Roosevelt´s success in 1932

In history we had to write an essay based on the following question. How important were Republican reactions to the Wall Street crash as causes of Roosevelt's success in the presidential election of 1932?

In 1932 there were presidential elections in the USA, Roosevelt and Hoover were the two candidates, Roosevelt won. There were many reactions for his success such as the republican reaction to the Wall Street crash and his campaign among others.

On one hand, some people believe republican measures in connection to the Wall Street crash were the cause of Roosevelt’s victory. Hoover, a republican, was seen as a “do nothing” president. Republicans believed the Depression had happened because of economic problems in Europe. Moreover, they refused to interfere with the economy and business, which could have helped. Hoover became very unpopular specially due to the fact that he did not try to help people who were suffering because of the Depression. As a result, during the election people were more likely to vote for Roosevelt as they thought this change could improve the economy.

On the other hand, many people argue that Roosevelt became president because of his own strengths. As a candidate, Roosevelt said he believed in “active government” to improve the economy, he had plans to spend public money on getting people back to work and he asked for advice from experts. In addition he did a really strong campaign which promised a New Deal, action was the only thing people expected and he promised that. Roosevelt won the elections by seven million votes and he was entirely sure that he could get USA out of the depression.

On balance, it should be said that republican reactions to the Wall Street crash were important to Roosevelt success as they did nothing and people did not agree. However it was not the only reason why he won the elections, his thoughts, actions and his strong campaign were also vital for his success.