William McKinley

William McKinley, an Ohio congressman and governor, won the presidency in 1896 and presided over the emergence of the United States as a world power.

The Spanish–American War of 1898 was brief and decisive; victory brought Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines under American control and effective control over Cuba. He annexed Hawaii and championed high tariffs and the gold standard as the economy recovered. Re-elected in 1900, he was assassinated by anarchist Leon Czolgosz in September 1901, elevating his vigorous young vice president, Theodore Roosevelt.

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