November 15 1920, Geneva–The League of Nations General Assembly convened for the first time in its Geneva headquarters (later to be named the Palais Wilson after the President’s death in 1924), with representatives from 42 states.  More notable, however, with the absences.

The United States, having never ratified the Treaty of Versailles, was not present, and did not even send an observer to the proceedings.

None of the defeated states–Germany, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, or Turkey–were League members, though Austria and Bulgaria would join the next month.

Russia was not present, as the Allies did not recognize the Soviet government and the Whites had largely been defeated.  Apart from Poland, the states that had broken off from the Russian Empire were also absent: Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and the embattled Armenia and Georgia—though Finland would be admitted the following month.

Some other states were also not present, due to oversights or because they were not in any way part of the Allies: Mexico, Ecuador, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Luxembourg, Albania, and Ethiopia, along with European microstates such as Andorra.  British dominions (including India but not Newfoundland) each had their own representation in the League.

Harding Wins in a Landslide

The 1920 Presidential Election results, with red for Republican Harding, and blue for Democrat Cox.  Darker shades indicate states won by larger margins.

November 2 1920, Marion–Campaigning on a “return to normalcy” after the war, the Red Scare, the Red Summer, and economic upheaval, Republican Senator Warren G. Harding of Ohio won the presidential election on November 2 in a landslide of unprecedented scale.  His 60.35% of the vote was the largest share of the vote won since the last uncontested election in 1820, and his 26.2% margin over Democrat James Cox is still the largest in a US presidential election.  Cox only won Kentucky and 10 of the 11 states in the former Confederacy (Harding won Tennessee), the largest electoral college landslide since Reconstruction.  Winning 3.41% of the vote (down from 5.99% in his 1912 run) was Socialist Eugene Debs, who ran his campaign from a prison cell.  Harding’s popular vote total was over 75% larger than Wilson’s winning vote total four years earlier, a testament both to his landslide and the many new women voters enfranchised by the 19th Amendment.

Apart from usual Republican strongholds like Vermont, Harding’s win was biggest in the Upper Midwest: North Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Michigan all gave him over 70% of the vote.  Hughes had won most of these states four years earlier, but he had won Minnesota by less than 400 votes and Wilson had won North Dakota.  The war and Wilson’s handling of the German peace terms had apparently destroyed Democratic chances with German voters in the area.  Wilson had hoped the campaign would be a referendum on the League, but Harding was noncommittal on the issue, and Cox eventually backed reservations on Article 10.  On October 27, Wilson gave his first speech since his stroke, in support of the League, in front of an audience of 15 who still struggled to hear his words; he did not mention Cox at all.  Wilson’s mishandling of the Senate had doomed the United States’ chance to enter the League long before, and Harding’s election heralded the United States’ general withdrawal from world affairs.

Sources include: Patricia O’Toole, The Moralist. Image credit: uselectionatlas.org

wildragon:

I love how Maxwell have such kissable lips, but being smooched by him would probably cost all your sanity.

Sorry, I couldn’t help showing the situation where this way can be useful XD

wilson plays stardew valley religiously