In Albany on election night 1928, Eleanor stands amid celebrations for Franklin Roosevelt’s win as New York’s governor while lamenting Al Smith’s presidential loss. The public jubilation contrasts with her unease, rooted in memories of her father’s binges and doubts about the cost of political life.

She flashes back to October, when Smith and Democratic chair John Raskob arrived unannounced at her New York townhouse. Unable to reach Franklin at Warm Springs, they urged Eleanor to connect them so he could consider the gubernatorial nomination. Eleanor weighed Franklin’s health and her newfound independence against the public good, then decided: “Please hand me the phone.”

Returning to the present, Eleanor hopes Mary McLeod Bethune’s support of Hoover will advance Bethune’s causes, even as Smith’s defeat sours the night. At the reception line, a socialite, Mrs. Broadstreet, cuts ahead; new security chief Earl Miller enforces protocol and escorts the woman out, then assures Eleanor of his constant protection.

Watching Franklin greet constituents while seated, Eleanor notes his exhaustion after hours of braced “walking” and resolves to protect his image of strength. Lieutenant Governor Herbert Lehman toasts Franklin, and Eleanor recognizes the tradeoff before her: Smith’s defeat alongside Franklin’s ascent, and with the governorship, the impending loss of her privacy and freedom.