why did william jennings bryan lose the 1896 election

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. 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. The Democrats nominated Arthur Sewall, a wealthy Maine banker and shipbuilder, for vice president. The 1896 race is generally seen as a realigning election. [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]. McKinley and Hanna gently mocked Dawes, telling him that Bland would be the nominee. Rather than continue the free silver battle, he dedicated himself to opposing American imperialism, which he saw as immoral and undemocratic. Senator Tillman, a fiery speaker who wore a pitchfork on his lapel, began the debate. As the presidential election year of 1896 began, things were looking rosy for the Republicans. President Cleveland, stunned by the convention's repudiation of him and his policies, decided against open support for a bolt from the party, either by endorsing McKinley or by publicly backing a rival Democratic ticket. June 1894 marked the publication of William H. Harvey's Coin's Financial School. [115], Bryan's plan for victory was to undertake a strenuous train tour, bringing his message to the people. But probably the most important reasons why they lost the elections are because they did not sufficiently address issues related to the problems of urban workers and immigrants, and free silver proved to be an issue of less interest for the national campaign. However, the President ruled this out; his Cabinet members also refused to run. After invading "the enemy's country",[d] he was returning to his own territory. The election of 1896 was just as much a partisan battle over the future of American economic policy as the 2012 election. [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. She became his wife, and was his principal assistant throughout his career. In the 1892 presidential election, former Democratic president Grover Cleveland defeated the Republican incumbent, Benjamin Harrison, to regain his office. 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. By 1896, populist issues had become so important that the Democratic candidate for president, William Jennings Bryan, pledged to support them and went on to win most of the South and West. Many of the elements of the speech had appeared in prior Bryan addresses. The Populists proposed both greater government control over the economy (with some calling for government ownership of railroads) and giving the people power over government through the secret ballot, direct election of United States Senators (who were, until 1913, elected by state legislatures), and replacement of the Electoral College with direct election of the president and vice president by popular vote. [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. 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. Born in 1860, Bryan grew up in rural Illinois and in 1887 moved to Nebraska, where he practiced law and entered politics. 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. No delegation must be permitted to violate instructions given by a state convention. "[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. 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. We have submitted the issues to the American people and their will is law. National Archives and Records Administration. [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. He knew that hard work could turn the discontent of the people into a revolt against the gold wing of the party, and no group of individuals ever labored more diligently to gain their political ends than did the silver men in the [Democratic Party] between 1893 and 1896. Despite his defeat, Bryan's campaign inspired many of his contemporaries. (W.W. Norton & Company, 2018), William Jennings Bryan, the Great Commoner. Constitutional Rights Foundation, Spring 2010 (Volume 25, No. Everybody seemed to go mad at once. It was badly received even by silver delegates, who wished to think of silver as a patriotic, national issue. 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. Book Description Mr. Bryan's unfinished memoirs, which close with an account of the Baltimore convention of 1912, make up less than half the . [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. A friend of mine is a student of American religious history with a particular interest in William Jennings Bryan and the Populists. [129] Republican newspapers and spokesmen claimed that Bryan's campaign was expensively financed by the silver interests. "[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". 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. Why did William Jennings Bryan lose the 1896 election? 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. Bryan quipped, "I seem to have plenty of friends now, but I remember well when they were very few. "[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. 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. 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. On this day in 1896, William Jennings Bryan delivered his rousing speech as a delegate to the Democratic convention declaring that mankind would not be "crucified on a cross of gold.". [62][64] He responded to an argument by Senator Vilas that from silver forces might arise a Robespierre. 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. 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. The majority felt exposed, crestfallen, and humiliated.[56]. [9] Bryan did not support Cleveland, making it clear he preferred the Populist candidate, James B. Weaver, though he indicated that as a loyal Democrat, he would vote the party ticket. His campaign focused on silver, an issue that failed to appeal to the urban voter, and he was defeated in what is generally seen as a realigning election. Cross of Gold speech, classic of American political oratory delivered on July 8, 1896, by William Jennings Bryan in closing the debate on the party platform at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago during the campaign for the presidential election of 1896. 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. 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. 