1928 Democratic National Convention

1928 Democratic National Convention
1928 presidential election;
	Nominees ; Smith and Robinson
Convention
Date(s)	June 26–28, 1928
City	Houston, Texas
Venue	Sam Houston Hall
Candidates
Presidential nominee	Alfred E. Smith of New York
Vice presidential nominee	Joseph T. Robinson of Arkansas
	‹ 1924 · 1932 ›

The 1928 Democratic National Convention was held at Sam Houston Hall in Houston, Texas, June 26–28, 1928. The keynote speaker was Claude G. Bowers. The convention^[1] resulted in the nomination of Governor Alfred E. Smith of New York for president and Senator Joseph T. Robinson of Arkansas for vice president.

The convention was the first held by either party in the South since the Civil War. It was also the first to nominate a Roman Catholic for president, Al Smith. The Texas delegation, led by Governor Dan Moody, was vehemently opposed to Smith. Therefore, when Smith was nominated, they rallied against his anti-prohibition sentiment by fighting for a "dry", prohibitionist platform. Ultimately, the convention pledged "honest enforcement of the Constitution".

Smith became the first Democrat since Reconstruction to lose more than one southern state in the general election, due to his "wet" stance, his opposition to the Ku Klux Klan^{[citation needed]}, and his Catholicism.

The election was held in very hot summer weather in a venue without air conditioning.^[2]

Presidential nomination

Presidential candidates

Governor
Al Smith
of New York
Representative
Cordell Hull
of Tennessee
Senator
Walter F. George
of Georgia
Senator
James A. Reed
of Missouri
Former Senator
Atlee Pomerene
of Ohio
Entrepreneur
Jesse H. Jones
of Texas
Former Coach
Evans Woollen
of Indiana
Representative
William A. Ayres
of Kansas
Former Senator
Gilbert Hitchcock
of Nebraska

Other candidates for the nomination possibly included:

James T. Heflin, U.S. senator from Alabama
William G. McAdoo, former Treasury Secretary from California
Edwin T. Meredith, former Agriculture Secretary from Indiana
Henry T. Rainey, U.S. representative from Illinois
Thomas J. Walsh, U.S. senator from Montana

Presidential Balloting
Candidate	1st (Before Shifts)	1st (After Shifts)
Smith	724.67	849.67
Hull	71.83	50.83
George	52.50	52.50
Reed	48	52
Pomerene	47	3
Jones	43	43
Woollen	32	7
Harrison	20	8.50
Ayres	20	3
Watts	18	18
Hitchcock	16	2
Donahey	5	5
Thompson	2	2
Bilbo	0	1
Not Voting	0	2.50

Presidential Balloting / 3rd Day of Convention (June 28, 1928)

1st Presidential Ballot (Before Shifts)
1st Presidential Ballot (After Shifts)

Vice presidential nomination

Vice presidential candidates

Senate Minority Leader
Joseph T. Robinson
of Arkansas
Senator
Alben W. Barkley
of Kentucky
Former Governor
Nellie Tayloe Ross
of Wyoming
Major General
Henry T. Allen
of Kentucky
Senator
Duncan U. Fletcher
of Florida

Joseph T. Robinson was chosen as the vice presidential nominee.

Other candidates for the nomination possibly included:

Gilbert Hitchcock, former senator from Nebraska^[3]
Joseph Reed, senator from Missouri^[3]
Atlee Pomerene former senator from Ohio^[3]
Cordell Hull, Congressman from Tennessee^[3]
John H. Taylor

Vice Presidential Balloting
Candidate	1st (Before Shifts)	1st (After Shifts)
Robinson	914.17	1,035.17
Barkley	77	9
Ross	33	2
Allen	28	21
Berry	17.50	11.50
Moody	9.33	9.33
Fletcher	7	7
Taylor	6	0
Stevenson	4	2
Woollen	2	2
Tumulty	1	0
Not Voting	1	1

Vice Presidential Balloting / 3rd Day of Convention (June 28, 1928)

1st Vice Presidential Ballot (Before Shifts)
1st Vice Presidential Ballot (After Shifts)

References

^ "The 1928 Democratic Convention". Texas Archive of the Moving Image. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
^ Smith, Jack Z. (November 11, 1982). "Democrats looking Wet for 1984 convention site". Newspapers.com. Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Warn, WA (June 29, 1928). "Smith Wins Nomination on First Ballot With 849 2/3 Votes After States Shift to Him; Platform With a Dry Plank Is Adopted". New York Times. Retrieved October 8, 2015.

External links

Governor Moody and the "Dry" Platform
Democratic Party Platform of 1928 at The American Presidency Project
Smith Nomination Acceptance Speech for President at DNC (transcript) at The American Presidency Project

Preceded by 1924 New York, New York	Democratic National Conventions	Succeeded by 1932 Chicago, Illinois

[1] "The 1928 Democratic Convention". Texas Archive of the Moving Image. Retrieved November 29, 2019.

[2] Smith, Jack Z. (November 11, 1982). "Democrats looking Wet for 1984 convention site". Newspapers.com. Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

[warn-3] Warn, WA (June 29, 1928). "Smith Wins Nomination on First Ballot With 849 2/3 Votes After States Shift to Him; Platform With a Dry Plank Is Adopted". New York Times. Retrieved October 8, 2015.

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