why did william jennings bryan lose the 1896 election

[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. T.G.O.D Y.O.L.O 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. [21] By then, he had come to see his nomination for that office as possible, even likely. Bryan went to the Democratic convention in Chicago as an undeclared candidate, whom the press had given only a small chance of becoming the Democratic nominee. Biographies of the Secretaries of State: William Jennings Bryan (1860-1925). 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 position involved no day-to-day duties, but allowed him to publish his political commentaries. A bowery had been built for the Fourth of July picnic and dance. why did william jennings bryan lose the election of 1896? 2023 A&E Television Networks, LLC. 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. The Democrats nominated Arthur Sewall, a wealthy Maine banker and shipbuilder, for vice president. Free silver especially resonated among farmers in the South and West, as well as miners. In 1890, he agreed to run for Congress against William James Connell, a Republican, who had won the local congressional seat in 1888. The main candidates headquartered at the Palmer House, their rooms often crowded as they served free alcoholic drinks. [95], The Populist strategy for 1896 was to nominate the candidate most supportive of silver. 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". [135], William and Mary Bryan returned to Lincoln on November 1, two days before the election. Instead, he sought the Senate seat that the Nebraska legislature would fill in January 1895. 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"). Hayes and Harrison both won in the electoral college but lost the popular vote, for example. "[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. 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. "[142] By the end of 1896, Bryan had published his account of the campaign, The First Battle. Chicago banker Charles G. Dawes, a McKinley advisor who had known Bryan when both lived in Lincoln, had predicted to McKinley and his friend and campaign manager, Mark Hanna, that if Bryan had the chance to speak to the convention, he would be its choice. [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]. Bryan's sterling record on the issue left the Populists with a stark choice: They could endorse Bryan, and risk losing their separate identity as a party, or nominate another candidate, thus dividing the pro-silver vote to McKinley's benefit. [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. Cross of Gold Speech and Election of 1896, Anti-Evolution Crusade, Scopes Trial and Death, Department of State: Office of the Historian. 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. [94], Despite the confidence of the Republicans, the nomination of Bryan sparked great excitement through the nation. When early-voting Maine and Vermont went strongly Republican in September, this meant that McKinley would most likely win the Northeast. [17] In this, they were led by Illinois Governor John Peter Altgeld, who had opposed Cleveland over the Pullman strike. 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. Advocates of free silver (or bimetallism) wanted the government to accept all silver bullion presented to it and to return it, struck into coin, at the historic value ratio between gold and silver of 16 to 1. They had been passed as compromises between free silver and the gold standard. 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. 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. [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. South Carolina Senator Benjamin Tillman, a silver supporter, wanted an hour to address the convention, and to close the debate. It is the substance we are after, and we have it with William J. After graduating from Illinois College, Bryan earned a law degree from the Union College of Law in Chicago in 1883. William Jennings Bryan, The First Battle: A Story of the Campaign of 1896[78], At the Clifton House, Bryan's rooms were overwhelmed with those wishing to congratulate him, despite the efforts of police to keep the crowds at bay. He lost a presidential bid to George W. Bush in 2000. 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. His father, Silas, was a dedicated Jacksonian Democrat and a successful lawyer who served in various local elected positions and passed on his politics to his son. [f] McKinley even won the urban vote in Nebraska. 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. Those that served principally as agricultural centers or had been founded along the railroad favored Bryan. 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. See. [13] Bryan, who had been elected after the passage of the latter enactment, initially had little to say on the subject. Taken prisoner after his plane was shot down, he suffered five and a half years of torture and confinement before his release in 1973. Party members in many states, including Nebraska, demanded inflation of the currency through issuance of paper or silver currency, allowing easier repayment of debt. They hoped the Democrats either would not endorse silver in their platform or if they did, that the Democratic candidate would be someone who could be painted as weak on silver. The election of 1896 is seen as the beginning of a new era in American politics, or a "realignment" election. 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. [47] Since the DNC action meant Bryan would not have a seat at the start of proceedings, he could not be the temporary chairman (who would deliver the keynote address); the Nebraskan began looking for other opportunities to make a speech at the convention. Theodore Roosevelt announced that he would not seek a subsequent term in office. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Former Governor William McKinley, the Republican candidate, defeated Democrat William Jennings Bryan. Speakers for both parties found eager audiences. I will not aid them to press down upon the bleeding brow of labor this crown of thorns."[26]. "[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 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. Confusion over ballots in Minnesota resulted in 15,000voided votes and may have thrown that state to the Republicans. 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. 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. [133][134] Beginning in September, the Republicans concentrated on the tariff question, and as Election Day, November 3, approached, they were confident of victory. 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. Urban vote in Nebraska Republican in September, this meant that McKinley would most likely win the.. For that office as possible, even likely and Harrison both won in the electoral College but lost the vote... We have it with William J been passed as compromises between free silver and the gold standard By,! 15,000Voided votes and may have thrown that State to the Republicans, the First Battle likely win the Northeast,... The Nebraska legislature would fill in January 1895 the nation Illinois Governor John Altgeld!, defeated Democrat William Jennings Bryan lose the election of 1896, but him. 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