Contents

1 Summary 2 Republican convention 3 Democratic convention 4 Other parties 5 Election results 6 Other elections

Summary

The election of 1896 is often considered a realigning election. Democrat nominee William Jennings Bryan was running against William McKinley, but the McKinley ticket ended up winning, getting an endorsement from many big businesses. The Democrats would not win another presidency until 1912, making Grover Cleveland the only Democratic president from 1860 to 1912.

Republican convention

As they did in 1876 and 1880, the Republicans dipped into the talent pool that was the Governor's office of Ohio to nominate William McKinley of Niles for President, and New Jersey's Garret Hobart for Vice President. McKinley campaign manager Mark Hanna raised a staggering $ 3,500,000 for the campaign, outspending the Democrats by a 10-to-1 margin.

Democratic convention

Incumbent President Grover Cleveland's declaration that he would not seek a third term left a wide open Democratic National Convention, and at just 36 years old, Nebraska's William Jennings Bryan filled the void, attracting widespread support after delivering his famous "Cross of Gold" speech prior to delegate balloting. Bryan's stance unified splintered Democrats and earned him the nomination, defeating Seymour F. Norton by a 3-to-1 margin.

Other parties

The Republicans and Democrats were joined by more "third party" candidates than ever before in 1896, with the Socialist Labor, Prohibition, National Prohibition and National Democratic parties each offering tickets for President and Vice President. The Populist Party took a page from the Democrats, joining them in supporting William Jennings Bryan's candidacy, but offering their own Vice Presidential choice, Thomas Edward Watson.

Election results

Presidential Candidate	Party	State	Popular Vote:	Electoral Vote:
William McKinley	Republican	Ohio	7,112,138	271
William Jennings Bryan	Democratic/ Populist	Nebraska	6,502,925/ 222,583	176
John McAuley Palmer	National Democratic	Illinois	133,730	0
Joshua Levering	Prohibition	Maryland	125,088	0
Charles Horatio Matchett	Socialist Labor	New York	36,359	0
Charles Eugene Bentley	National	Nebraska	19,391	0
Vice Presidential Candidate	Party	State	Popular Vote:	Electoral Vote:
Garret Augustus Hobart	Republican	New Jersey	- - -	271
Arthur Sewall	Democratic	Maine	- - -	149
Thomas Edward Watson	Populist	Georgia	- - -	27
Simon Bolivar Buckner	National Democratic	Kentucky	- - -	0
Hale Johnson	Prohibition	Illinois	- - -	0
Matthew Maguire	Socialist Labor	New Jersey	- - -	0
James Southgate	National	North Carolina	- - -	0

See also: President of the United States, U.S. presidential election, 1896, History of the United States (1865-1918)

Other elections