1936 Presidential Election

The United States presidential election of 1936 was the most lopsided presidential election in the history of the United States in terms of electoral votes. In terms of the popular vote, it was the third biggest victory since the election of 1820, which was not seriously contested. The election took place as the Great Depression entered its eighth year. Incumbent President Franklin D. Roosevelt was still working to push the provisions of his New Deal economic policy through Congress and the courts. However, the New Deal policies he had already enacted, such as Social Security and unemployment benefits, had proven to be highly popular with most Americans. Roosevelt's Republican opponent was Governor Alf Landon of Kansas, a political moderate.

Although some political pundits predicted a close race, Roosevelt went on to win the greatest electoral landslide since the beginning of the current two-party system in the 1850s, carrying all but 8 electoral votes. Roosevelt carried every state except Maine and Vermont.

Source: Wikipedia

1936 Election Results

Candidate Party Electoral Votes Popular Votes
Franklin D. Roosevelt (I) Democratic 523 27,751,597
Alfred M. Landon Republican 8 16,679,583

1936 Election Facts

  • 20th Amendment ratified in this cycle: Inauguration day moves from March 4th to January 20th
  • Issues of the Day: Great Depression (New Deal), Repeal of Prohibition