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. [50], Delegates spent most of the first two days listening to various speeches by silver supporters. However, the business man argument was new, though he had hinted at it in an interview he gave at the Republican convention. Although defeated in the election, Bryan's campaign made him a national figure, which he remained until his death in 1925. He was slim, tall, pale, raven-haired, beaked of nose. [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. The shortness of the speech did not dismay the crowds, who knew his arguments well: they were there to see and hear William Jennings Bryanone listener told him that he had read every one of his speeches, and had ridden 50 miles (80km) to hear him, "And, by gum, if I wasn't a Republican, I'd vote for you. Jill Lepore. Looking upon the loud Boies and Bland supporters, Bryan commented, "These people don't know it, but they will be cheering for me just this way tomorrow night. Historian H. Wayne Morgan described Bryan: Robert La Follette remembered Bryan as "a tall, slender, handsome fellow who looked like a young divine". He maintained contact with silver partisans in other parties, hopeful of gathering them in after a nomination. 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. These Truths: A History of the United States. Populist leaders correctly believed the Republicans unlikely to nominate a silver man. Bryan's supporters raised at most $500,000 for the 1896 campaign; McKinley's raised at least $3.5 million. [105], After the Democratic convention, Bryan had returned triumphantly to Lincoln, making speeches along the way. Loyal to Cleveland, they wanted to nominate him. [104] The National Silver Party, mostly former Republicans, met at the same time as the Populists; both conventions were in St. Louis. He promised to enforce the laws against the trusts, procure stricter ones from Congress, and if the Supreme Court struck them down, to seek a constitutional amendment. [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. The main candidates headquartered at the Palmer House, their rooms often crowded as they served free alcoholic drinks. His campaign was low-key, without excessive publicity: Bryan did not want to attract the attention of more prominent candidates. Bryan always regarded that argument as the speech's most powerful part, despite the fame its conclusion would gain. Many Cleveland supporters decried Bryan as no true Democrat, but a fanatic and socialist, his nomination procured through demagoguery. The answer was simple, Bryan told Abbothe had prepared a speech that would stampede the convention. 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. [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. T.G.O.D Y.O.L.O Those that served principally as agricultural centers or had been founded along the railroad favored Bryan. William Jennings Bryan. See. In 1890, he agreed to run for Congress against William James Connell, a Republican, who had won the local congressional seat in 1888. "[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. The dark horse is in his stall, feasting on the oats of hope and political straws. [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. William McKinley defeated Democrat William Jennings Bryan, winning 292 electoral votes to Bryan's 155. "[131], The South and most of the West were deemed certain to vote for Bryan. [41], Bryan's Nebraska delegation left Lincoln by train on July 5. The New York World reported, "The floor of the convention seemed to heave up. 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. Bryan". These results made the Midwest the crucial battlefield that would decide the presidency. Each made their cases for gold, and likely changed few votes. 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. [55] The New York Times described the setting: There never was such a propitious moment for such an orator than that which fell to Bryan. 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". [121], During this tour, Bryan spoke almost exclusively on the silver question, and attempted to mold the speeches to reflect local issues and interests. 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. William Jennings Bryan (March 19, 1860 - July 26, 1925) was an American lawyer, orator and politician. The Democrats did gain some financing from the mine owners, although it is uncertain how much. He was utterly confident that he would succeed, believing "the logic of the situation," as he later put it, dictated his selection. [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). [17] In this, they were led by Illinois Governor John Peter Altgeld, who had opposed Cleveland over the Pullman strike. 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). Despite his electoral losses, Bryan continued to exert considerable influence through his fervently religious speeches as well as a weekly magazine, the Commoner. Their enthusiasm at the unrehearsed rear platform appearances and in the formal speeches was spontaneous and contagious. The vice presidential squabble, Williams argues, worried voters who feared that instability would follow a Bryan victory, and drove them towards 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. McKinley did well in the border states of Maryland, West Virginia, and Kentucky. As an evangelical Christian and a believer in the literal interpretation of the Bible, Bryan also saw a grave threat in the application of Charles Darwins theory to human society. Why did William Jennings Bryan lose? Bryan left the convention, returning to his hotel to await the outcome. Former Populist governor of Colorado Davis H. Waite wrote to former congressman Ignatius Donnelly that the Democrats had returned to their roots and "nominated a good & true man on the platform. Bryan campaigned heavily on a platform of free silver in 1896, and continued that trend into the election of 1900. [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. "[79] He left the choice of a running mate to the convention; delegates selected Maine shipbuilder Arthur Sewall. The paper editorialized on the same page that even if the Democratic candidate was not insane, he was at least "of unsound mind". 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. Confusion over ballots in Minnesota resulted in 15,000voided votes and may have thrown that state to the Republicans. The effect was deflationary. Mary Bryan had joined her husband in late September; on The Idler, the Bryans were able to eat and sleep in relative comfort. 