Election+of+1896

=**1**896=

=**Nominees and their Running Mates:**= William McKinley represented the higher and more educated classes. He had forged many alliances and friendships with the business and professionals of their time, and because of this, had their support. McKinley's strengths were in the Northeast, Upper Mid-West and Pacific Coast regions.
 * Date of Election:** November 3, 1896
 * Republicans:** William Mckinley (running for presidency) & Garret Augustus Horbart (Mckinley's running mate)

Many factors led to Bryan's defeat. He was unable to win a single state in the populous Northeast. Laborers feared the free silver idea as much as their bosses. While inflation would help the debt-ridden, mortgage-paying farmers, it could hurt the wage-earning, rent-paying factory workers. In a sense, the election came down to city versus country. By 1896, the urban forces won. Bryan's campaign marked the last time a major party attempted to win the White House by exclusively courting the rural vote.
 * Democrats:** William Jennings Bryan (running for presidency) & Arthur Sewall (Bryan's running mate)
 * Home States:** William (Ohio), William Bryan (Nebraska)
 * Current President of the Time:** Grover Cleveland


 * Electoral Votes:** William McKinley (271) and William Jennings Bryan (176)


 * Issues that occurred before election:** Although there were several important issues in the 1896 election, the nominating process was conquered by the fallout of the country's economic policy, an issue that had been at the forefront of American politics for decades, but had come to a head during Grover Cleveland's second government. The economic #|depression of 1893 and the Democratic Party's response to the catastrophe had resulted in major Republican gains in the House in the 1894 midterms, as well as heightened prospects for 1896. Cleveland had achieved his goals, but in doing so had also split the Democratic Party over fiscal policy. Some Democrats agreed with Cleveland's support of the gold standard.

Coinage of silver and gold and Tariffs.
 * Major Issues the Candidates Focused on:**

= =
 * Major Issues During the Election: the coinage of Silver and Gold**
 * Bryan:** Democrat William Jennings Bryan and the "Populist Party" disagreed with the use of the Gold Standard System which supported American's currency with gold, and instead rooted for the Silver Standard System. Bryan believed that the Gold Standard System costed America too much in the first place, lacked elasticity, caused too much deflation and was was just too complicated for their everyday use. Bryan believes that the silver to gold ratio 16:1 was moderate solution to their financial burdens. They didn't agree with mere paper but instead vouched for the precious metal silver. "Free Silver" would then increase the money supply. "Free silver" even allowed currency reformer to unite temporarily. The Populist Party seemed to "advocate more sweeping federal #|intervention to offset the economis depression, curtail corporate abuses, and prevent poverty among farming and working-class families." The Populist Party, also known as the "People's Party" was also considered a symbol for the republican side as well. They later said that the Democrats had joined with "ignorant 'hayseeds' and 'anarchists' ". Because of this, Bryan eventually ignored the Populist Party.

-defended the Populist platform -strongest in the South, rual mid-west, and Rocky Mt. states -speaking skills were among the best of his generation -reputation as defender of the farmer -aka the "Great Commoner"
 * Aditional Information about Bryan:**


 * McKinley:** Republican William McKinley would not bend to the Silver Standard System, but entrusted his loyalty to the Gold Standard System. He valued gold over silver and would not succumb to the Silver System especially when it resulted in rapid inflation over the years. McKinley and Horbart agreed that the Gold Standard System was extremely reliable as it had solved many of Americas problems before, and that it would continue to do the same later on. They were appalled by Bryan's "Free Silver" chants, arguing that it was only a cover for cheaper, more worthless dollars and paper money. They believed that "Free Silver" would "cheat lenders of an honest return on their money, allowing profligate borrowers to steal value from those who had extended loans."


 * Major Issues During the Election: Tariffs**

= =
 * Bryan:** William Jennings Bryan never really even considered the tariffs to be #|a huge deal and even dismissed the tariffs as an "irrelevant issue." Bryan thought some tariffs were unnecessary and only another burden put on America's [[image:grovesapush/farmer mckinley taking off his coat.jpg width="232" height="307" align="left"]].
 * McKinley:** McKinley, on quite the contrary of Bryan, valued tariffs and thought they were an immense part of the American future. Building off of this conclusion, McKinley constructed the high protective tariff bills, which also became known as the "McKinley Tariff." McKinley strongly believed that these tariffs would ensure protection for American jobs, wages, and to protect men's wages and families. This tariff reduced many of the taxes on things such as alcohol and tobacco, and bounties were given to farmers to grow sugar, but many other items were taxed even higher. The Mckinley Tariff was usually supported by the Northeastern regions, but was generally frowned upon by farmers. Tariffs on iported items was increased on items such as sugar, textiles, china and tin plate which gave America an advantage. But the McKinley dd raise the tariffs sharply and was quite unpopular among the citizens of the U.S. McKinley was against Bryan's "Free Trade" which reduced Cleveland's tariffs, because they said that it had helped form the Depression and rose numbers in unemployment. But in the end result, the Depression made it clear that the tariffs were not the only answer for lower wages and unemployment.

