contender for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1924 until the compromise on John W. Davis. Ritchie worked hard for the ticket, and at home achieved reforms in mental health, shellfish conservation, and law enforcement while continuing to fight federal encroachments on state prerogatives. During Ritchie's first term, he worked to improve the public education system by establishing standards for the counties and by distributing wealth from the richer to the poorer counties. His actions were successful, and the Maryland educational system emerged as one of the best in the nation. Ritchie also invested considerable funds in expanding and improving the highways of the state, resulting in Maryland emerging as having one of the best highway systems in the country. Ritchie was a strong opponent of the Eighteenth Amendment, which established prohibition, and was a staunch advocate of states' rights. He also gained national attention for his refusal to cooperate with the administrations of Presidents Warren G. Harding and Calvin Coolidge. During a miner's strike in 1922, Ritchie refused a request from Harding to break up the strike by force, instead choosing a diplomatic alternative. The situation was peacefully defused. Second term For the first time in state history, Ritchie was nominated for a second term as governor in 1923. He was again unopposed in the primary, but during the general election faced Alexander Armstrong, his successor as attorney general. In a campaign which focused on his accomplishments as governor and defiance of the Eighteenth Amendment, Ritchie easily defeated Armstrong by a plurality of 43,000 votes. His second term began on January 9, 1924, but because of an election law that changed the date of election that passed during Ritchie's first term, his second term only lasted three years. Third term Ritchie had announced early on his intentions to seek a third term as governor, but, unlike in 1919 and 1923, he faced opposition in the primary elections of 1926. Ritchie's old rival, William Milnes Maloy, whom Ritchie had defeated in 1915 for nomination for attorney general, again chose to challenge Ritchie for the Democratic nomination. Ritchie was easily nominated, having defeated Maloy by 81,500 votes. During the general election, Ritchie was challenged by Republican Addison Mullikin, who made issue of the Conowingo Dam construction project which he felt Ritchie had handled poorly. Nevertheless, Ritchie won the election by over 60,000 votes and won Baltimore and 14 of 23 counties in