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U.S. presidential election, 1928
The U.S. presidential election of 1928 pitted Republican Herbert Hoover against Democrat Alfred E. Smith. The Republicans were identified with the booming economy of the 1920s and Smith, a Roman Catholic, suffered politically from anti-Catholic prejudice, leading to a landslide victory for Hoover.
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Nominations
Republican Party nomination
The Republican Convention was held in Kansas City, Missouri from 12 June to 15 June, where Hoover became the party's candidate on the first ballot. In his acceptance speech he said "We in America today are nearer to the final triumph over poverty than ever before in the history of this land... We shall soon with the help of God be in sight of the day when poverty will be banished from this land."
Democratic Party nomination
The Democratic Convention was held in Houston, Texas, 26 June to 28 June. Al Smith became the candidate on the second ballot. Smith was the first Roman Catholic to gain a major party's nomination for US President, and his religion became an issue during the campaign. Many Protestants feared that Smith would take orders from church leaders in Rome in making decisions affecting the country.
Prohibition Party nomination
Although Smith did not openly come out against Prohibition, he was perceived by many as soft in the war against alcohol. The Prohibition Party threw its support to Hoover.
General election
Results
The election was held on November 6, 1928.
Republican candidate Herbert Hoover won election by a wide margin on pledges to continue the economic boom of the Coolidge years. Smith won the electorial votes only of the traditionally Democratic US South and a few New England States, by a narrow margin failing to even carry his home state of New York.
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| Alfred Emmanuel Smith
| Democrat
| New York
| style="text-align:right;" | 15,016,443
| style="text-align:right;" | 40.9%
| style="text-align:right;" | 87
| Joseph Taylor Robinson
| Arkansas
| style="text-align:right;" | 87
|- | Norman Thomas | Socialist | | style="text-align:right;" | 265,583 | style="text-align:right;" | 0.7% | style="text-align:right;" | 0 | | | style="text-align:right;" | 0
Source: U.S. Office of the Federal Register
See also
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