AP US History in 1 Minute Daily: The Populist Party (Day 203/309)

 Hey APUSHers, let’s chat about the Populist Party as part of my series- APUSH in 1 Minute Daily!

“The Grange Awakening the Sleepers,” Stony Brook University

During the Gilded Age, the massive expansion of industrialization, urbanization, and big business fueled agrarian discontent and frustration by the working class.

Gift for the Grangers, Wikimedia Commons

The Populist Party, or the People's Party, formed in 1892 as an outgrowth of the farmers’ alliances that had developed after the Civil War.

“A Party of Patches,” Wikimedia Commons

Delegates drafted the Omaha Platform in 1892 which advocated for the free coinage of silver to increase the money supply, a graduated income tax, direct election of senators, 8-hour workday, and government ownership of transportation and communication systems.

Election of 1892, 270 to Win

In the election of 1892, the Populist Party candidate, James Weaver, received over 1 million votes and as one of the only third party candidates in American history, won 22 electoral votes.

The Populist platform reflected the concerns of agrarian communities and the working class, as they grappled with issues of economic inequality, corporate power, and the laissez-faire attitude of government toward the economy. 

Join me tomorrow as I explain the Election of 1896 in the next APUSH in 1 Minute Daily!