A Successful Incumbent.

As the sitting president, William McKinley faced no challenge for the Republican nomination. The prospering economy, his deft handling of the Spanish-American War and its aftermath, and his statements about containing the trusts helped his popularity immensely — as had his successful use of the press and his many speaking trips across the country. After March 1900 he followed tradition and withdrew from the public eye, retiring to the White House for the spring and for the summer to his home in Canton, Ohio, where he received visitors and dealt with a growing crisis in China. His friend Sen. Mark Hanna, who had run McKinley's successful campaign four years earlier, was again selected as head of the Republican National Committee.

Seeking a Running Mate.

The only question facing the Republicans who met in Philadelphia on 19-21 June was who would...