Was Douglas Macarthur a Presdidential Candidate in the 1952 Election?
NO. He did not run for president at all in 1952 or any date after that. And, while he certainly had grandiose ambitions, he was never officially a candidate for president although his name was entered a few early GOP primaries in 1944. He did not seek the nomination in 1952 and did not run in any primaries, but endorsed Robert Taft of Ohio. Taft was considered the frontrunner but was defeated at the convention by Eisenhower. MacArthur did quietly give his approval to his name being placed on GOP primary ballots in 1944 — even though he was on active service as a theater commander in the Pacific. Thomas E. Dewey demolished Wendell Wilkie, the 1940 GOP nominee, and MacArthur. Neither were official candidates, but they did not seek to have their names removed from the ballot. MacArthur did not campaign himself, but through surrogates. Technically, MacArthur’s entry on the ballot raised serious legal and constitutional issues. But Roosevelt thought it was just as well, recognizing that Ma
