Wendell Lewis Willkie

Wendell Lewis Willkie 1892-1944, American industrialist and political leader, b. Elwood, Ind. He practiced law in Ohio (1914-23) and in New York (1923-33) before he became president (1933) of the Commonwealth and Southern Corp., a giant utility holding company. Although a Democrat, Willkie became a leading spokesman of business interests opposed to the New Deal. He finally enrolled as a Republican in 1940 and in that year was nominated by the Republican party for the presidency. In his campaign he endorsed President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's foreign policy but attacked the New Deal at home. Although defeated in the election, he polled more than 22 million votes (the largest popular vote received by a defeated candidate up to that time). He later (1941-42) visited England, the Middle East, the Soviet Union, and China as the President's personal representative. He led the fight (1942-44) to liberalize the Republican party, mainly attacking isolationism. He wrote One World (1943) and An American Program (1944).

Bibliography: See biographies by W. Severn (1967) and S. Neal (1984); study by W. Moscow (1968).

Willkie, Wendell (1892–1944),US lawyer, American born but of German origin. He was a delegate at the 1924 Democrat Convention, but opposed two of Roosevelt's New Deal projects and in 1940 he changed sides. He was nominated as the Republican presidential candidate that year but lost heavily. In the following year he did much to unify the USA behind Roosevelt's policies by turning the Republican Party away from its long-standing isolationism (see also America First Committee) and by backing the president's Lend-Lease programme. In August 1942 he became a goodwill ambassador to the Middle East (and later to the USSR and China) a task he performed extremely well; his book describing that journey; One World ( 1943), became a best-seller. But his backing of so many Democratic measures had incurred the wrath of his more conservative Republican colleagues and he failed to become the party's presidential choice in 1944. He refused to back the chosen candidate, Thomas Dewey, but would not support Roosevelt either. He died in October, the month before the president was re-elected.