Although president truman was predicted to lose the 1948 presidential election, who did he defeat?

He defeated Thomas E. Dewey. Truman's victory is considered to be one of America's biggest election upsets, with virtually every public opinion poll indicating Truman would be defeated. Suprisingly, Truman, a democrat, obtained 303 electoral votes compare to Dewey's 189. Truman won the popular vote by 49. 6 % compared to Dewey's 45.1%. while Thurmond, the second runner-up, drew the votes of only 2.4 percent of the public.