Election Of 1896 Research Paper

The Presidential Election of 1896

Kylene Fitzpatrick

History 417

Dr. Bauman

December 2, 2016

The Presidential Election of 1896 In 1896, Republican William McKinley defeated Democrat William Jennings Bryan in the United States’ 28th presidential election. This election, although not terribly well-known today, can be considered one of the most significant in American history. It is considered to be the realigning election that ended America’s old Third Party System, and gave rise to the Republican-dominated Fourth Party System which lasted until the 1930s. McKinley gained the support of businessmen, skilled laborers, and the wealthy, while Bryan’s platform consisted of the Populists, the working class, and those who were in favor

The Panic of 1893 left America in a state of severe economic depression. People began to question the American gold standard and US tariff policy. William Jennings Bryan called for the reform of the monetary system in America. He wished to put an end to American reliance on the gold standard, and argued instead for the “free coinage of silver”. This policy would be inflationary, rather than the gold standard, which was deflationary . This was to potentially drive America out of its economic depression, which was characterized by deflation. Those in favor of Bryan’s idea of free silver, known as “Silverites”, comprised a large percentage of his supporters. The free silver standard proposed by Bryan is what seems to have earned him the Democratic nomination. The Populist Party, characterized by left-wing orientation, participation in the labor movement, and criticism of capitalism, was also supportive of Bryan . Instead of nominating their own candidate, Populists endorsed Bryan. They did, however, propose their own vice-presidential candidate, Thomas E. Watson (rather than Arthur Sewall) to show that they were still independent from the Democrats . Joining forces with the Democratic Party essentially caused the Populist Party to dissolve after this

He spoke at the Democratic convention in Chicago, and gave what is considered to be one of the greatest political speeches in US history. This famous “cross of gold” speech disparaged the American gold standard. In the final line, which gave this speech its name, Bryan exclaimed to those in favor of the gold standard, “you shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns; you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.” The conclusion of the speech was met with celebration from the present Democrats. The balloting took place the following morning. Initially, Bryan fell behind his competitor, Richard “Silver Dick” Bland. After this speech at the Democratic convention, however, Bryan was the candidate to receive the nomination . Despite the Populist proposal of Thomas Watson as his vice presidential running mate, Arthur Sewall was chosen as the vice-presidential nominee. Bryan, 36 at the time, remains the youngest person to be nominated for president by a major political party