From March 9 to June 5, 1920, voters of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

elected delegates to the

1920 Democratic National Convention Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20 * one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film Music ...

, for the purposing of choosing a nominee for

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

in the 1920 United States presidential election. The race for delegates was made under a cloud of uncertainty because the party's two leading names, President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

and three-time nominee

William Jennings Bryan William Jennings Bryan (March 19, 1860 – July 26, 1925) was an American lawyer, orator and politician. Beginning in 1896, he emerged as a dominant force in the Democratic Party, running three times as the party's nominee for President ...

, withheld their intentions; both men privately hoped for the nomination, but neither's name was formally submitted before the voters or the convention as a candidate. The delegate elections were inconclusive, with Attorney General

A. Mitchell Palmer Alexander Mitchell Palmer (May 4, 1872 – May 11, 1936), was an American attorney and politician who served as the 50th United States attorney general from 1919 to 1921. He is best known for overseeing the Palmer Raids during the Red Scare ...

, Treasury Secretary

William Gibbs McAdoo William Gibbs McAdoo Jr.McAdoo is variously differentiated from family members of the same name: * Dr. William Gibbs McAdoo (1820–1894) – sometimes called "I" or "Senior" * William Gibbs McAdoo (1863–1941) – sometimes called "II" or "Ju ...

, and Ohio governor James A. Cox leading the candidate field. With no clear front-runner, many states withheld their delegates from any one candidate, instead sending an uncommitted slate of delegates or preferring to back a

favorite son Favorite son (or favorite daughter) is a political term. * At the quadrennial American national political party conventions, a state delegation sometimes nominates a candidate from the state, or less often from the state's region, who is not a ...

on the first ballot. At the convention, Cox was ultimately nominated on the forty-fourth ballot.

Candidates

*Governor

James M. Cox James Middleton Cox (March 31, 1870 July 15, 1957) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 46th and 48th governor of Ohio, and a two-term U.S. Representative from Ohio. As the Democratic nominee for President of the United S ...

of Ohio *Former Ambassador to Germany James Watson Gerard of New York *Governor Edward I. Edwards of

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

*Attorney General of the U.S.

from Pennsylvania *Former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury

from California *Senator

Robert Latham Owen Robert Latham Owen Jr. (February 2, 1856July 19, 1947) was one of the first two U.S. senators from Oklahoma. He served in the Senate between 1907 and 1925. Born into affluent circumstances in antebellum Lynchburg, Virginia, the son of a railroa ...

of Oklahoma

Not placed in nomination

*Former United States Secretary of State

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

*House Minority Leader

Champ Clark James Beauchamp Clark (March 7, 1850March 2, 1921) was an American politician and attorney who represented Missouri in the United States House of Representatives and served as Speaker of the House from 1911 to 1919. Born in Kentucky, he establis ...

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

*President of the United States

Favorite sons

*U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Edwin T. Meredith of Iowa *Senator

Carter Glass Carter Glass (January 4, 1858 – May 28, 1946) was an American newspaper publisher and Democratic politician from Lynchburg, Virginia. He represented Virginia in both houses of Congress and served as the United States Secretary of the Treas ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

*Governor Al Smith of New York *Senator

Gilbert Hitchcock Gilbert Monell Hitchcock (September 18, 1859February 3, 1934) was an American congressman and U.S. Senator from Nebraska, and the founder of the ''Omaha World-Herald'' newspaper. Life and career Born in Omaha, Nebraska, Hitchcock was the son ...

*Ambassador to the United Kingdom

John W. Davis John William Davis (April 13, 1873 – March 24, 1955) was an American politician, diplomat and lawyer. He served under President Woodrow Wilson as the Solicitor General of the United States and the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom ...

of West Virginia *Senator

John Sharp Williams John Sharp Williams (July 30, 1854September 27, 1932) was a prominent American politician in the United States Democratic Party, Democratic Party from the 1890s through the 1920s, and served as the Minority Leader of the United States House of Re ...

of Mississippi *Party Chairman

Homer Stille Cummings Homer Stille Cummings (April 30, 1870 – September 10, 1956) was an American lawyer and politician who was the United States Attorney General from 1933 to 1939. He also was elected mayor of Stamford, Connecticut, three times before founding the ...

of Connecticut *Senator Furnifold Simmons of North Carolina *Vice President

Thomas R. Marshall Thomas Riley Marshall (March 14, 1854 – June 1, 1925) was an American politician who served as the 28th vice president of the United States from 1913 to 1921 under President Woodrow Wilson. A prominent lawyer in Indiana, he became an acti ...

of Indiana

Primary and caucus results

Delegates not selected in primaries

Many delegations were not selected in public primaries. The following table shows delegates awarded at a state level by convention, committees, and other means.

Notes

References

{{Democratic Party (United States)