The La Follette family

The first family of the Progressive movement: a governor-turned-senator and presidential candidate, and his sons who succeeded him.
Wisconsin · President · Senate · Governor
Combined career popular votes
7,553,681
Combined electoral votes
13
Members on the ballot
4
Combined W–L
4–3
Years on the ballot
1924–1968

Robert M. “Fighting Bob” La Follette Sr. was governor of Wisconsin, a U.S. senator, and the 1924 Progressive Party presidential nominee, who carried his home state. His son Robert M. La Follette Jr. succeeded him in the Senate, and another son, Philip La Follette, was elected governor of Wisconsin, making the La Follettes the dynasty of American progressivism.

The La Follette family members, ranked by career popular votes
MemberOfficesYearsCareer popular votesRecord
Bronson C. La FolletteDGovernor1968791,10001
Philip La FolletteWGovernor1930–19381,693,15631
Robert La FollettePPresident19244,831,70601
Robert La Follette Jr.RSenate1925237,71910

How this is measured

Combined career popular votes are summed across the 4 family members we track, each counted once across every presidential, U.S. Senate, governor, and U.S. House election in our data. Family membership is hand-curated and verified against primary sources, never matched by surname alone, so unrelated namesakes are never folded in. A vote for a presidential ticket counts for both the president and the vice-presidential candidate, matching how each profile reports its own totals.

Compiled by PolitiFinder · published June 14, 2026 · sources: Data & sources.