why did william jennings bryan lose the 1896 election

As Bryan had called New York in an ill-considered statement to the press before leaving Lincoln. [115], Bryan's plan for victory was to undertake a strenuous train tour, bringing his message to the people. They also lost the next 2 elections, in spite of their strong backing in the popular classes. The increasing economic struggles of poor farmers during the 1870s and 1880s led to the Populist movement. Not even supporters thought the Gold Democrats would win; the purpose was to have a candidate who would speak for the gold element in the party, and who would divide the vote and defeat Bryan. Even in the South, Bryan attracted 59% of the rural vote, but only 44% of the urban vote, taking 57% of the southern vote overall. On September 27, The New York Times published a letter by an "eminent alienist" who, based on an analysis of the candidate's speeches, concluded that Bryan was mad. William jennings Bryan supported the cause of what in the 1896 presidential election? "[142] By the end of 1896, Bryan had published his account of the campaign, The First Battle. In anticipation of a presidential campaign, he spent much of 1895 and early 1896 making speeches across the United States; his compelling oratory increased his popularity in his party. His speech, set as the only one besides Bryan's in favor of silver, portrayed silver as a sectional issue pitting the poorer folk of the South and West against gold-supporting New York and the rest of the Northeast. The majority felt exposed, crestfallen, and humiliated.[56]. At that time, Nebraska was suffering hard times as many farmers had difficulties making ends meet due to low grain prices, and many Americans were discontented with the existing two major political parties. Historian James A. Barnes deemed the DNC's vote immaterial; once the convention met on July 7, it quickly elected a silver man, Virginia Senator John Daniel, as temporary chairman and appointed a committee to review credentials friendly to the silver cause. Bryan quipped, "I seem to have plenty of friends now, but I remember well when they were very few. He set his sights on higher office, believing he could be elected president in 1896 even though he remained a relatively minor figure in the Democratic Party. Coletta noted the problems faced by Bryan in obtaining the nomination, and how his groundwork helped overcome them: The maneuver that paid Bryan highest dividends was his fifteen months of missionary work in behalf of silver and cultivation of the Chicago delegates. He made 27speeches, including seven in Omaha, the last concluding a few minutes before midnight. His 'Cross of Gold' speech, given to conclude the debate on the party platform, immediately transformed him into a favorite for the nomination, and he won it the next day. He was young, had a respectable but not burdensome record, came from the West, and understood the arts of conciliation. "[70], When order was restored after Bryan's speech, the convention passed the platform, voting down the minority report and a resolution in support of the Cleveland administration; it then recessed for a few hours until 8:00pm, when nominating speeches were to be made. The proposed platform was pro-silver; Senator Hill had offered an amendment backing the gold standard, which had been defeated by committee vote. The Cleveland Democrats were temporarily weak, and the Southern-Mountain coalition was ready to hand. He campaigned relentlessly, traveling around the country and giving hundreds of speeches to millions of people, while his Republican opponent, Ohio Governor William McKinley, stayed home and gave speeches from his porch. The humblest citizen in all the land, when clad in the armor of a righteous cause, is stronger than all the hosts of error. Morgan noted, "full organization, [Republican] party harmony, a campaign of education with the printed and spoken word would more than counteract" Bryan's speechmaking. Throughout the nation, voters were intensely interested in the campaign, studying the flood of pamphlets. [67], Bryan described the stillness as "really painful"; his anxieties that he might have failed were soon broken by pandemonium. NAACP what organization used the court system to fight discrimination? National Archives and Records Administration. [95], The Populist strategy for 1896 was to nominate the candidate most supportive of silver. Bryans inability to differentiate between social Darwinism and the scientific theory of evolution galvanized his more fundamentalist, religious supporters but earned him the disdain of many others who shared his progressive politics. The coalition of wealthy, middle-class and urban voters that defeated Bryan kept the Republicans in power for most of the time until 1932. In late 1894, pro-silver Democrats began to organize in the hope of taking control of the party from Cleveland and other Gold Democrats and nominating a silver candidate in 1896. If