William Howard Taft and Teddy Roosevelt on the Ohio Campaign Trail
During the 2004 campaign for the presidency Ohio was a major battleground state
and commanded a front row seat. Dubbed “ground zero” by political analysts, Ohio
cities and town were targeted ever more frequently by the President and his
opponent as they fought for every vote. .
Ohio has been the scene of numerous political showdowns. Perhaps none was more
exciting than the primary campaign of 1912. Fighting for his political life, President
William Howard Taft set out on a weeklong campaign tour through his native state to
battle his one-time friend and mentor ex-president Teddy Roosevelt. Both men
needed Ohio’s delegates to win the Republican Party’s nomination at the upcoming
convention. It was the first time a sitting president had campaigned during the
primaries.
As Taft’s train steamed into Ohio on the May 13th, Roosevelt, aboard the “Teddy
Special,” was only hours behind. Thrilled at the prospect of so much attention,
Ohioans along the campaign route quickly constructed makeshift speaker platforms,
flew flags, decorated their homes, and organized bands and parades. With factories
and schools closed, excitement reigned as thousands waited for the chance to see
the president and his rival. It wasn’t always a pretty sight.
Roosevelt was on the attack from the moment his train rolled across the state line,
but he resisted calling the Ohio-born president a “fathead” as he had earlier in the
campaign. When the speaker’s platform collapsed at Marion, the energetic,
personable Roosevelt climbed atop a freight car to speak to cheering crowds. In
Sandusky, Ackley’s Band greeted Roosevelt’s train at the foot of the Columbus
Avenue dock. Women and children, who made up half the crowd, scrambled to catch
“Teddy” buttons tossed from the train.
Speaking at Sandusky’s State Theatre, Taft literally begged his audience for their
votes. At several stops, Taft’s train pulled away while he was in mid-sentence. After
15 speeches in a single day, the president grew so hoarse that he could barely utter
a word. But Taft struggled on, traveling more than 3,000 miles before ending his
campaign a day before the election.
Speaking at Sandusky’s State Theatre, As the returns rolled in, it was soon apparent
that Taft had lost the battle. Ohioans had turned their backs on their native son,
presenting a Roosevelt with a landslide victory. But when all was said and done, Taft
controlled Ohio’s state convention and that of nearly every other state, giving him
enough delegates to win the Republican nomination. Furious at Republican Party
bosses, Roosevelt bolted the party and made an unsuccessful bid for the presidency
as an independent on the Bull Moose ticket.