Election Of 1896: A Watershed In American Politics

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A Watershed in American Politics Denise Eliason American History Professor Geisler July 17, 2013 A Watershed in American Politics Why is the election of 1896 considered a watershed in American politics? The historic election of 1896 is considered to be the turning point in American politics and one of the most important elections of all time. The race between Republican William McKinley and Democrat William Jennings Bryan was one of heavy campaigning and a major issue at hand concerning the currency question. (Gilliam, 2013) This race would be the race that would establish the dominance of the Republican Party. In order to get a better understanding of the election of 1896, it is important to know some of the events that led up to the actual election. Democrat, Grover Cleveland, was in office when the depression of 1893 hit and hit the American people hard. To most, it appeared that the president was not paying attention to what was going on in his own country. Banks, businesses, and even railroads closed down; but the federal government was weak and could not “fix” the economic problems. There were no welfare programs or unemployment programs available for the public, so…show more content…
That number has not been matched since then. McKinley took over the presidential race not just in individual votes, but also in electoral votes. (Kennedy, 1996) Unlike his predecessors, William McKinley had a defined plan to follow, and once he was in office, he did follow through with his proposed economic policy. The country moved towards the gold standard and economic prosperity was being renewed. (Authentic history.com, 2013) The election of 1896 was a watershed in American politics because it not only renewed prosperity in the United States, it changed the political system, and it gave hope to those that were not being
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