Populism

2 Pages 397 Words

During the late 19th century, the Populist Party began to materialize. In earlier years, economic depression in the western and southern portions of America had devastated many farm families. After bad seasons caused by drought many of these farmers began to fall heavily into debt. Frustrated as well as upset, their anger was further fed by discontent with railroads, manufacturers, lenders, and many others. In the early 1890s, alliances of farmers pulled together to form the People’s party.
The first prominent populist in government was William Peffer. In 1890, this Kansan became the first populist senator. Continually growing, the People’s Party was soon established as a national party through a merger of the Farmers’ Alliance and the Knights Of Labor. Meeting in Omaha, the Populists took on a policy demanding free silver, graduated income tax, and government ownership of the telephone, telegraph, and railroads. Soon after, this third party nominated James Weaver for presidency in the election of 1892. Winning over a million popular votes and 22 electoral votes, this candidate became one of the few gain so many votes for a third party. Although they did not pull a victory, the Populist Party managed to gain much publicity.
In the eastern, more urban portions of America, populism was not as “poplar”. The party’s main support came from six midwestern and western states. The south also refused to join this new party. A main reason was because more than a million members were black. Because of support from only a few states, the Populist Party began to lose it original spark. By 1896 the party was beginning to fall apart. Two main factions, “mid-roaders” and fusionists developed. Fusionists pushed for fusing with democrats in favor of free silver policies. Mid-roaders did not take firm enough stands to merge into other parties. Instead they kept politics that were in between those of the two larger parties.
In an att...