Theodore Roosevelt, the Election of 1912, and the Founding of the Federal Reserve

RePEc Short ID: pwh4
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-2702-8164

Jaremski, Matthew; Wheelock, David C.

doi:10.20955/wp.2023.008

Working Paper

Theodore Roosevelt, the Election of 1912, and the Founding of the Federal Reserve

Abstract: This paper examines how the election of 1912 changed the makeup of Congress and led to the Federal Reserve Act. The decision of Theodore Roosevelt and other Progressives to run as third-party candidates split the Republican Party and enabled Democrats to capture the White House and Congress. We show that the election produced a less polarized Congress and that new members were more likely to support the Act. Absent the Republican split, Republicans would likely have held the White House and Congress, and enactment of legislation to establish a central bank would have been unlikely or certainly quite different.

Keywords: Federal Reserve Act; Progressive Party; central bank; Aldrich plan;

JEL Classification: N42; G28; P43;

https://doi.org/10.20955/wp.2023.008