National Democratic Party (United States) facts for kids

The National Democratic Party, also known as the Gold Democrats, was a political party in the United States that didn't last very long. It was formed by a group of Democrats who disagreed with their party's main candidate, William Jennings Bryan, in the 1896 United States presidential election.

Most members of this new party admired Grover Cleveland, a former president. They believed Bryan's ideas about "free silver" (a plan to make silver a main form of money alongside gold) would badly hurt the country's economy. The Gold Democrats chose John M. Palmer for president. He was a former governor of Illinois and a general from the Union Army during the Civil War. For vice president, they picked Simon Bolivar Buckner, a former governor of Kentucky and a general from the Confederate Army. They also had a few candidates run for other government jobs, like in Congress.

What Was the National Democratic Party?

The people who started the National Democratic Party were unhappy with the main Democratic Party. They wanted to keep the ideas of important figures like Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, and Grover Cleveland. The party's leaders said that the main Democratic Party had left these old ideas behind by choosing Bryan as their candidate.

They believed that every person should be able to achieve happiness on their own, as long as laws didn't stop them. They also thought people should be free to do what they wanted, as long as it didn't stop others from doing the same. The party strongly supported freedom of speech, freedom of thought, free trade, and freedom of contract. These ideas were all part of the Democratic Party's old belief in "Individual Liberty." The Gold Democrats didn't like the idea of increasing money supply (which they called "inflationist policies") from the main Democrats. They also didn't like the idea of high taxes on imported goods (called "protectionism") that the Republican Party supported.

Many important thinkers who believed in classical liberalism supported this new party. This included President Cleveland himself. Other supporters were E. L. Godkin, who edited a magazine called The Nation, and Edward Atkinson, a businessman who promoted free market ideas. Even future important figures like Louis Brandeis and Woodrow Wilson (who later became president) supported Palmer and Buckner at this time.

Election Results and What Happened Next

Most people who agreed with the Gold Democrats' ideas actually voted for the Republican candidate, William McKinley, in the 1896 election. However, the National Democratic Party still received about 137,000 votes, which was about 1% of all votes across the country.

After McKinley won, some Gold Democrats thought their party had won a big victory because Bryan lost. They hoped this would help them take back control of the main Democratic Party. But this didn't happen. Even though the Gold Democrats did influence the 1904 election, William Jennings Bryan and his supporters kept control of the Democratic Party for a long time. Bryan was nominated again by the Democrats in 1900 and 1908. Later, leaders like Woodrow Wilson and Franklin D. Roosevelt (who were considered modern liberals) put many of Bryan's ideas into law.

After not doing well in the 1898 elections, the leaders of the National Democratic Party decided to close down the party in 1900. Most of its members went back to the main Democratic Party. They did this because they didn't like President McKinley's foreign policy, which they saw as imperialistic (meaning the U.S. was trying to control other countries).

What the Party Believed

The National Democratic Party announced its beliefs, called its "platform," at a meeting in Indianapolis, Indiana, on September 3, 1896. Here are some of their main ideas:

• They wanted to protect the honor and well-being of the American people.
• They believed in equal and fair treatment for everyone, no matter their background.
• They supported the most freedom possible for individuals, as long as it worked with good government.
• They wanted the U.S. government to stay strong and follow the Constitution.
• They believed in keeping public trust and having "sound money" (meaning money that holds its value, like gold).
• They were against the government controlling too much of people's lives (called "paternalism") and against laws that favored certain groups of people.

The party also criticized the main Democratic Party for their ideas. They said the main Democrats' plans would hurt individual freedom, the right to make private agreements, the independence of judges, and the president's power to enforce laws. They were especially worried about the main Democrats' plan to increase the amount of silver money, which they thought would make the country's money less valuable. They also said the main Democrats had given up on lowering taxes on imported goods (tariff reform) to gain favor with those who wanted high taxes.

The Gold Democrats believed that the problems in the country were caused by the Republican Party's laws, which they said tried to control prices and only offered unfair taxes as a solution.

Images for kids

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  A campaign button from 1896 for John M. Palmer and Simon B. Buckner.