Editing Herbert Hoover (section)

===1920 election===
{{Further|1920 United States presidential election}}
Hoover had been little known among the American public before 1914, but his service in the Wilson administration established him as a contender in the 1920 presidential election. Hoover's wartime push for higher taxes, criticism of Attorney General [[A. Mitchell Palmer]]'s actions during the [[First Red Scare]], and his advocacy for measures such as the [[Minimum wage in the United States|minimum wage]], forty-eight-hour workweek, and [[Child labor laws in the United States|elimination of child labor]] made him appealing to progressives of both parties.{{sfn|Leuchtenburg 2009|pp=45–50}} Despite his service in the [[History of the Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] administration of Woodrow Wilson, Hoover had never been closely affiliated with either the Democrats or the [[History of the Republican Party (United States)|Republicans]]. He initially sought to avoid committing to any party in the 1920 election, hoping that either of the two major parties would draft him for president at their national conventions.{{sfn|Whyte 2017|pp=232–234}} In March 1920, he changed strategy and declared himself a Republican; he was motivated in large part by the belief that the Democrats had little chance of winning.{{sfn|Whyte 2017|pp=235–236}} Despite his national renown, Hoover's service in the Wilson administration had alienated farmers and the [[Old Right (United States)|conservative Old Guard of the GOP]], and his presidential candidacy fizzled out after his defeat in the California primary by [[favorite son]] [[Hiram Johnson]]. At the [[1920 Republican National Convention]], [[Warren G. Harding]] emerged as a compromise candidate after the convention became deadlocked among supporters of Johnson, [[Leonard Wood]], and [[Frank Orren Lowden]].{{sfn|Leuchtenburg 2009|pp=45–50}} Hoover backed Harding's successful campaign in the general election, and he began laying the groundwork for a future presidential run by building a base of strong supporters in the Republican Party.{{sfn|Whyte 2017|pp=237–238}}