The United States presidential election of 1892 was held on November 8, 1892. New York's Grover Cleveland returned to defeat incumbent President Benjamin Harrison, becoming the only person to be elected to non-consecutive presidential terms. Cleveland, who had won the popular vote against Harrison in 1888, won both the popular and electoral vote in the rematch.

Cleveland also became the first Democrat to be nominated by his party three consecutive times, a distinction that would be equaled only by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940 and then exceeded by him in 1944. Although William Jennings Bryan was nominated for a third time in 1908 it was not consecutive with his two other nominations in 1896 and 1900.

Nominations

Republican Party nomination

Republican candidates

• Benjamin Harrison, President of the United States from Indiana
• James G. Blaine, former U.S. Secretary of State Maine
• William McKinley, U.S. governor of Ohio

Candidates gallery

<gallery> Image:Benjamin Harrison, head and shoulders bw photo, 1896.jpg|President Benjamin Harrison of Indiana Image:James G. Blaine - Brady-Handy.jpg|Former Secretary of State James G. Blaine of Maine Image:Mckinley.jpg|Governor William McKinley of Ohio </gallery>

Indiana's Benjamin Harrison was easily renominated for President in Minneapolis, but his choice was not unanimous. Harrison received 536 delegate votes to secure the nomination, but former nominee James Gillespie Blaine of Maine received 183 delegates, and future nominee and Ohioan William McKinley finished third with 182 delegates. New York Tribune editor Whitelaw Reid was unanimously chosen to replace Vice President Levi Morton on the ticket.

Democratic Party nomination

Democratic candidates

• Grover Cleveland, Former President of the United States from New York
• David B. Hill, U.S. senator from New York
• Horace Boies, U.S. governor of Iowa
• John M. Palmer, U.S. senator from Illinois

Candidates gallery

<gallery> Image:President Grover Cleveland.jpg|Former President Grover Cleveland of New York Image:DavidBHill.jpg|Senator David B. Hill of New York Image:HBoies.jpg|Governor Horace Boies of Iowa Image:John.M.Palmer.jpg|Senator John M. Palmer of Illinois </gallery>

For the third consecutive time, Grover Cleveland was chosen as the Democratic Party's Presidential nominee, receiving 618 delegate votes in Chicago to defeat David B. Hill (who received 114 delegates) and Horace Boies (103). Adlai E. Stevenson (whose grandson, Adlai II, would twice be the party's Presidential nominee in the 1950s) was chosen as the party's Vice Presidential nominee by 652 delegates, defeating Isaac P. Gray (who received 343 delegate votes), John L. Mitchell (45) and Henry Watterson (26).

Other nominations

Three other parties fielded candidates for the election. The Prohibition Party nominated John Bidwell for President and James Cranfill for Vice President. Two other parties made their first attempts at the White House: the Populist Party, who placed James Weaver and James Field on their ticket, and the Socialist Labor Party, who chose Simon Wing and Charles Matchett as their standard bearers.

General election

Campaign

As in 1888, the tariff issue was a key difference between free market Democrats and protectionist Republicans. Another issue, though, was the gold standard, with the Populists putting their chief emphasis on demanding higher inflation through increased coinage of silver, which would benefit debtors such as Southern and Western farmers. Cleveland's strong adherence to "hard" money gained him more backing from Eastern bankers and business.

Another issue was labor, with a major strike at Carnegie Steel ending with fighting between picketers and armed guards that galvanized labor opposition to the Republican administration.

While the Populists did take several states in the West, the South remained Democratic and the industrial Northeast turned out for Cleveland as well, giving him a solid victory and the Democrats control of both houses of Congress.

Results

44 States participated in this election, as six states?North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Washington, Idaho, and Wyoming?had joined the Union in 1889-90.

Source (Popular Vote):

Source (Electoral Vote):

Media

See also

• American election campaigns in the 19th century
• History of the United States (1865-1918)
• History of the United States Democratic Party
• History of the United States Republican Party
• Lies My Teacher Told Me, page 158, James W. Loewen

External links

• 1892 popular vote by counties
• 1892 State-by-state Popular vote
• Overview of 1892 Democratic National Convention
• How close was the 1892 election? - Michael Sheppard, Michigan State University

References

• online edition
• online edition
• Rhodes; James Ford. History of the United States from the Compromise of 1850 to the Mckinley-Bryan Campaign of 1896. Volume: 8; 1920. ch 17 online edition
• Loewen,James. "Lies My Teacher Told Me" page 158

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