Roosevelt attended the 1884 GOP National Convention in Chicago and gave a speech convincing delegates to nominate African American John R. Lynch , an Edmunds supporter , to be temporary chair . Roosevelt fought alongside the Mugwump reformers ; however , Blaine , having gained support from Arthur 's and Edmunds 's delegates , won the nomination by 541 votes on the fourth ballot . In a crucial moment of his budding political career , Roosevelt resisted the demand of the Mugwumps that he bolt from Blaine . He bragged about his one small success : " We achieved a victory in getting up a combination to beat the Blaine nominee for temporary chairman ... To do this needed a mixture of skill , boldness and energy ... to get the different factions to come in ... to defeat the common foe . " He was also impressed by an invitation to speak before an audience of ten thousand , the largest crowd he had addressed up to that date . Having gotten a taste of national politics , Roosevelt felt less aspiration for advocacy on the state level ; he then retired to his new " Chimney Butte Ranch " on the Little Missouri River . Roosevelt refused to join other Mugwumps in supporting Grover Cleveland , the governor of New York and the Democratic nominee in the general election . He debated the pros and cons of staying loyal with his political friend , Henry Cabot Lodge . After Blaine won the nomination , Roosevelt had carelessly said that he would give " hearty support to any decent Democrat " . He distanced himself from the promise , saying that it had not been meant " for publication " . When a reporter asked if he would support Blaine , Roosevelt replied , " That question I decline to answer . It is a subject I do not care to talk about . " In the end , he realized that he had to support Blaine to maintain his role in the GOP , and he did so in a press release on July 19 . Having lost the support of many reformers , Roosevelt decided to retire from politics and move to North Dakota
GOP National Convention
1884 Republican National Convention
Theodore Roosevelt