election of 1896 william jennings bryan (d, pop) william mckinley (r) 155 electoral votes 292...
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ELECTION OF 1896
William Jennings Bryan (D, Pop)
William McKinley (R)
155 ELECTORAL
VOTES
292ELECTORAL
VOTES
MCKINLEY WINS!Populists Fail Again
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What does the story of the Election of 1896 illustrate about the POLITICS, LEADERSHIP, and GOVERNMENT of the Gilded Age?
Brainstorm a list of inferences based on the story.
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POLITICAL CHARACTERISTICS• Voter turnout was incredibly high (80-95%).
• Elections were usually very close.
• The parties focused on winning elections, not governing the country.
• The ideologies of both parties were very similar with differences on just a few issues (i.e. the tariff).
• Many blacks and almost all women could not vote.
• The government largely ignored the social consequences of industrialization.
• DEMOCRATS: “Solid South”, Major Northern cities with large immigrant populations.
• REPUBLICANS: Small towns and rural areas in the North and Midwest; native middle class, businessmen, white collar workers in Northern cities; Grand Army of the Republic.
• Dirty Tactics: “Waving the Bloody Shirt”, “329”, The Illegitimate Son, “Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion”, Murchison Letter, War Chests
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LEADERSHIP
• Many candidates were veterans of the Civil War, from the Midwest, and not very dynamic or colorful.
• Few candidates campaigned.
• Many were touched by scandal though they were presented as “honest”.
• Laissez-faire was the dominant style regardless of party.
• Handouts were only given to veterans of the Civil War in the form of generous pensions.
• Decisive action was only taken on matters of internal security (i.e. suppressing strikes) as presidents usually deferred to Congress.
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CIVIL SERVICE REFORM
• Spoils System
• Patronage vs. Merit?
THE ISSUES
Assassination ofJames A. Garfield“I am a Stalwart and
Arthur will be President.”
Pendleton Civil Service Act (1883)
NYC Customs HouseRoscoe Conkling*Chester Arthur
Half-Breeds vs. Stalwarts
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MONEY SUPPLY
• Limit or Expand?
• Bland-Allison Act (1878)
• Sherman Silver Purchase Act (1890)
• Coxey’s Army (1894)
• Free Silver!
• William Jennings Bryan and the “Cross of Gold”
• Currency Act (1900)
THE ISSUES
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TARIFFS
• The main source of revenue for the federal government. (No income tax until 1916).
• DEMOCRATS: Low
• REPUBLICANS: High
• Why???
THE ISSUES
HIGH LOW
Protection Freer Trade
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CORPORATE REGULATION?
• Interstate Commerce Act and the ICC (1887)
• Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890)
• The influence of big business on politics.
THE ISSUES
ICC
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FORGOTTEN OR IGNORED…• Women (The Vote, Lemonade Lucy)
• Farmers (No Handouts, The Alliance Movement, The Populist Party)
• Blacks (Sharecropping, Jim Crow Laws, Plessy v. Ferguson)
• The Poor (Local Efforts, Intellectuals: Henry George, Edward Bellamy)
• Immigrants (Chinese Exclusion Act)
• Labor
• The Environment
THE ISSUES