Editing Franklin D. Roosevelt (section)

===New York state senator (1910–1913)===
[[File:Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1912.png|thumb|left|Roosevelt in 1912]]

Roosevelt cared little for the practice of law and told friends he planned to enter politics.{{Sfn|Smith|2007|pp=58–60}} Despite his admiration for cousin Theodore, Franklin shared his father's bond with the [[History of the Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]], and in preparation for the [[1910 New York state election|1910 elections]], the party recruited Roosevelt to run for a seat in the [[New York State Assembly]].{{Sfn|Dallek|2017|p=41}} Roosevelt was a compelling recruit: he had the personality and energy for campaigning and the money to pay for his own campaign.{{Sfn|Smith|2007|pp=60–62}} But Roosevelt's campaign for the state assembly ended after the Democratic incumbent, [[Lewis Stuyvesant Chanler]], chose to seek re-election. Rather than putting his political hopes on hold, Roosevelt ran for a seat in the [[New York State Senate]].{{Sfn|Smith|2007|pp=60–64}} The senate district, located in [[Dutchess County, New York|Dutchess]], [[Columbia County, New York|Columbia]], and [[Putnam County, New York|Putnam]], was strongly Republican.{{Sfn|Smith|2007|p=65}} Roosevelt feared that opposition from Theodore could end his campaign, but Theodore encouraged his candidacy despite their party differences.{{Sfn|Dallek|2017|p=41}} Acting as his own campaign manager, Roosevelt traveled throughout the senate district via automobile at a time when few could afford a car.{{Sfn|Smith|2007|pp=65–66}} Due to his aggressive campaign,{{Sfn|Gunther|1950|pp=202–03}} his name gained recognition in the Hudson Valley, and in the Democratic landslide in the [[1910 United States elections]], Roosevelt won a surprising victory.{{Sfn|Burns|1956|p=34}}

Despite short legislative sessions, Roosevelt treated his new position as a full-time career.{{Sfn|Smith|2007|pp=68–69}} Taking his seat on January 1, 1911, Roosevelt soon became the leader of a group of "Insurgents" in opposition to the [[Tammany Hall]] machine that dominated the state Democratic Party. In the [[1911 United States Senate election in New York|1911 U.S. Senate election]], which was determined in a joint session of the New York state legislature,{{Efn| State legislatures elected United States senators prior to the ratification of the [[Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Seventeenth Amendment]] in 1913.}} Roosevelt and nineteen other Democrats caused a prolonged deadlock by opposing a series of Tammany-backed candidates. Tammany threw its backing behind [[James A. O'Gorman]], a highly regarded judge whom Roosevelt found acceptable, and O'Gorman won the election in late March.{{Sfn|Brands|2009|pp=57–60}} Roosevelt in the process became a popular figure among New York Democrats.{{Sfn|Burns|1956|p=34}} News articles and cartoons depicted "the second coming of a Roosevelt", sending "cold shivers down the spine of Tammany".{{Sfn|Gunther|1950|pp=205–06}}

Shortly after being elected to the New York State Senate, Roosevelt became a [[Freemasonry|Freemason]], on October 10, 1911, at Holland Lodge No. 8 in New York City.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Corcoran |first=Syndney |date=2022-04-07 |title=Franklin D. Roosevelt {{!}} Grand Lodge of Ohio |url=https://www.freemason.com/franklin-d-roosevelt-freemason/ |access-date=2025-01-23 |website=Freemasonry}}</ref>

Roosevelt also opposed Tammany Hall by supporting New Jersey Governor [[Woodrow Wilson]]'s successful bid for the [[1912 Democratic National Convention|1912 Democratic nomination]].{{Sfn|Burns|1956|p=49}} The election became a three-way contest when Theodore Roosevelt left the Republican Party to launch a third-party campaign against Wilson and sitting Republican president [[William Howard Taft]]. Franklin's decision to back Wilson over his cousin in the [[1912 United States presidential election|general election]] alienated some of his family, except Theodore.{{sfn|Black|2005|pp=62–63}} Roosevelt overcame a bout of [[typhoid fever]] that year and, with help from journalist [[Louis McHenry Howe]], he was re-elected in the [[1912 New York state election|1912 elections]]. After the election, he served as chairman of the Agriculture Committee; his success with farm and labor bills was a precursor to his later New Deal policies.{{Sfn|Burns|1956|pp=44–46}} He had then become more consistently [[Progressive Era|progressive]], in support of labor and social welfare programs.{{Sfn|Burns|1956|p=43}}