Editing Warren G. Harding (section)

==Rising politician (1897–1919)==
{{further|Electoral history of Warren G. Harding}}

===State senator===
[[File:Warren Gamaliel Harding.jpg|thumb|right|Harding {{circa}} 1900s]]
Harding wished to try again for elective office. Though a longtime admirer of Foraker (by then a U.S. senator), he had been careful to maintain good relations with the party faction led by the state's other U.S. senator, [[Mark Hanna]], McKinley's political manager and chairman of the [[Republican National Committee]] (RNC). Both Foraker and Hanna supported Harding for state Senate in 1899; he gained the Republican nomination and was easily elected to a two-year term.{{sfn|Russell|pp=105–108}}

Harding began his four years as a state senator as a political unknown; he ended them as one of the most popular figures in the Ohio Republican Party. He always appeared calm and displayed humility, characteristics that endeared him to fellow Republicans even as he passed them in his political rise. Legislative leaders consulted him on difficult problems.{{sfn|Dean|pp=23–24}} It was usual at that time for state senators in Ohio to serve only one term, but Harding gained renomination in 1901. After the [[Assassination of William McKinley|assassination of McKinley]] in September (he was succeeded by Vice President [[Theodore Roosevelt]]), much of the appetite for politics was temporarily lost in Ohio. In November, Harding won a second term, more than doubling his margin of victory to 3,563 votes.{{sfn|Russell|pp=172–173}}

During this period, Harding became a [[Freemasonry|Freemason]]. In 1901, he was initiated into Marion Lodge No. 7.<ref>{{Cite web |last=GWMNMA |title=Preparing to Lay the Memorial's Cornerstone |url=https://gwmemorial.org/blogs/news/preparing-to-lay-the-cornerstone |access-date=2025-01-27 |website=GWMNMA |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Presidents that were Brother Masons |url=https://jl1.org/lodge/index.php/presidents-that-were-brother-masons/ |access-date=2025-01-27 |language=en-US}}</ref>

Like most politicians of his time, Harding accepted that patronage and graft would be used to repay political favors. He arranged for his sister Mary (who was legally blind) to be appointed as a teacher at the [[Ohio School for the Blind]], although there were better-qualified candidates. In another trade, he offered publicity in his newspaper in exchange for free railroad passes for himself and his family. According to Sinclair, "it is doubtful that Harding ever thought there was anything dishonest in accepting the perquisites of position or office. Patronage and favors seemed the normal reward for party service in the days of Hanna."{{sfn|Sinclair|pp=40–42}}

Soon after Harding's initial election as senator, he met [[Harry M. Daugherty]], who would take a major role in his political career. A perennial candidate for office who served two terms in the state House of Representatives in the early 1890s, Daugherty had become a political fixer and lobbyist in the state capital of Columbus. After first meeting and talking with Harding, Daugherty commented, "Gee, what a great-looking President he'd make."{{sfn|Russell|pp=108–112}}

===Ohio state leader===
[[File:Warren G. Harding 1910 gubernatorial button.png|thumb|right|Warren G. Harding for Governor campaign button, 1910]]
In early 1903, Harding announced he would run for [[Governor of Ohio]], prompted by the withdrawal of the leading candidate, Congressman [[Charles W. F. Dick]]. Hanna and George Cox felt that Harding was not electable due to his work with Foraker—as the [[Progressive Era]] commenced, the public was starting to take a dimmer view of the trading of political favors and of bosses such as Cox. Accordingly, they persuaded Cleveland banker [[Myron T. Herrick]], a friend of McKinley's, to run. Herrick was also better-placed to take votes away from the likely Democratic candidate, reforming Cleveland Mayor [[Tom L. Johnson]]. With little chance at the gubernatorial nomination, Harding sought nomination as lieutenant governor, and both Herrick and Harding were nominated by acclamation.{{sfn|Russell|pp=147–155}} Foraker and Hanna (who died of [[typhoid fever]] in February 1904) both campaigned for what was dubbed the Four-H ticket. Herrick and Harding won by overwhelming margins.{{sfn|Russell|pp=155–157}}

Once he and Harding were inaugurated, Herrick made ill-advised decisions that turned crucial Republican constituencies against him, alienating farmers by opposing the establishment of an agricultural college.{{sfn|Russell|pp=155–157}} On the other hand, according to Sinclair, "Harding had little to do, and he did it very well".{{sfn|Sinclair|p=44}} His responsibility to preside over the state Senate allowed him to increase his growing network of political contacts.{{sfn|Sinclair|p=44}} Harding and others envisioned a successful gubernatorial run in 1905, but Herrick refused to stand aside. In early 1905, Harding announced he would accept nomination as governor if offered, but faced with the anger of leaders such as Cox, Foraker and Dick (Hanna's replacement in the Senate), announced he would seek no office in 1905. Herrick was defeated, but his new running mate, [[Andrew L. Harris]], was elected, and succeeded as governor after five months in office on the death of Democrat [[John M. Pattison]]. One Republican official wrote to Harding, "Aren't you sorry Dick wouldn't let you run for Lieutenant Governor?"{{sfn|Russell|pp=163–168}}

