Pinback button promoting Woodrow Wilson for president, 1912. No maker mark; union shop mark.
Having gained notoriety as a political theorist and historian, and later as president of Princeton University, Wilson was tapped by the New Jersey Democratic Party to run for governor in 1910. Once in office, his reputation as a reformer made him a contender for the presidential nomination two years later. Prevailing at the convention against several career politicians, he entered the most hotly contested presidential race in history. Largely overshadowed by his opponents, one sitting and one former president, a divided Republican camp swung the election to Wilson he won the office despite receiving only 42% of the popular vote.
This is the classic Wilson campaign button from 1912.
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