- July 7-11, 1896 in Chicago, Illinois. William C. Whitney, a millionaire, a close friend of Grover Cleveland, and his former Secretary of the Navy, rushed to the convention to organize the pro-gold forces, but found that delegates who shared his sentiments were in the minority - included Richard Bland of Kentucky, a strong pro-silver voice in the House of Representatives from 1873 to 1894; Horace Boies, former governor of Illinois, also strongly pro-silver; and youthful William Jenning Bryan of Nebraska - Curency problem was debated before taking any nominations - David B. Hill (loyal Cleveland man) moved that the convention express its support for the current Democratic administration - motion failed miserably, and free-silver men wildly celebrated their victory - the convention passed an indignant resolution protesting Cleveland's intervention to squelch Chicago's [|Pullman strike] - The "Cross of Gold" speech is normally credited with winning Bryan the election for two reasons; the convention's actions seemed reckless to Easterners unaware of sentiment in other regions and it was unheard of for a convention to nominate a man in his presence - The campaign was made even more complicated because the democrats nominated Arthur Sewall of Maine for the Vice-Presidency - Sewall seemed a good choice to draw Eastern votes and balance the Nebraskan presidential nominee but after the convention, Democrats discovered to their chagrin that Sewall had a poor reputation as an employer. His anti-labor record and great wealth made him anathema to [|the Populist convention], which endorsed Bryan but rejected Sewall, choosing [|Tom Watson] of Georgia.
 * Conventions during the election:**
 * Democratic:**


 * "T****he Chicago Platform"**

- Silver Democrats and [|fusion Populists] celebrated the "Chicago platform" as a new departure that promised aid to those hit hard by the depression and more equal distribution of wealth - most contentious planks were [|free silver] and the proposed federal [|income tax] - Bryan's campaign manager was Senator James K. Jones of Arkansas - silver Democrats were poor in comparison to McKinley's forces - Bryan was the first presidential candidate to go on nationwide speaking tours - Some Americans criticized Bryan as self-aggrandizing and loud, criticizing his innovative campaign tactics as much as his ideas

- held in a temporary structure south of the St. Louis City Hall in Saint Louis, Missouri, from June 16 to June 18, 1896 - [|McKinley] was nominated on the first ballot with 661½ votes to 84½ to House Speaker [|Thomas Brackett Reed] of [|Maine] - Convention was held in St. Louis less than a month after the [|infamous 1896 tornado] that devastated a large swath of the city and killed over 280 people -There was speculation that it might be unfeasible to hold the convention in the city, but, after a concerted cleanup effort was undertaken, the convention went ahead as planned - [|platform] of 1896 favored the [|gold standard] but left the door open to free coinage of silver - also supported acquisition of [|Hawaii] and parts of the [|Danish West Indies], favored a canal across [|Central America] , naval expansion, sympathized with revolutionaries in [|Cuba] and [|Armenia] , wanted exclusion of all illiterate immigrants, applauded gains in [|women's rights] and pledged "equal pay for equal work" and favored the creation of a " [|National Board of Arbitration] "
 * Republicans:**
 * Platform**
 * Map of the Electoral Votes**

William McKinely William Jennings Bryan

The United States presidential election of November 3, 1896, saw Republican William McKinley defeat Democrat William Jennings Bryan in a campaign considered by historians to be one of the most dramatic in American history. In political science the 1896 campaign is often considered to be a realigning election. Republican campaign manager Mark Hanna invented many modern campaign techniques, facilitated by a $3.5 million budget. He outspent Bryan by a factor of five. The Democratic Party's repudiation of the Bourbon Democrats (their pro-business wing, represented by incumbent President Grover Cleveland), set the stage for sixteen years of Republican control of the White House, ended only by a Republican split in 1912 that resulted in the election of Democrat Woodrow Wilson. However, although Bryan lost the election, his coalition of "outsiders" would dominate the Democratic Party well into the twentieth century, and would play a crucial role in the liberal economic programs of Presidents Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, and Lyndon Johnson. More so than any election since Rutherford B. Hayes’ 1876 victory ended Reconstruction, the election of 1896 had long-term consequences. The Populists’ decision to join the Democrats, and their combined loss, signaled the end of the Populist Party. Eventually prosperity returned to the United States and the depression ended. The Democratic Party made a major shift, changing from Grover Cleveland’s laissez faire, conservative style of leadership to a reform-oriented party. It never returned to a conservative platform. The push for reform started by the Populists did not end in 1896. Widespread calls for reforms returned with the Progressives a decade later, and several tenants of the Populist platform eventually became law.
 * Signifigance of the Election:**

Bryan [] Mckinley []
 * Famous Speeches:**

http://prezi.com/oht-mh-3yk-k/election-of-1896/
 * Extra:**

"ElectoralMaps.org - Timeline of U.S. Presidential Elections - Popular and Electoral Vote Totals - Courtesy of Wikipedia.org." //ElectoralMaps.org - Timeline of U.S. Presidential Elections - Popular and Electoral Vote Totals - Courtesy of Wikipedia.org//. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2012. [].
 * Citations:**

"41e. The Election of 1896." //The Election of 1896 [ushistory.org]//. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2012. [].

"What Was the Major Issue in the 1896 Presidential Election?" //WikiAnswers//. Answers, n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2012. [].

"Google Images." //Google Images//. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2012. .// //"The Election of 1896."// The Election of 1896//. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2012. [].//

//Jim. "What Were the Issues of the 1896 Election?"// Yahoo! Answers//. Yahoo!, 5 July 2010. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. [].//

//"1896: The Democratic Party."// 1896: The Democratic Party//. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. [].//

//Preserve Articles.// What are the defects from which the Gold Standard suffers?//. Preserve Articles, n.d. Web. 7 Nov. 2012. .// //[]//

// Independence Hall Association. "Republican Philadelphia GOP Convention of 1900 in Philadelphia." // US.History.org //. Independence Hall Association, n.d. Web. 7 Nov. 2012. . //

//[]//

// Edwards/ Vassa College, Rebecca. "1896: Harper's Weekly, 25 July." // 1896: Harper's Weekly, 25 July //. Vassar College, 2000. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. . // //[]//

// Edwards, Rebecca. "Sound Money, 20 August." // Sound Money, 20 August //. Vassar College, 2000. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. . // //[]//

// Edwards, Rebecca. "1896: Judge, 25 July." // 1896: Judge, 25 July //. Vassar College, 2000. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. . []