The President's uncompromising stand for gold alienated many in his own party (most southern and western Democrats were pro-silver). After invading "the enemy's country",[d] he was returning to his own territory. Gold Democrats had success in the Northeast, and little elsewhere. 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. The minority report attracted the opposite reaction.[54]. He was admitted to the Illinois bar and began practicing law in Jacksonville, marrying Mary Elizabeth Baird in 1884; the couple went on to have three children. "1896 Presidential Election Results". The leading candidates were former Missouri congressman Richard P. Bland and former Iowa governor Horace Boies. 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. [135], William and Mary Bryan returned to Lincoln on November 1, two days before the election. Despite his defeat, Bryan's campaign inspired many of his contemporaries. To this day, countless theater festivals around the world honor his work, students read more. "[52], On the morning of July 9, 1896, thousands of people waited outside the Coliseum, hoping to hear the platform debate. Author: William Jennings Bryan Publisher: Haskell House Pub Limited ISBN: Size: 56.95 MB Format: PDF, ePub, Docs View: 4174 Get Book Disclaimer: This site does not store any files on its server.We only index and link to content provided by other sites. 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. They quickly endorsed Bryan and Sewall, urging all silver forces to unite behind that ticket. But they had limited room to maneuver in a period of extremely tight competition. "[72] Bryan had made no arrangements for formal nominating speeches given the short timeframe, and was surprised when word was brought to him at the Clifton House that he had been nominated by Henry Lewis of Georgia: the candidate had expected the Kansas delegation to name him. Stone, chair of the notification committee, essayed a lengthy speech, he was drowned out by the crowd, which wanted to hear "the Boy Orator of the Platte". [29], Bryan faced a number of disadvantages in seeking the Democratic nomination: he was little-known among Americans who did not follow politics closely, he had no money to pour into his campaign, he lacked public office, and had incurred the enmity of Cleveland and his administration through his stance on silver and other issues. The position involved no day-to-day duties, but allowed him to publish his political commentaries. [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. Although Bryan claimed that many employers had intimidated their workers into voting Republican, Williams points out that the Democrats benefited from the disenfranchisement of southern African Americans. [118] Starved of money, the Democrats had fewer speakers and fewer publications to issue. Retrieved May 19, 2012. He was a fine actor, with a justly famous voice, but was not a charlatan. [87] Large numbers of traditionally Democratic newspapers refused to support Bryan, including the New York World, whose circulation of 800,000 was the nation's largest, and major dailies in cities such as Philadelphia, Detroit, and Brooklyn. Although not a landslide shift comparable to election swings in the twentieth century, McKinley's victory ended the pattern of close popular margins that had characterized elections since the Civil War. 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. 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 . 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. Senator Jones felt compelled to spend five minutes (granted by the gold side), stating that the silver issue crossed sectional lines. It is the substance we are after, and we have it with William J. When early-voting Maine and Vermont went strongly Republican in September, this meant that McKinley would most likely win the Northeast. [13] Bryan, who had been elected after the passage of the latter enactment, initially had little to say on the subject. The train bearing The Idler pulled in after a short journey from the last stop, and after he was greeted by local dignitaries, Bryan would give a brief speech addressing silver and the need for the people to retake the government. I come to speak to you in defense of a cause as holy as the cause of libertythe cause of humanity.[59]. [67], Bryan described the stillness as "really painful"; his anxieties that he might have failed were soon broken by pandemonium. [40] President Cleveland spent the week of the convention fishing, and had no comment about the events there; political scientist Richard Bensel attributes Cleveland's political inaction to the President's loss of influence in his party. [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. [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]. Roosevelt was extremely popular as president, and many thought he might reconsider and run as 1908 neared. "[102], Historian R. Hal Williams, in his book about the 1896 campaign, believes that the Populist nomination did Bryan little good; most Populists would have voted for him anyway and the endorsement allowed his opponents to paint him and his supporters as extremists. Men and women threw their hats into the air, not caring where they might come down. Its leaders have used rhetoric that stirs up anger, floated conspiracy theories, pushed the distrust of read more, William McKinley served in the U.S. Congress and as governor of Ohio before running for the presidency in 1896. "[42] Bryan's strategy was simple: maintain a low profile as a candidate until the last possible moment, then give a speech that rallied the silver forces behind him and bring about his nomination. 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. [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". Instead, he sought the Senate seat that the Nebraska legislature would fill in January 1895. [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. 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"). [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. [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. A free silver policy would inflate the currency, as the silver in a dollar coin was worth just over half the face value. Subscribe for fascinating stories connecting the past to the present. Their enthusiasm at the unrehearsed rear platform appearances and in the formal speeches was spontaneous and contagious. Someone who presented ten dollars in silver bullion would receive back almost twice that in silver coin. No delegation must be permitted to violate instructions given by a state convention. [49] Bryan had been widely supported as a candidate for permanent chairman by the silver men, but some western delegates on the Committee on Permanent Organization objected, stating that they wanted the chance to support Bryan for the nomination (the permanent chairman was customarily ruled out as a candidate). The dark horse is in his stall, feasting on the oats of hope and political straws. "[57] The Nebraska delegation waved red handkerchiefs as Bryan progressed to the podium;[56] he wore an alpaca sack suit more typical of Lincoln and the West than of Chicago. Bryan quipped, "I seem to have plenty of friends now, but I remember well when they were very few. "[123] After a brief interval for handshakes, the train would pull out again, to another town down the track.[123]. The electoral vote was not as close: 271 for McKinley to 176 for Bryan. 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]. McKinley did well in the border states of Maryland, West Virginia, and Kentucky. "[142] By the end of 1896, Bryan had published his account of the campaign, The First Battle. The DNC seated a rival, pro-gold Nebraska delegation, and recommended New York Senator David B. Hill as the convention's temporary chairman, each by a vote of 2723. [104] The National Silver Party, mostly former Republicans, met at the same time as the Populists; both conventions were in St. Louis. [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. "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. [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]. [48], As the committees met, the convention proceeded, though in considerable confusion. Many seats were vacant before he concluded.[113][114]. 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. 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