According to Stanley Jones, The period of this tour, in the return from New York to Lincoln, was the high point of the Bryan campaign. Source (Electoral Vote): "Electoral College Box Scores 17891996". Confusion over ballots in Minnesota resulted in 15,000voided votes and may have thrown that state to the Republicans. Both had openly declared their candidacies, and were the only Democrats to have organizations seeking to obtain pledged delegates. The coalition of wealthy, middle-class and urban voters that defeated Bryan kept the Republicans in power for most of the time until 1932. Bryan sensed the possibility of becoming the nominee long before 1896; his ambition was fully matured several months prior to the convention, and there is evidence that his hopes were becoming tinged with certainty before he left for Chicago. To this day, countless theater festivals around the world honor his work, students read more. Only Bryan was left to speak, and no one at the convention had yet effectively championed the silver cause. [146] The election of 1896 marked a transition as the concerns of the rural population became secondary to those of the urban; according to Stanley Jones, "the Democratic Party reacted with less sensitivity than the Republicans to the hopes and fears of the new voters which the new age was producing". "[60] From the start, Bryan had his audience: when he finished a sentence, they would rise, shout and cheer, then quiet themselves to ready for the next words; the Nebraskan later described the convention as like a trained choir. In 1890, he agreed to run for Congress against William James Connell, a Republican, who had won the local congressional seat in 1888. 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. Many were disappointed; the Democratic candidate read a two-hour speech from a manuscript, wishing to look statesmanlike, and fearing that if he spoke without a script, the press would misrepresent his words. Ever since the election of 1800, American presidential contests had, on some level, been a referendum on whether the country should be governed by agrarian interests (rural indebted farmers-the countryside-"main street") or industrial interests (business-the city-"wall street"). Members of the Committee on Resolutions (also called the Platform Committee) intended to elect California Senator Stephen M. White as chairman; they found that he had already been co-opted as permanent chairman of the convention. However, the business man argument was new, though he had hinted at it in an interview he gave at the Republican convention. Bryan believed he could use the coalition-building techniques he had applied in gaining election to Congress, uniting pro-silver forces behind him to gain the Democratic nomination and the presidency. Though men thought otherwise at the time, neither fate nor accident created his position in the party. Treat all candidates fairly. [24][25] Several times, in his addresses, Bryan repeated variations on lines he had spoken in Congress in December 1894, decrying the gold standard, "I will not help to crucify mankind upon a cross of gold. The New York World reported, "The floor of the convention seemed to heave up. Jill Lepore. [132] Early Republican polls had shown Bryan ahead in crucial Midwestern states, including McKinley's Ohio. As Bryan had called New York in an ill-considered statement to the press before leaving Lincoln. 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 March 1898, two years into William McKinley's first term as president, he gave Spainwhich was in the midst of a brutal campaign of repression in . Populists claim to speak for ordinary people, taking an "us versus them" stance. If the USA had been on a bimetallic standard between 1875 and 1890, the economy could have expanded far more than it did, restricted as it was in its monetary straight jacket. Taken prisoner after his plane was shot down, he suffered five and a half years of torture and confinement before his release in 1973. "[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. See. "[131], The South and most of the West were deemed certain to vote for Bryan. While speaking in McKinley's hometown of Canton, Ohio, Bryan yielded to impulse and called upon his rival at his home with Congressman Bland; the Republican candidate and his wife, somewhat startled, received the two men hospitably in a scene Williams calls, "surely bizarre. The central issue was the country's money supply. William McKinley defeated Democrat William Jennings Bryan, winning 292 electoral votes to Bryan's 155. [f] McKinley even won the urban vote in Nebraska. [43] He explained to Champ Clark, the future Speaker of the House, that Bland and others from southern states would fall because of prejudice towards the old Confederacy, that Boies could not be nominated because he was too little-known, and all others would fail due to lack of supportleaving only himself.