this robbery is permitted, the farmer will be ruined, and then the cities will suffer. Rumors that Europeans were about to redeem a large sum for gold caused desperate selling on the stock market, the start of the Panic of 1893. Palmer proved an able campaigner who visited most major cities in the East, and in the final week of his campaign, told listeners, "I will not count it any great fault if next Tuesday you decide to cast your ballots for William McKinley. See, In New England, Cleveland had won Connecticut in 1892 while losing the region as a whole by 53,000votes, Bryan won no states and lost New England by over 172,000 votes. Rather than continue the free silver battle, he dedicated himself to opposing American imperialism, which he saw as immoral and undemocratic. [105], After the Democratic convention, Bryan had returned triumphantly to Lincoln, making speeches along the way. [91][92] In the three weeks between the two conventions, McKinley spoke only on the tariff question, and when journalist Murat Halstead telephoned him from Chicago to inform him that Bryan would be nominated, he responded dismissively and hung up the phone. At home, he took a short rest, and was visited by Senator Jones to discuss plans for the campaign. A bowery had been built for the Fourth of July picnic and dance. "[101] Many Populists saw the election of Bryan, whose positions on many issues were not far from theirs, as the quickest path to the reforms they sought; a majority of delegates to the convention in St. Louis favored him. I will not aid them to press down upon the bleeding brow of labor this crown of thorns."[26]. However, the economy was booming under the leadership of McKinley. Populists claim to speak for ordinary people, taking an "us versus them" stance. Bryan left the convention, returning to his hotel to await the outcome. William Jennings Bryan on the Stand Calling Bryan to the stand was a shock for the court. Bryans pacifist stance put him increasingly at odds with the president, however, and he resigned in 1915 in protest after Wilson sent a second note to Germany demanding an end to submarine warfare after the sinking of the Lusitania, an action Bryan felt went too far toward violating American neutrality. William Jennings Bryan (1860-1925), the U.S. congressman from Nebraska, three-time presidential nominee and secretary of state, emerged near the end of the 19th century as a leading voice in the Democratic Party and the nation. After the fourth ballot, the Illinois delegation caucused and Altgeld was one of only two remaining Bland supporters, thus giving Bryan all of the state's 48 votes and bringing him near the two-thirds mark and the nomination. Why did William Jennings Bryan lose? Bryan and many other Democrats believed the economic malaise could be remedied through a return to bimetallism, or free silvera policy they believed would inflate the currency and make it easier for debtors to repay loans. McKinley and Hanna gently mocked Dawes, telling him that Bland would be the nominee. McKinley won with 7.1 million votes to Bryan's 6.5 million, 51% to 47%. June 1894 marked the publication of William H. Harvey's Coin's Financial School. The day after his Cross of Gold speech, Bryan won the Democratic presidential nomination; he also won the support of the Populist and National Silver parties. The 1878 BlandAllison Act and the Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890 required the government to buy large quantities of silver and strike it into coin. In 2007, Gore won a Nobel read more, Considered the greatest English-speaking writer in history and known as Englands national poet, William Shakespeare (1564-1616) has had more theatrical works performed than any other playwright. "I was a Democrat before the Convention and am a Democrat stillvery still. Sherman's act required the government to pay out gold in exchange for silver and paper currency, and through the early months of 1893 gold flowed out of the Treasury. South Carolina Senator Benjamin Tillman, a silver supporter, wanted an hour to address the convention, and to close the debate. It began as a simple courtesy, with a telegram that William Jennings Bryan sent. Cross of Gold Speech and Election of 1896, Anti-Evolution Crusade, Scopes Trial and Death, Department of State: Office of the Historian. [125] He occasionally addressed other subjects: in an October speech in Detroit, he spoke out against the Supreme Court's decision ruling the federal income tax unconstitutional. [13] Bryan, who had been elected after the passage of the latter enactment, initially had little to say on the subject. For the last decade of his life, he largely dedicated himself to reforming the nations moral and religious character. The 1900 United States presidential election took place after an economic recovery from the Panic of 1893 as well as after the Spanish-American War, with the economy, foreign policy, and imperialism being the main issues of the