[[File:Foraker in 1908.png|thumb|right|upright=0.8|Senator [[Joseph B. Foraker]] in 1908, his final full year as senator before his re-election defeat]]

In addition to helping pick a president, Ohio voters in 1908 were to choose the legislators who would decide whether to re-elect Foraker. The senator had quarreled with President Roosevelt over the [[Brownsville Affair]]. Though Foraker had little chance of winning, he sought the Republican presidential nomination against his fellow Cincinnatian, Secretary of War [[William Howard Taft]], who was Roosevelt's chosen successor.{{sfn|Sinclair|pp=42–45}} On January 6, 1908, Harding's ''Star'' endorsed Foraker and upbraided Roosevelt for trying to destroy the senator's career over a matter of conscience. On January 22, Harding in the ''Star'' reversed course and declared for Taft, deeming Foraker defeated.{{sfn|Russell|p=188}} According to Sinclair, Harding's change to Taft "was not&nbsp;... because he saw the light but because he felt the heat".{{sfn|Sinclair|p=46}} Jumping on the Taft [[bandwagon effect|bandwagon]] allowed Harding to survive his patron's disaster—Foraker failed to gain the presidential nomination, and was defeated for a third term as senator. Also helpful in saving Harding's career was that he was popular with, and had done favors for, the more progressive forces that now controlled the Ohio Republican Party.{{sfn|Sinclair|pp=46–47}}

Harding sought and gained the 1910 Republican gubernatorial nomination. At that time, the party was deeply divided between progressive and conservative wings, and could not defeat the united Democrats; he lost the election to incumbent [[Judson Harmon]].{{sfn|Russell|pp=197, 208–210}} Harry Daugherty managed Harding's campaign, but the defeated candidate did not hold the loss against him. Despite the growing rift between them, both President Taft and former president Roosevelt came to Ohio to campaign for Harding, but their quarrels split the Republican Party and helped assure Harding's defeat.{{sfn|Sinclair|pp=47–49}}

The party split grew, and in 1912, Taft and Roosevelt were rivals for the Republican nomination. The [[1912 Republican National Convention]] was bitterly divided. At Taft's request, Harding gave a speech nominating the president, but the angry delegates were not receptive to Harding's oratory. Taft was renominated, but Roosevelt supporters bolted the party. Harding, as a loyal Republican, supported Taft. The Republican vote was split between Taft, the party's official candidate, and Roosevelt, running under the label of the [[Progressive Party (United States, 1912)|Progressive Party]]. This allowed the Democratic candidate, New Jersey Governor [[Woodrow Wilson]], to be elected.{{sfn|Russell|pp=227–235}}

===U.S. Senator===

====Election of 1914====
{{further|1914 United States Senate election in Ohio}}
Congressman [[Theodore E. Burton|Theodore Burton]] had been elected as senator by the state legislature in Foraker's place in 1909, and announced that he would seek a second term in the 1914 elections. By this time, the [[Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution]] had been ratified, giving the people the right to elect senators, and Ohio had instituted [[Partisan primary|primary election]]s for the office. Foraker and former congressman [[Ralph D. Cole]] also entered the Republican primary. When Burton withdrew, Foraker became the favorite, but his Old Guard Republicanism was deemed outdated, and Harding was urged to enter the race. Daugherty claimed credit for persuading Harding to run: "I found him like a turtle sunning himself on a log, and I pushed him into the water."{{sfn|Russell|p=246}} According to Harding biographer Randolph Downes, "he put on a campaign of such sweetness and light as would have won the plaudits of the angels. It was calculated to offend nobody except Democrats."{{sfn|Dean|pp=34–35}}<!-- quoted in --> Although Harding did not attack Foraker, his supporters had no such scruples. Harding won the primary by 12,000 votes over Foraker.{{sfn|Walters|pp=291–293}}

{{quote box | align = right | width = 19em | salign = right
| quote = Read ''The Menace'' and get the dope,<br />Go to the polls and beat the Pope.
| source =Slogan written on Ohio walls and fences, 1914{{sfn|Sinclair|pp=54–55}}}}

Harding's [[United States Senate election in Ohio, 1914|general election]] opponent was Ohio Attorney General [[Timothy Sylvester Hogan (politician)|Timothy Hogan]], who had risen to statewide office despite widespread [[Anti-Catholicism in the United States|prejudice against Roman Catholics]] in rural areas. In 1914, the start of [[World War I]] and the prospect of a Catholic senator from Ohio increased [[nativism (politics)|nativist]] sentiment. Propaganda sheets with names like ''The Menace'' and ''The Defender'' contained warnings that Hogan was the vanguard in a plot led by Pope [[Benedict XV]] through the [[Knights of Columbus]] to control Ohio. Harding did not attack Hogan (an old friend) on this or most other issues, but he did not denounce the nativist hatred for his opponent.{{sfn|Russell|pp=250–251}}{{sfn|Sinclair|p=54}}

