World War II shook up the Republican field , possibly preventing the nomination of isolationist congressional leaders like Taft or Vandenberg . The 1940 Republican National Convention instead nominated Wendell Willkie , the first major party nominee since 1872 who had never held public office . A well-known corporate attorney and executive , Willkie rose to public notice through his criticism of the New Deal and his clashes with the TVA . Unlike his isolationist rivals for the Republican nomination , Willkie favored Britain in the war , and he was backed by internationalist Republicans like Henry Luce . Willkie 's internationalist views initially prevented the issue of foreign policy from dominating the campaign , helping to allow for the Destroyers for Bases Agreement and the establishment of a peacetime draft
1940 Republican National Convention
1940 Republican National Convention
Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, third and fourth terms