Franklin Delano Roosevelt Roosevelt, Franklin Delano (1882-1945), 32d president of the United States (1933-45); elected for an unprecedented four terms, he was one of the 20th century's most skillful political leaders. His New Deal program, a response to the Great Depression, utilized the federal government as an instrument of social and economic change in contrast to its traditionally passive role. Then, in World War II, he led the Allies in their defeat of the Axis powers. Born at Hyde Park, New York, on January 30, 1882, he was the only child of James Roosevelt (1828-1900) and Sara Delano Ro