Franklin Delano Roosevelt, often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. A member of the Democratic Party, he won a record four presidential elections and became a central figure in world events during the first half of the 20th century. Roosevelt directed the federal government during most of the Great Depression, implementing his New Deal domestic agenda in response to the worst economic crisis in U.S. history. As a dominant leader of his party, he built the New Deal Coalition, which defined modern liberalism in the United States throughout the middle third of the 20th century. His third and fourth terms were dominated by World War II, which ended shortly after he died in office.
Roosevelt, a member of the Roosevelt family, was born and raised in Hyde Park, New York. He graduated from the Groton School then Harvard College, and attended Columbia Law School but left after passing the bar exam to practice law in New York City. In 1905, he married his fifth cousin once removed Eleanor Roosevelt. They had six children, of whom five survived into adulthood.