In this lecture, Professor Totten argues that economic hardships and the lack of government action led many Americans to support a new third party, the People's Party in the 1890s. Partisan politics was a highly participatory affair in the 19th century and Americans often voted in great numbers. Despite this participation, the major parties ignored the plight of western and southern farmers, which led these men to forge a third party challenge. Their demands centered around free silver, government regulation, and even government ownership of key industries. This populist revolt helped push many western and southern Democrats away from laissez-faire economics and towards a more regulatory vision of American governance. While they were unsuccessfully electorally, the Populist Revolt changed American politics forever. Campaign tactics shifted and they helped both parties adopted a vision of "positive government" toward reform that culminated in the Progressive Era. Lastly, the Democrats, led by William Jennings Bryan, began their slow movement towards becoming the party of big government, that ultimately culminated in the New Deal and the Great Society projects of the 20th century.

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/history-of-the-american-people-since-1877/donations