In the quiet backwaters of the Pacific during World War II, a young naval officer discovered an unlikely talent that would help him throughout his future political career. Richard Nixon, later the 37th President of the United States, learned and used his poker skills on Green Island, earning a small fortune that helped bankroll his first congressional campaign after the war, in 1946. His Quaker roots would have exempted him from service, yet he volunteered to embrace the challenge.
This story, later detailed in Jonathan Aitken’s comprehensive biography Nixon: A Life, and Stephen Ambrose’s classic The Education of a Politician 1913-1962 offers broader context of his disciplined early years. Nixon himself later wrote that poker taught him to read character under pressure, a skill we carried into political battles once he made the transition to politics.
From Novice to a Killer-Instinct in Poker
Assigned to oversee logistics in the Solomon Islands, Nixon endured daily Japanese air raids at Guadalcanal before being transferred to the relatively peaceful Green Island. There, he watched five-card stud and draw games before committing his own stakes, studying odds and opponents’ tells with military rigor. Nightly poker sessions became a ritual, a respite from the dangers of war, punctuated by the clatter of chips and low-voiced bluffs. Under the mentorship of Lieutenant James Stewart, Nixon folded roughly 80 percent of hands, playing only the strongest, disciplined moves.
James Udall, a fellow officer, later recalled “he was the finest poker player I have ever played against. I once saw him bluff a lieutenant commander out of $1,500 with a pair of deuces”. Lester Wroble added, “I never saw him lose,” noting Nixon typically walked away $40 to $50 ahead each night. One evening, Nixon drew a royal flush in diamonds, odds of about 650,000 to one, and claimed the pot with a perfectly still face we would later see in his political career. He even skipped a dinner with Charles Lindbergh to post a high-stakes game, underscoring his pragmatic focus on profit over pleasure.
This story is one of the most interesting mixes between politics and gambling. The possibility of a player of a trusted online gaming platform funding his own political career playing would be almost incredible, but it’s something that, short of, happened back in the ‘40s.
Bankrolling a Congressional Campaign
When his tour ended in July 1944, so concluded Nixon’s poker career, but not before he amassed between $6,800 to $8,000 in winnings, equivalent to over $100,000 today. Originally earmarked for a home purchase, these funds instead seeded his 1946 campaign against Democratic incumbent Jerry Voorhis. The cash infusion arrived just as banker Herman Perry encouraged him to run for Congress, a gamble Nixon and his wife Pat chose to take.
By contributing roughly 20 percent of his war chest, Nixon’s personal stake exceeded that of many seasoned politicians, reflecting his willingness to risk his own capital on electoral success. Victory in California’s 12th District marked the start of a storied career.
Also Read: What to Look for When Choosing a Partner for Custom Poker App Development
