The Effectivity of the Populist Party

The Populist Party/People’s Party was a short-lived political party in the United States in the late 19th century. It flourished among farmers, based largely on the idea of the free-coining of silver. They thought that the free-coining of silver would drastically improve the country’s economy. The Populist Party was formed in part by the Farmers’ Alliance. The Industrial Revolution had influenced harsh rates on goods and equipment that the famers of the United States needed to earn a living. The only thing the farmers could do was unite and fight, and thus the Populist Party was born. The party included Grangers, members of the Knights of Labor, socialists, Free Silver party members, and women’s rights groups. The People’s Party was not only concerned with bettering the lives of workers and uniting people but soon became involved in the realm of politics. With the Populists striking a deal with the Democrats, the Populist had a candidate for the presidency and soon proved to be a force to be reckoned with. The Populist Party during the late nineteenth century was only successful in organizing people because of their acceptance of all races and the election of 1896 but not so productive in the way that they agreed with labor unions and only reached out to the South.



The success of the Populist Party can be traced to their allowance of every type of person. Just like the Knights of Labor, the Populists were interested in forming one, big union that would battle their problems head on. This was very rare during that time, seeming that immigration to the United States of America had become a heated issue. The government did as much as to band the Chinese from immigrating to the Americas by the Exclusion Act of 1882 and immigrants from southern and Eastern Europe were causing an even greater disturbance. This could have easily been the down-fall of the Populist Party, but their eagerness to succeed was one of the only righteous civil rights demonstrations in the nineteenth century.



The People’s Party had started out as a normal trade union, but its span of influence stretched so far, it was thrusted into the realm of politics. By the late nineteenth century, the Democratic Party took up many of the Populist Party's causes at the national level, and the party began to fade from national knowingness. In that year's presidential election, the Populists nominated Democratic candidate William Jennings Bryan, he backed the Populist opposition to the gold standard in his famous "Cross of Gold" speech. The Populist and Democrats thusly formed a “fusion ticket” and nominated William Bryan for president. Although William Bryan lost in the presidential election to William McKinley, the nation felt the influence a third party candidate can have against the capitalists. The Populist Party became a model for uniting and defying the odds, whatever they may be. Even though the Populists lost the presidential election, they were successful in the way they were able to go from a farmer’s trade union to a national power player.



The Populist Party shortly after the election of 1896 began to plummet not only because of the reduction in membership but the ideals that they based their platform on. Trade unions at the time and still are disliked by capitalists and employers everywhere. They were seen as a direct opposition to what capitalists prided themselves in, power. The Populist Party had shifted from a labor union to a political figure but had brought along many of their trade union ideas with them. Whether it was a graduated income tax or a better working environment, the Populists defended their principles on a national scale. Their plan was to gain support from other northern and southern workers and exchange blows with the capitalist. Their plan fell apart when they received no support from either the southern and northern workers. Southern workers would not support the Populist Party, because the party had united Whites with Blacks and southern workers wanted to maintain the dominate position of Whites. Northern workers were wary of the Party because the base of their plan was focused in the South. Sometimes good intentions can fall on deaf ears.



Having the Populist Party’s foundation in the South not only halted the attraction of northern factory workers, but may have lost them the election of 1896. The original plan for the Populist Party did start in the rural South, as a plea for Southern rights but never really strayed away from that. Although they gained supporters such as women’s rights groups and anarchists, they failed to pick up any of their ideals. Having a secondary base of operations in the North could have opened the Populist Party’s eyes to more of the world around them. The Populist Party’s demise could have easily been the hurdle of racism they had to jump, but also the lack of common political morals they could have used to reach out to the citizens of the United States.



The Populist Party brusquely after the Industrial Revolution was somewhat successful in bringing people together but not so successful when it came to politics. The Industrial Revolution had wiped out small scale farming and had replaced it with complicated and expensive technological farming. This not only lost many farmers their jobs, but the ones that still existed were left to suffer the harsh treatment delivered by the capitalist. The end result was the Populist Party, that’s main goal was to back up all currency with silver and unite the people of America. This blueprint failed for the main reason was that the world had already gone through the change of the Industrial Revolution, but wasn’t ready for another one. The Industrial Revolution may have been the rise and fall of the Populist Party all together.