Willkie, Wendell L

Willkie, Wendell L(ewis)

(born Feb. 18, 1892, Elwood, Ind., U.S.—died Oct. 8, 1944, New York, N.Y.) U.S. politician. He moved to New York City in 1929 to become an attorney for the Commonwealth and Southern Corp., of which he was later president (1933–40). He led the opposition of utilities companies to competition from the federally funded Tennessee Valley Authority. His criticism of Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt led to his dark-horse victory at the 1940 Republican Party presidential convention. After a vigorous campaign, he won only 10 states but received more than 22 million popular votes, the largest number received by a Republican to that time. After a worldwide tour, he wrote One World (1943), a best-selling plea for postwar international cooperation.