Stevenson, Adlai E. (1900-1965) governor, diplomat, presidential candidate
One of the leading political orators and writers of the 20th century, Adlai E. Stevenson was a successful Illinois governor and two-time Democratic candidate for president of the United States.
Born on February 5, 1900, in Los Angeles, California, and raised in Bloomington, Illinois, Stevenson grew up surrounded by famous politicians and intellectuals. His grandfather, Adlai Ewing Stevenson, was Grover Cleveland’s vice president, while Stevenson’s father played an active role in Illinois politics. Stevenson graduated from Princeton University in 1922 before attending Harvard Law School for two years. Instead of completing his law degree, Stevenson
Adlai Stevenson in front of campaign poster, 1956 (Library of Congress) returned to the Midwest to work as a newspaper reporter and oversee the family-owned Bloomington Daily Pantograph. He then worked briefly as a reporter in Cincinnati, and he completed his law studies at Northwestern University in 1926.
Though he began a law career in Chicago, Stevenson was always more interested in performing public service than in winning legal cases. In 1933, he moved to Washington, D. C., to work for the New Deal in the Agricultural Adjustment Administration. One year later, Stevenson became the chief attorney in the newly created Federal Alcohol Control Administration. While he left this position in 1935 to return to Chicago and resume his legal career, Stevenson continued to take an active role in local politics as a member, and eventual president, of the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations.
Throughout the late 1930s, Stevenson maintained ties with Washington and developed a reputation as an excellent speaker on international relations. In June 1940, he moved back to Washington, where he took a position as chair of the Committee to Defend America by Aiding the Allies, a group that worked to build alliances with European nations fighting the Axis powers following the onset of World War II. His impressive experience with foreign relations made Stevenson a strong candidate for several wartime posts. In 1941, he agreed to act as the principal attorney to Secretary of the Navy William Franklin (Frank) Knox, and then as special assistant to Secretary of State Edward Stettinius. Leading a mission to Italy in late 1943 and early 1944, he also helped determine what role the Foreign Economic Administration would play overseas. Following World War II, Stevenson represented the United States on the preparatory commission created to help establish the United Nations (UN), and he served as a UN delegate in 1946 and 1947.
After completing his second year as a UN delegate, Stevenson again went home to Illinois where he ran a successful campaign for governor in 1948. He was widely viewed as a progressive leader who brought greater efficiency to the state government. During his four-year administration, Stevenson strengthened the state police force and improved the highway systems by initiating a 10-year road building program. He also improved the state education systems and welfare programs. Many times Stevenson had to make difficult decisions, such as sending the National Guard to Cicero in 1951 to defend a group of blacks from white rioters or vetoing a popular anticommunist measure.
Though Stevenson preferred to serve a second term as governor, the Democratic Party had other plans for the popular politician. In 1952, he accepted a draft nomination by the Democratic Party as the party’s candidate for president of the United States. Stevenson waged an embattled campaign as Americans blamed President Harry S. Truman for the Korean War, continued inflation, and increased government spending. As Democratic heir apparent, Stevenson appeared to be committed to a continuation of Truman’s policies. Many people also believed he was too soft on communism and too progressive on civil rights. While his campaign became famous for its emphasis on issue-oriented substance rather than on style or image, the immensely popular Dwight D. Eisenhower defeated Stevenson. Stevenson won only nine states and 89 electoral votes.
Despite this defeat, the Democratic Party again nominated Stevenson as its candidate for president in 1956. Throughout the campaign, he argued for a nuclear test ban and negotiations with the Soviet Union. He also campaigned for increased federal spending to eradicate poverty, aid education, and support the elderly. For the second time, however, Stevenson misread the American public and lost to Eisenhower.
Stevenson reluctantly agreed to try for a third party nomination in 1960, but he lost to John F. Kennedy. Once elected, Kennedy appointed Stevenson ambassador to the
UN, a position in which he continued to serve under President Lyndon B. Johnson. As ambassador, he argued for and defended American anticommunist actions such as the invasion of Cuba in 1961 and the invasion of the Dominican Republic in 1965. Ironically, it was not until Stevenson served as UN ambassador and appeared in nationally televised conferences that the American public appreciated Stevenson’s international expertise and intellectual abilities. Although he never served in the top foreign policy posts, Stevenson played a significant role on the American political scene. Just as he contemplated retirement, Stevenson died of a massive heart attack in 1965.
Further reading: John B. Martin, Adlai Stevenson and the World (New York: Doubleday, 1977).
—Donna J. Siebenthaler
World History