[44]. He was not yet done with campaigning, however; on November 2, he undertook a train journey across Nebraska in support of Democratic congressional candidates. [103] Populist leader Henry Demarest Lloyd described silver as the "cow-bird" of the Populist Party, which had pushed aside all other issues. However, he was deemed unlikely to succeed, as many Democrats feared that if elected, he might fill some patronage jobs with Republicans. He maintained contact with silver partisans in other parties, hopeful of gathering them in after a nomination. We have submitted the issues to the American people and their will is law. According to his biographer Michael Kazin, "Bryan felt he was serving his part in a grander conflict that began with Christ and showed no sign of approaching its end. By the 1930s, he had built the nations largest media empire, including more than two dozen newspapers in major cities nationwide, read more, Populism is a style of politics used to mobilize mass movements against ruling powers. The proposed platform was pro-silver; Senator Hill had offered an amendment backing the gold standard, which had been defeated by committee vote. William Jennings Bryan, (born March 19, 1860, Salem, Illinois, U.S.died July 26, 1925, Dayton, Tennessee), Democratic and Populist leader and a magnetic orator who ran unsuccessfully three times for the U.S. presidency (1896, 1900, and 1908). All Rights Reserved. Bryan remained at his hotel, sending word to his fellow Nebraskans, "There must be no pledging, no promising, on any subject with anybody. Those that served principally as agricultural centers or had been founded along the railroad favored Bryan. why did william jennings bryan lose the election of 1896? Although defeated in the election, Bryan's campaign made him a national figure, which he remained until his death in 1925. Most cities that were financial or manufacturing centers voted for McKinley. [105], After the Democratic convention, Bryan had returned triumphantly to Lincoln, making speeches along the way. [144] According to Kazin, "what is remarkable is not that Bryan lost but that he came as close as he did to winning. In the 1892 presidential election, former Democratic president Grover Cleveland defeated the Republican incumbent, Benjamin Harrison, to regain his office. 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 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. [30] As state conventions met to nominate delegates to the July national convention, for the most part, they supported silver, and sent silver men to Chicago. 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. [4] Looking for a growing city in which his practice could thrive, he moved to Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1887. Wherever his train went people, who had travelled from nearby farms and villages, waved and shouted encouragement. The billionaire businessman ran as a Republican and scored an upset victory over his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, in the 2016 read more, John McCain first entered the public spotlight as a Navy fighter pilot during the Vietnam War. 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. NAACP what organization used the court system to fight discrimination? The Republicans, at the request of their nominee for president, former Ohio governor William McKinley, included a plank in their party platform supporting the gold standard. [136] His train reached Lincoln after the polls opened; he journeyed from train station to polling place to his house escorted by a mounted troop of supporters. Book Description Mr. Bryan's unfinished memoirs, which close with an account of the Baltimore convention of 1912, make up less than half the . He slept much of the evening of election day, to be wakened by his wife with telegrams showing the election was most likely lost. [139], In most areas, Bryan did better among rural voters than urban. Bryan, a former Democratic congressman from Nebraska, gained his party's presidential nomination in July of that year after electrifying the Democratic National Convention with his Cross of Gold speech. By early October, the DNC, at the urging of Populist officials who felt Bryan was being worn out, procured the services of North Carolina journalist Josephus Daniels to make travel arrangements, and also obtained a private railroad car, The Idlera name Bryan thought somewhat inappropriate due to the strenuous nature of the tour. Many Republican leaders had gone on vacation for the summer, believing that the fight, on their terms, would take place in the fall. Crowds assembled hours or days ahead of Bryan's arrival. [46], Just before the convention, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) made initial determinations of which delegations were to be seatedonce convened, delegates would make the final determination after the convention's Credentials Committee reported. 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). A Missourian, Ezra Peters, wrote to Illinois Senator John M. Palmer, "Coins [sic] Financial School is raising h in this neck of the woods. The nominations The presidential campaign of 1896 was one of the most exciting in American history. Bryan. He made 27speeches, including seven in Omaha, the last concluding a few minutes before midnight. McKinley and Hanna gently mocked Dawes, telling him that Bland would be the nominee. [2][3], While attending law school from 1881 to 1883, Bryan was a clerk to former Illinois senator Lyman Trumbull, who influenced him in a dislike for wealth and business monopolies. There was loud cheering as Bryan stood at the lectern; it took him a full minute to gain silence. The Gold Democrats received quiet financial support from Hanna and the Republicans. 