Nov. 3 (UPI) -- On this date in history: In 1868, John Willis Menard of Louisiana became the first African American elected to the United States House of Representatives. Opposition to his election prevented him from ever being seated. Advertisement In 1903, Panama, with the support of the U.S. government, issued a declaration of independence from Colombia. In 1936, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was re-elected . It was a landslide victory over his Republican challenger, Kansas Gov. Alfred M. "