Rapid industrialization the United States during the late 1800s led to many problems that where being dealt with on the local and state levels. By 1896, William McKinley was elected President and began a national movement toward reforms. In 1899, Vice-President Garret Hobart died and Theodore Roosevelt was chosen to replace him on the 1900 ticket. McKinley won the election and following his assassination in 1901, Roosevelt became President.

 

President Theodore Roosevelt was at the helm and with a Republican controlled Congress, the United States saw many economic, political, and social reforms. Roosevelt was overwhelmingly re-elected in 1904 and although he was pro-business, ushered in an era of regulatory legislation toward public safety and anti-trust. He also took the lead on conservation. In 1908, he chose not to run and backed William Taft, who would become the next president.

Unhappy with the direction President Taft had taken, Roosevelt challenged Taft for the republican nomination in the 1912 election and lost. But Roosevelt wasn‟t ready to give up and created a new Progressive or Bull Moose Party. This created a split in the Republican Party and with the three way race a Democrat, Woodrow Wilson, became the next president.