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At 80 years of age during the campaign of 1904, Democrat Henry G. Davis was the oldest person ever nominated by a major party for the vice presidency. The trade-protectionist West Virginian balanced the tariff-reform New Yorker, Alton B. Parker, at the top of the ticket. Most importantly, it was assumed correctly that Davis, a wealthy railroad owner, would contribute generously to the campaign finances. He gave $185,000 ($3.7 million in 2002 dollars), which was over a third of the very small election fund. |
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