campaign. [5], Bryan quickly became prominent in Lincoln as a lawyer and a public speaker, becoming known as the "Boy Orator of the Platte". Attending Illinois College beginning in 1877, Bryan devoted himself to winning the school prize for speaking. Bryan often spoke on the issue of the currency. The paper editorialized on the same page that even if the Democratic candidate was not insane, he was at least "of unsound mind". [96][97] According to Stanley Jones, "the Democratic endorsement of silver and Bryan at Chicago precipitated the disintegration" of the Populist Party;[98] it was never again a force in national politics after 1896. [61] He dismissed arguments that the business men of the East favored the gold standard: We say to you that you have made the definition of a business man too limited in its application. In 1890, he agreed to run for Congress against William James Connell, a Republican, who had won the local congressional seat in 1888. [69] In the midst of the crazed crowd, Altgeld, a Bland supporter, commented to his friend, lawyer Clarence Darrow, "That is the greatest speech I ever listened to. "[109], Bryan set the formal acceptance of his nomination for August 12 at New York's Madison Square Garden; he left Lincoln five days earlier by rail, and spoke 38times along the way, sometimes from the trackside in his nightgown. After the defense called Bryan himself as an expert on the Bible, Darrow subjected him to a brutal examination in the sweltering courtroom, revealing his lack of theological as well as scientific knowledge. The nation was regionally split, with the industrial East and Midwest for McKinley, and with Bryan carrying the Solid South and the silver strongholds of the Rocky Mountain states. [140] The Democratic Party preserved control in the eastern cities through machine politics and the continued loyalty of the Irish-American voter; Bryan's loss over the silver issue of many German-American voters, previously solidly Democratic, helped ensure his defeat in the Midwest. The 1896 campaign, which took place during an economic depression known as the Panic of 1893, was a realigning election that ended the old Third Party System and began the Fourth Party System. The 1900 United States presidential election was the 29th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 6, 1900.In a re-match of the 1896 race, incumbent Republican President William McKinley defeated his Democratic challenger, William Jennings Bryan.McKinley's victory made him the first president to win a consecutive re-election since Ulysses S. Grant had accomplished the same . See. Many of the elements of the speech had appeared in prior Bryan addresses. The election of 1896 was just as much a partisan battle over the future of American economic policy as the 2012 election. "[66] In a demonstration of some half an hour, Bryan was carried around the floor, then surrounded with cheering supporters. To that end, it was important that the Populists not nominate a rival silver candidate, and he took pains to cultivate good relations with Populist leaders. T.G.O.D Y.O.L.O Why did William Jennings Bryan lose the 1896 election? The 1896 presidential race is generally considered a realigning election, when there is a major shift in voting patterns, upsetting the political balance. Nevertheless, Gold Democrats began plans to hold their own convention, which took place in September. The left-wing Populist Party (which had hoped to nominate the only silver-supporting candidate) endorsed Bryan for president, but found Sewall unacceptable, substituting Thomas E. Watson of Georgia. But McKinleys victory was fueled by a massive influx of campaign cash from Wall Street bankers and other wealthy business interests, all determined to crush Bryans radical brand of populism. [80] Bryan and Sewall gained their nominations without the ballots of the gold men, most of whom refused to vote. [147] This was evidenced in the tariff question: Bryan spent little time addressing it, stating that it was subsumed in the financial issue; Republican arguments that the protective tariff would benefit manufacturers appealed to urban workers and went unrebutted by the Democrats. Bryan campaigned heavily on a platform of free silver in 1896, and continued that trend into the election of 1900. Much of the blizzard of paper the Republican campaign was able to pay for concentrated on this area/ By September, this had its effect as silver sentiment began to fade. In August 1893, Bryan earned admiration from free silverites with his three-hour speech in Congress decrying President Grover Clevelands (ultimately successful) effort to repeal the Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890 and again tie U.S. currency to the gold standard. Neither candidate had much money to spend on his campaign. "[130], In September, the Gold Democrats met in convention in Indianapolis. The 1908 United States presidential election was the 31st quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 3, 1908. How could a boy in appearance, one not yet admitted to the convention, without a single state behind him, dare claim the nomination? I don't know but its effect will be to nominate him. The minority report attracted the opposite reaction.