Editing Earl Warren (section)

==Governor of California==
[[File:Earl Warren Portrait, half figure, seated, facing front, as Governor.jpg|thumb|right|Warren as Governor of California]]

===Election===

Warren frequently clashed with Governor Culbert Olson over various issues, partly because they belonged to different parties. As early as 1939, supporters of Warren began making plans for his candidacy in California's [[1942 California gubernatorial election|1942 gubernatorial election]].{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=112–114, 124–125}} Though initially reluctant to run, Warren announced his gubernatorial candidacy in April 1942. He cross-filed in the Democratic and Republican primaries, ran without a party label, and refused to endorse candidates running for other offices. He sought to attract voters regardless of party, and stated "I can and will support President Roosevelt better than Olson ever has or ever will." Many Democrats, including Olson, criticized Warren for "put[ting] on a cloak of nonpartisanship," but Warren's attempts to appear above parties resonated with many voters. In August, Warren easily won the Republican primary, and surprised many observers by nearly defeating Olson in the Democratic primary. In November, he decisively defeated Olson in the general election, taking just under 57 percent of the vote. Warren's victory immediately made him a figure with national stature, and he enjoyed good relations with both the conservative wing of the Republican Party, led by [[Robert A. Taft]], and the [[moderate wing of the Republican Party]], led by [[Thomas E. Dewey]].{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=126–132}}

===Policies===
[[File:Earl Warren with young miner.jpg|thumb|left|Governor Warren meets a young "gold miner" as part of the California centennials, 1948–1950]]

Warren modernized the office of governor, and state government generally. Like most progressives, Warren believed in [[Efficiency Movement|efficiency]] and planning. During World War II, he aggressively pursued postwar economic planning. Fearing another postwar decline that would rival the depression years, Governor Earl Warren initiated public works projects similar to those of the New Deal to capitalize on wartime tax surpluses and provide jobs for returning veterans. For example, his support of the Collier-Burns Act in 1947 raised gasoline taxes that funded a massive program of freeway construction. Unlike states where tolls or bonds funded highway construction, California's gasoline taxes were earmarked for building the system. Warren's support for the bill was crucial because his status as a popular governor strengthened his views, in contrast with opposition from trucking, oil, and gas lobbyists. The Collier-Burns Act helped influence passage of the [[Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956]], setting a pattern for national highway construction.<ref>{{cite journal|first=Daniel J. B.|last=Mitchell|title=Earl Warren's Fight for California's Freeways: Setting a Path for the Nation|journal=[[Southern California Quarterly]]|year=2006|volume=88|issue=2|pages=205–238|doi=10.2307/41172311|jstor=41172311|doi-access=free}}</ref> In the mid-1940s, Warren sought to implement a state [[universal health care]], but he was unable to pass his plan due to opposition from the medical and business communities.{{sfn|Mitchell|2003|pp=205–206, 219–222}} In 1945, the [[United Nations Charter]] was signed in [[San Francisco]] while Warren was the governor of California.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=https://governors.library.ca.gov/30-Warren.html|title=Governors of California - Earl Warren|website=governors.library.ca.gov|access-date=September 14, 2019}}</ref> He played an important role in the [[United Nations Conference on International Organization]] from April 25 to June 26, 1945, which resulted in the United Nations Charter.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.loc.gov/static/programs/national-recording-preservation-board/documents/uncio.pdf|title=Proceedings of the United Nations Conference on International Organization (April 25, 1945 – June 26, 1945)|website=Library of Congress}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hoover.org/library-archives/collections/united-nations-conference-international-organization-proceedings-1945|title=Proceedings|website=Hoover Institute}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.trumanlibrary.gov/library/oral-histories/warren|title=Chief Justice Earl Warren Oral History Interview {{!}} Harry S. Truman|website=www.trumanlibrary.gov|access-date=September 14, 2019}}</ref>

Warren also pursued social legislation. He built up the state's higher education system based on the [[University of California]] and its vast network of small universities and [[Community colleges in the United States|community colleges]].<ref>{{cite journal|first=John Aubrey|last=Douglass|title=Earl Warren's New Deal: Economic Transition, Postwar Planning, and Higher Education in California|journal=[[Journal of Policy History]]|year=2000|volume=12|issue=4|pages=473–512|doi=10.1353/jph.2000.0029|s2cid=154088575}}</ref> After federal courts declared the segregation of Mexican schoolchildren illegal in ''[[Mendez v. Westminster]]'' (1947), Governor Warren signed legislation ending the segregation of American Indians and Asians.<ref>[http://faculty.washington.edu/joyann/EDLPS549Bwinter2008/Wollenberg.pdf Wollenberg, Charles. "Mendez v. Westminster: Race, nationality and segregation in California schools."] California Historical Quarterly 53.4 (1974): 317-332.</ref> He sought the creation of a commission to study [[employment discrimination]], but his plan was blocked by Republicans in the state legislature.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|p=196}} Governor Warren stopped enforcing California's [[anti-miscegenation law]] after it was declared unconstitutional in ''[[Perez v. Sharp]]'' (1948). He also improved the hospital and prison systems.{{sfn|Schwartz|1983|p=18}} These reforms provided new services to a fast-growing population; the 1950 Census showed that California's population had grown by over 50% over the previous ten years.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=168–169}}