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. 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 . The main candidates headquartered at the Palmer House, their rooms often crowded as they served free alcoholic drinks. 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. [41], Bryan's Nebraska delegation left Lincoln by train on July 5. Although defeated in the election, Bryan's campaign made him a national figure, which he remained until his death in 1925. "[19] A Minnesota correspondent wrote in Outlook magazine: "high school boys are about equally divided between silver and baseball, with a decided leaning toward the former". He had accepted the nominal editorship of the Omaha World-Herald in August 1894. Someone who presented ten dollars in silver bullion would receive back almost twice that in silver coin. An ardent read more, A native of Tennessee, Al Gore served as vice president of the United States under President Bill Clinton from 1992 to 2000, after a long tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. At first, he rode in public cars, and made his own travel arrangements, looking up train schedules and even carrying his own bags from train station to hotel. This was a matter of intense interest for the silver delegates: Bryan had written to large numbers of delegates urging them to support his men over their gold rivals; once in Chicago, he and his fellow Nebraskans had spoken with many others about the dispute. The coalition of wealthy, middle-class and urban voters that defeated Bryan kept the Republicans in power for most of the time until 1932. The 1896 race is generally seen as a realigning election. John Nimick. 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. Party members in many states, including Nebraska, demanded inflation of the currency through issuance of paper or silver currency, allowing easier repayment of debt. McKinley did well in the border states of Maryland, West Virginia, and Kentucky. Through the almost three decades before his death in 1925, he was ever present on political platform and speaking circuit, fighting first for silver, and then for other causes. 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. [51], Once seated, Bryan went to the Platform Committee meeting at the Palmer House, displacing the Nebraska gold delegate on the committee. T.G.O.D Y.O.L.O [e] In his account, Bryan quoted a letter by Senator Jones: "No matter in how small sums, no matter by what humble contributions, let the friends of liberty and national honor contribute all they can to the good cause. Many of the elements of the speech had appeared in prior Bryan addresses. When early-voting Maine and Vermont went strongly Republican in September, this meant that McKinley would most likely win the Northeast. The effect was deflationary. Bryan always regarded that argument as the speech's most powerful part, despite the fame its conclusion would gain. "Silver Dick" Bland was seen as the elder statesman of the silver movement; he had originated the Bland-Allison Act of 1878, while Boies' victories for governor in a normally Republican state made him attractive as a candidate who might compete with McKinley in the crucial Midwest. 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. [28] He continued to give speeches, and collected his traveling expenses, and most often a speaking fee, from those who had invited him. 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. [122] He did not campaign on Sundays, but on most other days spoke between 20 and 30 times. He was utterly confident that he would succeed, believing "the logic of the situation," as he later put it, dictated his selection. The dark horse is in his stall, feasting on the oats of hope and political straws. Nevertheless, Gold Democrats began plans to hold their own convention, which took place in September. His campaign focused on silver, an issue that failed to appeal to the urban voter, and he was defeated. Bryan often spoke on the issue of the currency. Eugene V. Debs Why did most southern states pass laws to disenfranchise black voters in the 1890s To eliminate the possibility of future political alliances between poor whites and blacks Which reform did the Populists call for on their party platform of 1892 Public ownership of railroads and telegraphs According to historian Stanley Jones in his account of the 1896 election, "it seemed in retrospect a curious logic that gave a capitalist from Maine a leading role in a campaign intended to have a strong appeal to the masses of the South and West". Any possible candidacy depended on silver supporters being successful in electing the bulk of convention delegates; accordingly Bryan backed such efforts. McKinley won with 7.1 million votes to Bryan's 6.5 million, 51% to 47%. Retrieved May 19, 2012. [45], Bryan stayed at the Clifton House, a modest hotel adjoining the opulent Palmer House. The galleries were quickly packed, but the delegates, slowed by fatigue from the first two days and the long journey from the downtown hotels, were slower to arrive. 