Harding's [[wikt:conciliatory|conciliatory]] campaigning style aided him;{{sfn|Sinclair|p=54}} one Harding friend deemed the candidate's [[stump speech (politics)|stump speech]] during the 1914 fall campaign as "a rambling, high-sounding mixture of platitudes, patriotism, and pure nonsense".{{sfn|Dean|p=35}} Dean notes, "Harding used his oratory to good effect; it got him elected, making as few enemies as possible in the process."{{sfn|Dean|p=35}} Harding won by over 100,000 votes in a landslide that also swept into office a Republican governor, [[Frank B. Willis]].{{sfn|Dean|p=35}}

====Junior senator====
When Harding joined the U.S. Senate, the Democrats controlled both houses of [[64th United States Congress|Congress]], and were led by President Wilson. As a junior senator in the minority, Harding received unimportant committee assignments, but carried out those duties assiduously.{{sfn|Dean|p=44}} He was a safe, conservative,<!-- this comma should remain regardless of the use of serial commas --> Republican vote.{{sfn|Nevins|p=253}} As during his time in the Ohio Senate, Harding came to be widely liked.{{sfn|Dean|pp=38, 44}}

On two issues, [[women's suffrage]], and the [[Prohibition in the United States|prohibition of alcohol]], where picking the wrong side would have damaged his presidential prospects in 1920, he prospered by taking nuanced positions. As senator-elect, he indicated that he could not support votes for women until Ohio did. Increased support for suffrage there and among Senate Republicans meant that by the time Congress voted on the issue, Harding was a firm supporter. Harding, who drank,{{sfn|Russell|p=141}} initially voted against banning alcohol. He voted for the [[Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Eighteenth Amendment]], which imposed prohibition, after successfully moving to modify it by placing a time limit on ratification, which was expected to kill it. Once it was ratified anyway, Harding voted to override Wilson's veto of the [[Volstead Act|Volstead Bill]], which implemented the amendment, assuring the support of the [[Anti-Saloon League]].{{sfn|Sinclair|pp=63–65}}

Harding, as a politician respected by both Republicans and [[Progressive Era|Progressives]], was asked to be temporary chairman of the [[1916 Republican National Convention]] and to deliver the [[keynote address]]. He urged delegates to stand as a united party. The convention nominated Justice [[Charles Evans Hughes]].{{sfn|Dean|pp=37–39}} Harding reached out to Roosevelt once the former president [[1916 Progressive National Convention|declined the 1916 Progressive nomination]], a refusal that effectively scuttled that party. In the [[1916 United States presidential election|November 1916 presidential election]], despite increasing Republican unity, Hughes was narrowly defeated by Wilson.{{sfn|Sinclair|p=70}}

Harding spoke and voted in favor of the [[United States declaration of war on Germany (1917)|resolution of war]] requested by Wilson in April 1917 that plunged the United States into World War I.{{sfn|Russell|p=283}} In August, Harding argued for giving Wilson almost dictatorial powers, stating that democracy had little place in time of war.{{sfn|Sinclair|p=77}} Harding voted for most war legislation, including the [[Espionage Act of 1917]], which restricted civil liberties, though he opposed the [[excess profits tax]] as anti-business. In May 1918, Harding, less enthusiastic about Wilson, opposed a bill to expand the president's powers.{{sfn|Russell|p=299}}

In the 1918 midterm congressional elections, held just before the [[Armistice of 11 November 1918|armistice]], Republicans narrowly took control of the Senate.{{sfn|Sinclair|p=82}} Harding was appointed to the [[Senate Foreign Relations Committee]].{{sfn|Dean|p=47}} Wilson took no senators with him to the [[Paris Peace Conference, 1919|Paris Peace Conference]], confident that he could force what became the [[Treaty of Versailles]] through the Senate by appealing to the people.{{sfn|Sinclair|p=82}} When he returned with a single treaty establishing both peace and a [[League of Nations]], the country was overwhelmingly on his side. Many senators disliked Article X of the [[Covenant of the League of Nations|League Covenant]], that committed signatories to the defense of any member nation that was attacked, seeing it as forcing the United States to war without the assent of Congress. Harding was one of 39 senators who signed a [[Round-robin (document)|round-robin letter]] opposing the League. When Wilson invited the Foreign Relations Committee to the White House to informally discuss the treaty, Harding ably questioned Wilson about Article X; the president evaded his inquiries. The Senate debated Versailles in September 1919, and Harding made a major speech against it. By then, Wilson had suffered a stroke while on a speaking tour. With an [[Presidency of Woodrow Wilson#Incapacity, 1919–1921|incapacitated president]] in the White House and less support in the country, the treaty was defeated.{{sfn|Sinclair|pp=91–100}}