===Re-election campaigns===

By 1946, California's economy was booming, Warren was widely popular, and he enjoyed excellent relations with the state's top Democratic officeholder, Attorney General [[Robert W. Kenny]]. At the urging of state party leaders, Kenny agreed to run against Warren in the [[1946 California gubernatorial election|1946 gubernatorial election]], but Kenny was reluctant to criticize his opponent and was distracted by his role in the [[Nuremberg trials]]. As in 1942, Warren refused to endorse candidates for other offices, and he sought to portray himself as an effective, nonpartisan governor. Warren easily won the Republican primary for governor and, in a much closer vote, defeated Kenny in the Democratic primary. After winning both primaries, Warren endorsed Republican [[William Knowland]]'s U.S. Senate candidacy and [[Goodwin Knight]]'s candidacy for lieutenant governor. Warren won the general election by an overwhelming margin, becoming the first Governor of California since Hiram Johnson in 1914 to win a second term.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=171–176}}

Though he considered retiring after two terms, Warren ultimately chose to seek re-election in 1950, partly to prevent Knight from succeeding him. He easily won the Republican primary, but was defeated in the Democratic primary by [[James Roosevelt]].{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=206–209}} Warren consistently led Roosevelt in general election polls and won re-election in a landslide, taking 65 percent of the vote.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=213–215}} He was the first Governor of California elected to three consecutive terms.<ref name=":3" /> During the 1950 campaign, Warren refused to formally endorse [[Richard Nixon]], the Republican nominee for the Senate. Warren disliked what he saw as Nixon's ruthless approach to politics and was wary of having a conservative rival for leadership of the state party. Despite Warren's refusal to campaign for him, Nixon defeated Democratic nominee [[Helen Gahagan Douglas]] by a decisive margin.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=209–215}}

===National politics, 1942–1952===

After his election as governor, Warren emerged as a potential candidate for president or vice president in the [[1944 United States presidential election|1944 election]]. Seeking primarily to ensure his status as the most prominent Republican in California, he ran as a [[favorite son]] candidate in the [[Republican Party presidential primaries, 1944|1944 Republican primaries]]. Warren won the California primary with no opposition, but Thomas Dewey clinched the party's presidential nomination by the time of the [[1944 Republican National Convention]]. Warren delivered the keynote address of the convention, in which he called for a more liberal Republican Party. Dewey asked Warren to serve as his running mate, but Warren was uninterested in the vice presidency and correctly believed that Dewey would be defeated by President Roosevelt in the 1944 election.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=154–157}}

After his 1946 re-election victory, Warren began planning a run for president in the [[1948 United States presidential election|1948 election]]. The two front-runners for the nomination were Dewey and Robert Taft, but Warren, [[Harold Stassen]], [[Arthur Vandenberg]], and General [[Douglas MacArthur]] each had significant support.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=184–185}} Prior to the [[1948 Republican National Convention]], Warren attempted to position himself as a dark horse candidate who might emerge as a compromise nominee. However, Dewey won the nomination on the third ballot of the convention.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=186–187}} Dewey once again asked Warren to serve as his running mate, and this time Warren agreed. Far ahead in the polls against President [[Harry S. Truman]], the Democratic nominee, Dewey ran a cautious campaign that largely focused on platitudes rather than issues.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=188–190}} Warren campaigned across the country on behalf of the ticket, but was frustrated by his inability to support specific policies.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=190–191}} To the surprise of many observers, Truman won the election, and this became the only election Warren ever lost.<ref name=":8">{{Cite web|url=https://warren.ucsd.edu/about/biography.html|title=Biography of Earl Warren|website=warren.ucsd.edu|access-date=October 3, 2019}}</ref>{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=192–194}}

After his 1950 re-election, Warren decided that he would seek the Republican nomination in the [[1952 United States presidential election|1952 presidential election]], and he announced his candidacy in November 1951. Taft also sought the nomination, but Dewey declined to make a third run for president. Dewey and his supporters instead conducted a long campaign to [[Draft Eisenhower movement|draft]] General [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] as the Republican presidential nominee.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=218–223}}  Warren ran in three [[Republican Party presidential primaries, 1952|Republican presidential primaries]], but won just a handful of delegates outside of his home state. In the California primary, he defeated a challenge from [[Thomas H. Werdel]], whose conservative backers alleged that Warren had "abandoned Republicanism and embraced the objectives of the New Deal." After Eisenhower entered the race, Warren realized that his only hope of nomination was to emerge as a compromise nominee at the [[1952 Republican National Convention]] after a deadlock between supporters of Eisenhower and Taft.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=226–228}}

After the primaries, Warren had the support of 80 delegates, while Eisenhower and Taft each had about 450 delegates. Though the California delegation was pledged to support Warren, many of the delegates personally favored Eisenhower or Taft. Unknown to Warren, Eisenhower supporters had promised Richard Nixon the vice presidency if he could swing the California delegation to Eisenhower.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=229–232}} By the time of the convention, Nixon and his supporters had convinced most California delegates to switch their votes to Eisenhower after the first presidential ballot.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=233–235}} Eisenhower won 595 votes on the first presidential ballot of the convention, just 9 short of the majority. Before the official end of the first ballot, several states shifted their votes to Eisenhower, giving him the nomination.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=243–244}} Warren's decision to support a convention rule that unseated several contested delegations was critical to Eisenhower's victory; Eisenhower himself said that "if anyone ever clinched the nomination for me, it was Earl Warren."{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=238–240}} Nixon was named as Eisenhower's running mate, and Warren campaigned on behalf of the Republican ticket in fourteen different states. Ultimately, Eisenhower defeated Democratic nominee [[Adlai Stevenson II]], taking 55 percent of the national popular vote.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|pp=245–246}} Nixon resigned from the Senate to become vice president, and Warren appointed [[Thomas Kuchel]] to the Senate seat vacated by Nixon.{{Sfn|Cray|1997|p=248}}