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). In the book, Bryan made it clear that the first battle would not be the last, "If we are right, we shall yet triumph. Retrieved May 19, 2012. While the farmers of the south and west continued to support Bryan's proposed economic policies, many found McKinley's to be effective enough. "[142] By the end of 1896, Bryan had published his account of the campaign, The First Battle. [67], Bryan described the stillness as "really painful"; his anxieties that he might have failed were soon broken by pandemonium. "[75] On the first ballot, Bryan had 137 votes, mostly from Nebraska and four southern states, trailing Bland who had 235; Boies was fourth with 67 votes and was never a factor in the balloting. See, Last edited on 24 November 2022, at 01:09, United States presidential nominating convention, William McKinley 1896 presidential campaign, National Archives and Records Administration, Official Proceedings of the 1896 Democratic National Convention, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=William_Jennings_Bryan_1896_presidential_campaign&oldid=1123490165, This page was last edited on 24 November 2022, at 01:09. 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. Bryan spent most of October there160 of his final 250 train stops were in the Midwest. How could a boy in appearance, one not yet admitted to the convention, without a single state behind him, dare claim the nomination? 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. However, the President ruled this out; his Cabinet members also refused to run. I don't know but its effect will be to nominate him. [5], Bryan quickly became prominent in Lincoln as a lawyer and a public speaker, becoming known as the "Boy Orator of the Platte". Our delegation should not be too prominent in applause. The minority report attracted the opposite reaction.[54]. 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. [133][134] Beginning in September, the Republicans concentrated on the tariff question, and as Election Day, November 3, approached, they were confident of victory. In 1896, William Jennings Bryan ran unsuccessfully for president of the United States. The presidents of this eraRutherford B. Hayes, James Garfield, Chester Arthur, Grover Cleveland, and Benjamin Harrisonare often remembered as colorless and ineffective. "[143], Michael Kazin, Bryan's biographer, notes the many handicaps he faced in his 1896 campaign: "A severe economic downturn that occurred with Democrats in power, a party deserted by its men of wealth and national prominence, the vehement opposition of most prominent publishers and academics and ministers, and hostility from the nation's largest employers". The smell of victory seemed to hang in the air. If those in favor of honest money don't do something to offset its influence the country is going to the dogs. The first report from the Credentials Committee, on the afternoon of July 8, recommended the seating of Bryan's delegation. [68] Delegates were shouting to begin the vote and nominate Bryan immediately, which he refused to consider, feeling that if his appeal could not last overnight, it would not last until November. [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. A free silver policy would inflate the currency, as the silver in a dollar coin was worth just over half the face value. I come to speak to you in defense of a cause as holy as the cause of libertythe cause of humanity.[59]. The Coliseum was located in a "dry" district of Chicago but the hotels were not. [129] Republican newspapers and spokesmen claimed that Bryan's campaign was expensively financed by the silver interests. [85][86] Some of the Democratic political machines, such as New York's Tammany Hall, decided to ignore the national ticket and concentrate on electing local and congressional candidates. [14] After his election to Congress, Bryan studied the currency question carefully, and came to believe in free silver; he also saw its political potential. "[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. [10], In May 1894, Bryan announced he would not seek re-election to the House of Representatives, feeling the incessant need to raise money to campaign in a marginal district was inhibiting his political career. [18], In 1893, bimetallism had been just one of many proposals by Populists and others. The Democrats did gain some financing from the mine owners, although it is uncertain how much. 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. [108] According to Stanley Jones in his study of the 1896 campaign, "Bryan expected that he alone, carrying to the people the message of free silver, would win the election for his party. Many seats were vacant before he concluded.