Coolidge Rules Out Renomination.

"I do not choose to run for President in 1928," President Coolidge announced in a statement issued in August 1927. His decision was hard to understand given the popularity of the Republicans and the booming economy. Friends speculated that Coolidge's pronouncement left the door open for a draft at the convention if a favorable candidate did not emerge, but one did — Herbert Hoover of California. Hoover had sought the nomination in 1920, and as secretary of commerce in the Harding and Coolidge administrations he had continued to develop his presidential potential. During the 1928 primaries he aggressively sought nationwide support for the Republican nomination. Frank O. Lowden, the only other candidate who competed nationwide, entered primaries only where his chances of success seemed promising, leaving Hoover unopposed in many contests and enabling him to acquire many committed delegates before the...