1940 Democratic Party presidential primaries

1940 Democratic Party presidential primaries

← 1936 March 12 to June 27, 1940 1944 →

Delegates to the Democratic National Convention
547 delegates votes needed to win
 
Candidate Franklin D. Roosevelt John Nance Garner James Farley
Home state New York Texas Massachusetts
Contests won 7 0 1
Popular vote 3,214,555 426,700 76,919
Percentage 71.93% 9.55% 1.71%

First place finishes by convention roll call

Previous Democratic nominee

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Democratic nominee

Franklin D. Roosevelt

From March 12 to June 27, 1940, voters of the Democratic Party elected delegates to the 1940 Democratic National Convention through a series of primaries, caucuses, and conventions.[1] Incumbent President Franklin D. Roosevelt was selected as the party's presidential nominee despite not formally declaring a campaign for a third term. Supporters effectively drafted Roosevelt, who was non-committal about seeking re-election, amid rising concerns over war in Europe.[2]

Ahead of the convention, the primary process and other means of delegate allocation had led to the New York Times to project that Roosevelt had 691.5 delegates in support of him, well above Garner's 69.5 and Farley's 38.5.[3]

  1. ^ Kalb, Deborah (2016-02-19). Guide to U.S. Elections - Google Books. ISBN 9781483380353. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
  2. ^ "The Only Ballot". The New York Times. July 18, 1940.
  3. ^ "ROOSEVELT VOTES NOW NUMBER 707 ; Delegates Pledged or SemiPledged to the PresidentGive Him a Wide LeadGARNER STANDS SECONDTexas is the Backbone of HisSupport--Farley is Third-- 146 Are Uninstructed". The New York Times. 22 June 1940.