[113][114]. "1896 Presidential Election Results". [106][107] Bryan was not interested in campaign organization; what he wanted from the DNC was enough money to conduct a national tour by train. A devout Protestant, his populist rhetoric and policies earned him the nickname the Great Commoner. In his later years, Bryan campaigned against the teaching of evolution in public schools, culminating with his leading role in the Scopes Trial. Ultimately, the incumbent U.S. President William McKinley ended up defeating the anti-imperialist William Jennings Bryan and thus won a second four-year . Bryan's endorsement, soon after Chicago, by the Populists, his statement that he would undertake a nationwide tour on an unprecedented scale, and word from local activists of the strong silver sentiment in areas Republicans had to win to take the election, jarred McKinley's party from its complacency. Free silver especially resonated among farmers in the South and West, as well as miners. [22][23] In the 17months between his departure from Congress and the Democratic National Convention in July 1896, Bryan travelled widely through the South and West, speaking on silver. There was little advantage to the Democratic Party in nominating a candidate from Nebraska, a state small in population that had never voted for a Democrat. Neither candidate had much money to spend on his campaign. [27], Through early 1896, Bryan quietly sought the nomination. When both Hill and Bryan (who was selected as the other pro-silver speaker) objected to such a long closing address, Tillman settled for 50minutes and for opening the debate rather than closing it; Bryan was given 25minutes to close. Bryan later asked the Platform Committee chairman, Arkansas Senator James K. Jones why he was given such a crucial role as closing the platform debate; Senator Jones responded that he had three reasons: Bryan's long service in the silver cause, the Nebraskan was the only major speaker not to have addressed the convention, and that Jones had a sore throat. His widow accompanied his body in a special train car to Washington, where he was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. The Cleveland Democrats were temporarily weak, and the Southern-Mountain coalition was ready to hand. As Hill was determined to take the platform fight to the full convention, the committee discussed who should speak in the debate, and allocated 75minutes to each side. Theodore Roosevelt announced that he would not seek a subsequent term in office. At a speech in Chicago on Labor Day, Bryan varied from the silver issue to urge regulation of corporations. His enemies regarded him as an ambitious demagogue, but his supporters viewed him as a champion of liberal causes. Throughout the nation, voters were intensely interested in the campaign, studying the flood of pamphlets. A streak of the moralist preacher raised his political chances among a people attuned to the biblical phrase and Shakespearan [sic] stance. [62][64] He responded to an argument by Senator Vilas that from silver forces might arise a Robespierre. A friend of mine is a student of American religious history with a particular interest in William Jennings Bryan and the Populists. [53] Once White started the proceedings, he turned over the gavel to Senator Jones, who read the proposed platform to great applause from silver delegates, and hissing from gold men. [17] In this, they were led by Illinois Governor John Peter Altgeld, who had opposed Cleveland over the Pullman strike. To those who cling to the gold standard, he declared in closing: You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns, you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.. [13] Bryan, who had been elected after the passage of the latter enactment, initially had little to say on the subject. I was thinking of finding a book for him for Christmas that could help his research. The 1896 Democratic National Convention repudiated the Cleveland administration and nominated Bryan on the fifth presidential ballot. They quickly endorsed Bryan and Sewall, urging all silver forces to unite behind that ticket. [119] Among the foremost supporters of Bryan was publisher William Randolph Hearst who both contributed to Bryan's campaign and slanted his newspapers' coverage in his favor. The presidential election in 1896, a contest between the Republican candidate, William McKinley (1843-1901), and the Democrat candidate, William Jennings Bryan (1860-1925), was contested over McKinley's pledge to maintain the gold standard for the nation's currency, in contrast to Bryan's promise to increase the supply of money by expanding the . "I was a Democrat before the Convention and am a Democrat stillvery still. Loyal to Cleveland, they wanted to nominate him. Although Bryan was successful in winning the non-binding popular vote, Republicans gained a majority in the legislature and elected John Thurston as senator.[11]. [151] The poet Vachel Lindsay, 16years old in 1896, passionately followed Bryan's first campaign, and wrote of him many years later: Where is that boy, that Heaven-born Bryan,That Homer Bryan, who sang from the West?Gone to join the shadows with Altgeld the Eagle,Where the kings and the slaves and the troubadours rest.[152]. Report from the Credentials committee, on the oats of hope and political why did william jennings bryan lose the 1896 election Democrats were temporarily weak, Kentucky! Over the Pullman strike, as the silver issue to urge regulation of corporations an argument Senator... Be to nominate him Pullman strike practice could thrive, he moved to Lincoln making. After the Democratic convention, which had been defeated by committee vote this meant that McKinley would most win. Mine is a student of American religious history with a particular interest in William Jennings Bryan and won! Urban voter, and the Southern-Mountain coalition was ready to hand ) ``. 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