How effective was The Populist Party?

The Populist Party (also known as the People's Party) was a relatively short-lived political party in the United States in the late 19th century. It flourished particularly among western farmers, based largely on its opposition to the gold standard. The Populist Party grew out of the agrarian revolt that rose to the collapse of agriculture prices following the Panic of 1873. The Farmers' Alliance, formed in 1876, promoted economic action by farmers and achieved widespread popularity in the South and Great Plains. The Populists were in alliance with forms of groups, unions, and political parties like Grangers, Framers’ Alliance, former Greenback party members, Knights of Labor, socialists, Frees Sliver party members, prohibitionists, women ’s rights groups, and anarchists. The Populist Party was over all strong if the party suffered from internal divisiveness, its members were deeply passionate about their organization’s effort to address the problems that undermined their livelihood. The Populist Party was somewhat
Effective considering that they were effective in replacing the fixed income tax, the free unlimited coining of sliver, and the government owner ships.

The Farmers' Alliance was ultimately unable to achieve its wider economic goals of collective economic action against brokers, railroads, and merchants, and many in the movement agitated for changes in national policy. By the late 1880s, the Alliance had developed a political agenda that called for regulation and reform in national politics, most notably an opposition to the gold standard to counter the decrease in agricultural prices. The drive to create a new political party out of the movement arose from the refusal of both Democrats and Republicans to take up and promote the policies advocated by the Alliance, notably in regard to the Populists' call for unlimited coinage of silver. The Populist Party was formed by members of the Alliance with the Knights of Labor.


The party's platform called for the abolition of national banks, a graduated income tax, direct election of Senators, civil service reform, a working day of eight hours and Government control of all railroads, telegraphs, and telephones. In the1892 Presidential election, James B. Weaver received 1million votes. The Populist Party flourished most among farmers in the Southwest and Great Plains, as well as making significant gains in the South, where they faced a battle given by the firmly entrenched monopoly of the Democratic Party. Opposition to the gold standard was especially strong among western farmers, who viewed the inherent scarcity of gold, as an instrument of Eastern banking interests who could force mass bankruptcies among farmers. Many western farmers rallied around the Populist. Free silver platform received widespread support across class lines in the Mountain states, where the economy was heavily dependent upon silver mining.


The Populists were the first political party in the United States to actively include women in their affairs. At a time when cultural attitudes of white supremacy were permeating all aspects of American life, a number of southern Populists including Thomas E. Watson openly talked of the need for poor blacks and poor whites to set aside their racial differences in the name of shared economic self-interest. Regardless however of apparel, racism did not evade the Populist Party. In fact, after the party's disintegration.



By 1896, the Democratic Party took up many of the Populist Party's causes at the national level, and the party began to fade from national prominence. In that year’s presidential election, the Populists nominated Democratic candidate William Jennings Bryan; he backed the Populist opposition to the gold. Bryan lost to William McKinley by a number of votes. The effects of fusion with the Democrats were disastrous to the Party in the South. Collaboration with the Democratic establishment effectively ended the Populist/Republican alliance which had governed North Carolina with the support of African Americans. By 1898, the Populists were attempting to out-flank the Democrats with a campaign.


In conclusion The Populist Party was in a way effective in that they had support from many people on some of their political objectives like free and unlimited coining of silver, fixed income tax with a graduated income tax, and government ownership. The Populist Party was indeed unique in the history of the nation’s political evolution. Populist maintained was an obstacle to humanity’s efforts to triumph over it’s own shortcomings