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. [13] Bryan, who had been elected after the passage of the latter enactment, initially had little to say on the subject. The Cleveland Democrats were temporarily weak, and the Southern-Mountain coalition was ready to hand. William jennings Bryan supported the cause of what in the 1896 presidential election? We come to speak of this broader class of business men.[62][63]. Ultimately, the incumbent U.S. President William McKinley ended up defeating the anti-imperialist William Jennings Bryan and thus won a second four-year . 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. He then lowered his arms, and began the journey back to his seat in the silence. In the speech, Bryan, who was from . The minority report attracted the opposite reaction.[54]. At every stop, he made contacts that he later cultivated. He was defeated in the general election by the Republican candidate, former Ohio governor William McKinley . If those in favor of honest money don't do something to offset its influence the country is going to the dogs. Set off by the collapse of the powerful Philadelphia & Reading Railroad, the Panic of 1893 plunged the nation into a deep economic depression. 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. [36] Historian James Barnes wrote of Bryan's preparations: The Nebraskan merely understood the political situation better than most of those who might have been his rivals, and he took advantage in a legitimate and thoroughly honorable manner of the existing conditions. [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. He was defeated in the general election by the Republican candidate, former Ohio governor William McKinley. On April 22, 1893, the amount of gold in the Treasury dropped below $100million for the first time since 1879, adding to the unease. "[145] Bryan's own explanation was brief: "I have borne the sins of Grover Cleveland. 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. His campaign focused on silver, an issue that failed to appeal to the urban voter, and he was defeated. It began as a simple courtesy, with a telegram that William Jennings Bryan sent. This was not the case: the mining industry was seeing poor times, and had little money to donate to Bryan. Wherever his train went people, who had travelled from nearby farms and villages, waved and shouted encouragement. 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. Many Republican leaders had gone on vacation for the summer, believing that the fight, on their terms, would take place in the fall. The increasing economic struggles of poor farmers during the 1870s and 1880s led to the Populist movement. Poor Grover Cleveland a hard-money, laissez-faire Democrat was blamed for the panic of 1893, and many leading Cleveland Democrats lost their gubernatorial and senatorial posts in the 1894 elections. 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. Bryan was strongly affected by the emerging Social Gospel movement that called on Protestant activists to seek to cure social problems such as poverty. Bryan. The economic Panic of 1893 had left the nation in a deep recession, which still persisted in early 1896. Source (Electoral Vote): "Electoral College Box Scores 17891996". Decide to endorse William Jennings Bryan (Democratic candidate). The only areas of the nation where Bryan took a greater percentage of the urban than the rural vote were New England and the Rocky Mountain states; in neither case did this affect the outcome, as Bryan took only 27% of New England's vote overall, while taking 88% of the Rocky Mountain city vote to 81% of the vote there outside the cities. [126] In what Williams describes as "a political campaign that became an American legend",[106] Bryan traveled to 27 of the 45 states, logging 18,000 miles (29,000km), and in his estimated 600 speeches reached some 5,000,000 listeners. Bryan affirmed that the people could be counted on to prevent the rise of a tyrant, and noted, "What we need is an Andrew Jackson to stand, as Jackson stood, against the encroachments of organized wealth. "[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". [132] Early Republican polls had shown Bryan ahead in crucial Midwestern states, including McKinley's Ohio. 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. William Jennings Bryan delivering a campaign speech in 1910. "[145], The consequences of defeat, however, were severe for the Democratic Party. 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"). In June 1896, Bryan's old teacher, former senator Trumbull died; on the day of his funeral, Bryan's mother also died, suddenly in Salem. Cross of Gold Speech and Election of 1896, Anti-Evolution Crusade, Scopes Trial and Death, Department of State: Office of the Historian. "[66] In a demonstration of some half an hour, Bryan was carried around the floor, then surrounded with cheering supporters. [48], As the committees met, the convention proceeded, though in considerable confusion. [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. 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. He introduced several proposals for the direct election of senators and to eliminate tariff barriers in industries dominated by monopolies or trusts. On July 26, 1925, five days after the verdict was issued, Bryan died in his sleep after suffering a stroke. Senator Jones felt compelled to spend five minutes (granted by the gold side), stating that the silver issue crossed sectional lines. He made 27speeches, including seven in Omaha, the last concluding a few minutes before midnight. 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. The Coliseum was located in a "dry" district of Chicago but the hotels were not. New York Senator Hill was next: the leading spokesman for gold, both gold and silver delegates quieted to hear him. Thanks in advance if you have any recommendations! 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. "[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. As Bryan had called New York in an ill-considered statement to the press before leaving Lincoln. After running unsuccessfully for the Senate in 1894, Bryan returned to Nebraska and became editor of the Omaha World-Herald. 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. 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