillip's brother Robert M. La Follette Jr.
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