[54]. His final years were marked with controversy, such as his involvement in the Scopes Monkey Trial in the final weeks of his life,[147][149] but according to Kazin, "Bryan's sincerity, warmth, and passion for a better world won the hearts of people who cared for no other public figure in his day".[150]. He was not yet done with campaigning, however; on November 2, he undertook a train journey across Nebraska in support of Democratic congressional candidates. [39] When Senator Teller walked out of the Republican convention in protest over the currency plank, he immediately became another possible candidate for the Democratic nomination for president. Bryan, who was still in Congress, spoke eloquently against the repeal, but Cleveland forced it through. The presidents of this eraRutherford B. Hayes, James Garfield, Chester Arthur, Grover Cleveland, and Benjamin Harrisonare often remembered as colorless and ineffective. These included Vice President Adlai Stevenson of Illinois, Senator Joseph C. Blackburn of Kentucky, Indiana Governor Claude Matthews, and Bryan. A free silver policy would inflate the currency, as the silver in a dollar coin was worth just over half the face value. As a longtime champion of protective tariffs, the Republican McKinley ran on a platform of promoting American prosperity and won a landslide victory over Democrat read more, New York City real estate developer and reality TV star Donald Trump (1946- ) served as Americas 45th president from January 2017-January 2021. Set off by the collapse of the powerful Philadelphia & Reading Railroad, the Panic of 1893 plunged the nation into a deep economic depression. He was followed by Senator William Vilas of Wisconsin and former Massachusetts Governor William D. Russell. He spoke some 600 times, to an estimated 5,000,000 listeners. In 1986, he began his long tenure as the U.S. read more, William Seward (1801-1872) was a politician who served as governor of New York, as a U.S. senator and as secretary of state during the Civil War (1861-65). With little money, poor organization, and a hostile press, Bryan was his campaign's most important asset, and he wanted to reach the voters by traveling to them. Speakers for both parties found eager audiences. He won the prize in his junior year, and also secured the affection of Mary Baird, a student at a nearby women's academy. Active in Democratic Party politics, Sewall was one of the few eastern party leaders to support silver, was wealthy and could help finance the campaign; he also balanced the ticket geographically. In post-Civil War America, oratory was highly prized, and Bryan showed aptitude for it from a young age, raised in his father's house in Salem. Treat all candidates fairly. United States presidential election of 1896, American presidential election held on November 3, 1896, in which Republican William McKinley defeated Democrat - Populist William Jennings Bryan. Writers such as Edgar Lee Masters, Hamlin Garland and his fellow Nebraskan, Willa Cather, like Bryan came from the prairies; they wrote of their admiration for him and his first battle. [f] McKinley even won the urban vote in Nebraska. "[145] Bryan's own explanation was brief: "I have borne the sins of Grover Cleveland. In 1896, William Jennings Bryan ran unsuccessfully for president of the United States. "[66], As he spoke his final sentence, he brought his hands to his head, fingers extended in imitation of thorns; amid dead silence in the Coliseum, he extended his arms, recalling with words and posture the Crucifixion of Jesus, and held that position for several seconds. While the farmers of the south and west continued to support Bryan's proposed economic policies, many found McKinley's to be effective enough. Governor Altgeld had held Illinois, which was subject to the "unit rule" whereby the entirety of a state's vote was cast as a majority of that state's delegation directed. (Credit: Bettmann Archive/Getty Images). Ordinarily, it was torn down after that event. However, many delegates disliked Sewall because of his wealth and ownership of a large business, and believed that nominating someone else would keep Populist issues alive in the campaign. voting restrictions what political restrictions did southern states place on african americans? [122] He did not campaign on Sundays, but on most other days spoke between 20 and 30 times. William Jennings Bryan (D) Loading. The smell of victory seemed to hang in the air. The question of the currency had been a major political issue since the mid-1870s. [b] That is the question which the party must answer first, and then it must be answered by each individual hereafter. Lose identity, simplify their cause to one policy (free coinage of silver), sacrifice rest of platform Why did Populists endorse Bryan? [93] When Bryan was nominated on a silver platform, the Republicans were briefly gratified, believing that Bryan's selection would result in an easy victory for McKinley. In 1896, Bryan captivated the audience at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago with a passionate oration urging his countrymen to stand up for the common man against big business interests and support free silver. Biographies of the Secretaries of State: William Jennings Bryan (1860-1925). He won election to the House of Representatives in 1890, and was re-elected in 1892, before mounting an unsuccessful US Senate run. McKinley was supported by middle-class and wealthy voters, urban laborers, and prosperous farmers; this coalition would keep the Republicans mostly in power until the 1930s. Why did the populist party support william jennings Bryan for president in the presidential election of 1896? But they had limited room to maneuver in a period of extremely tight competition. why did william jennings bryan lose the election of 1896? [124], Bryan rarely emphasized other issues than silver; leader of a disparate coalition linked by the silver question, he feared alienating some of his supporters. [50], Delegates spent most of the first two days listening to various speeches by silver supporters. "[144] Williams believes that Bryan did better than any other Democrat would have, and comments, "The nominee of a divided and discredited party, he had come remarkably close to winning. The election of 1896 is seen as the beginning of a new era in American politics, or a "realignment" election. (W.W. Norton & Company, 2018), William Jennings Bryan, the Great Commoner. Constitutional Rights Foundation, Spring 2010 (Volume 25, No. Others dubbed Bryan a "Popocrat". I come to speak to you in defense of a cause as holy as the cause of libertythe cause of humanity.[59]. [99], Even before their convention in late July, the Populists faced dissent in their ranks. [62][64] He responded to an argument by Senator Vilas that from silver forces might arise a Robespierre. Arthur F. Mullen, a resident of O'Neill, Nebraska, described the summer and fall of 1896: O'Neill buzzed with political disputation from dawn till next dawn. Palmer was a 79-year-old former Union general, Buckner a 73-year-old former Confederate of that rank; the ticket was the oldest in combined age in American history, and Palmer the second-oldest presidential candidate (behind Peter Cooper of the Greenback Party; Bryan was the youngest). Bryan signed on as chief prosecutor, facing off against the criminal defense attorney Clarence Darrow. The sympathies of the Democratic Party, as shown by the platform, are on the side of the struggling masses, who have ever been the foundation of the Democratic Party. He was defeated in the general election by the Republican candidate, former Ohio governor William McKinley . For a more detailed treatment of the background to the currency question, see, For further information on the procedures of American political conventions, see, William Jennings Bryan 1896 presidential campaign, Attacks and Gold Democrats; the final days. Bland maintained his lead on the second and third ballots, but on the fourth, with the convention in a huge uproar, Bryan took the lead. Elected to the House of Representatives in 1890, when he was just 30 years old, Bryan championed populist causes including the direct election of senators, graduated federal income tax and the free silver movement, which sought to expand the federal money supply by basing U.S. currency on silver as well as gold. Bryan did not; Senator Jones (as the new Democratic National Committee chairman, in charge of the campaign) stated, "Mr. Sewall, will, of course, remain on the ticket, and Mr. Watson can do what he likes. He also argued in support of a graduated income tax, antitrust laws and other government regulation of business, womens suffrage and the prohibition of alcohol. His program of prosperity through free silver struck an emotional chord with the American people in a way that McKinley's protective tariff did not. At the outset of the 1890s, with drought destroying the livelihoods of many American farmers, the Peoples Party (also known as the Populist Party) was growing as a force in U.S. politics by appealing to small farmers, shopkeepers and other less wealthy voters. I will add for the encouragement of those who still believe that money is not necessary to secure a Presidential nomination that my entire expenses while in attendance upon the convention were less than $100. [1] As a judge's son, the younger Bryan had ample opportunity to observe the art of speechmaking in courtrooms, political rallies, and at church and revival meetings. Those that served principally as agricultural centers or had been founded along the railroad favored Bryan.

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