1884 United States Presidential Election

The 1884 United States presidential election was the 25th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 4, 1884. It saw President Lyman Trumbull win re-election to a second term, defeating Federal Republican James G. Blaine, Silver nominee J. Donald Cameron, Progressive nominee Nathanial P. Banks, and others. The election was known for its chaotic campaigning, due to both parties fracturing and the close result of the election.

Trumbull had swiftly won the Farmer-Labor nomination, but still saw some members bolt and recreate the Workingman's Party, which nominated Benjamin Butler. Since Butler was against Free Silver, the renegade silver delegates declared at a rump convention their intention to convene once more in Salt Lake City, Utah in a national convention of conservative silver men. Thus, a small but powerful assembly of those who embraced a reform of laborism from a very different perspective would vote the Silver Party into existence on August 17th, 1884. The newly created Silver party nominated J. Donald Cameron for the Presidency. The Federal Republicans were not free from division either, as after the nomination of James G. Blaine, a group of progressive Federal Republicans walked out of the convention and nominated former Laborite Nathanial P. Bank, who was a former cabinet member in the Bidwell Administration, before resigning in opposition to Bidwell's attempt to abolish the Gold Standard.

Blaine and Trumbull were the leading contenders for the Presidency, with mudslinging and overall harsh election tactics being used against each other. Trumbull attacked Blaine's past history of shady political dealings, and Blaine attacked Trumbull's veto of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1881, and his vigorous prosecuting monopolies. Nathanial P. Banks ran on a "moderate progressive" platform, while Cameron argued for complete Free Silver and the abolishment of the Gold Standard.

In the election, President Trumbull won with 39.6% of the vote, with Blaine coming in a close second with 36.9% of the vote. Cameron and Banks came in a distant third and fourth respectively, with Cameron winning 2.3% of the vote, and Banks winning 11.9% of the vote.

Farmer-Labor Party nomination
President Lyman Trumbull was easily re-nominated by the Farmer-Labor Party. Despite this, many in the Farmer-Labor party opposed Trumbull. Thus, a group of laborites led by Denis Kearney recreated the defunct Workingman's Party, and nominated Benjamin Butler for the Presidency, with Marietta Snow as his running mate. Ironically, since Butler did not support Free Silver, a group of Pro Free Silver laborites walked out of the convention, and formed the Silver Party. J. Donald Cameron was nominated by the newly created Silver Party to be their nominee, with George Hearst as his running mate.

Federal Republican Party nomination
The Federal Republicans had just as bad of luck as Farmer-Labor. James G. Blaine and John D. White were the main contenders at the convention, with a deadlock occurring for several ballots between the two, with even a draft movement for Abraham Lincoln popping up to stop the deadlock. After help from Henry Cabot Lodge, Blaine narrowly received the Federal Republican nomination. White supporters walked out of the convention furious as Blaine's nomination, and created the short lived Progressive Party. The Progressive Party was extremely short lived, and only participated in this election, but still played a major role in the election. The Progressives would have a lasting effect on American Politics, with President Aaron Burr Houston being a leading Progressive, along side Theodore Roosevelt and Robert M. La Follette. The Progressive faction of the Federal Republican party would help to continue to fracture the party, with them alienating many Conservative Federal Republicans. Despite fracturing the party, they were for a time, the most powerful faction in the party. The Presidency of Aaron Burr Houston even had seen many former Famer-Laborites like Mary E. Lease side with them on most issues

Liberal Anti-Prohibition
After Tyre York, the leading figure in the Liberal Anti-Prohibition Party declined to run for the nomination, the field was left open for two aspiring candidates. The two were congressman Anson P. Morill of Maine, and former congressman Roger Q. Mills. Despite Morrill’s old age, concerns about Mills’ violent activity and the possibility of his being indicted for murder or worse led Morrill to win by a decent margin, with James O’Hare and Edmund R. Cocke also winning a scattering of votes. Too inform to accept the nomination in person, Anson P. Morrill wrote a brief telegram of acceptance.

Amidst a chorus of jeers and even laughs, Edmund R. Cocke was placed into the nomination alongside Tyre York. Seeing Cocke’s chances as nil and wishing to avoid further embarrassment, his name was removed and York was nominated by acclamation.

Progressive
Seeing in the nomination of James G. Blaine and William Freeman Vilas by the Federal Republicans’ New Orleans convention a final affirmation of the party’s commitment to big business, the progressives who gathered around John D. White, men such as Robert La Follette have bolted. Convening in New York, the progressives had saw three major candidates come before them, despite their leader, John D. White, having made clear his own desire for the nomination, even as his supporters attempt to block him in what they view as necessary to his career.

Ironically, John D. White, the man whos failure to obtain the Federal Republican nomination for the Presidency caused the Progressive walkout of the Federal Republican convention, failed to obtain the Progressive Parties nomination, with it falling to Nathanial P. Banks, a former Laborite, and someone who was even a member of the Bidwell Administration, and later a member of the Houston Administration. Many Progressives who bolted from the Federal Republican party who solely supportive of White getting the nomination, and when he didn't get it, they ditched the Progressive Party and instead supported Blaine for the Presidency.

Workingman's
For years, California Senator Denis Kearney had ended every one of his speeches simply with “and whatever happens, the Chinese must go.” Yet, despite the Farmer-Labor Party overwhelmingly supporting a Chinese Exclusion Act, President Trumbull himself had opposed one and sought closer relations to China. Thus, Kearney’s famous words had served as the core manifesto for a new party he has led, the “Workingmen’s Party,” quickly coming to incorporate various nativist as well as anti-Mormon groups. Yet, in some grand twist of irony, Kearney himself was an immigrant from Ireland and thus was ineligible to seek the presidency on the ticket formed by his supporters, and thus, chaired the party’s San Fransisco convention. There were many nominee present, but Benjamin Butler won the nomination. Because of his opposition to Free Silver, a group of renegade Workingmen bolted, and created the Silver Party in opposition to Butler and the Workingman's Party.

Silver
The renegade silver delegates declared at a rump convention across town their intention to convene once more in Salt Lake City, Utah in a week in a national convention of conservative silver men. Thus, a small but powerful assembly of those who embraced a reform of laborism from a very different perspective would vote the Silver Party into existence on August 17th, 1884.

Senators John P. Jones or William M. Stewart, both of Nevada, were the primary candidate speculated about, with Senator Henry M. Teller of Colorado also receiving coverage. Yet all would withdraw to promote the candidacy of a dark horse, J. Donald Cameron, the 51 year old former Federal Republican Senator from Pennsylvania and heir to the Cameron Machine of his father Simon, once considered the strongest political machine in America. Bucking his party and his section, though perhaps not his significant investments into silver, Cameron had backed the idea heartily and was nominated over Richard P. Bland of Missouri, nicknamed “Silver Dick” for his advocacy of free silver.

Cameron’s own preference for the Vice Presidency was Thomas Boles of Arkansas, yet the erstwhile low tariff men of the convention found the Boles selection heretical and divisive, instead putting forth George H. Pendleton of Ohio. With Pendleton taking an early lead, a 21 year old, with the might of railroads behind him, took to the stage in an expression of love for his father. The aging father, whose political sagacity, or perhaps luck, in abandoning the Southern Pacific Railroad that had vaulted him up the political ranks as the monopoly was prosecuted, allowed both monopoly men and reformers to extend to him a hand. And so, following his son’s speech, 64 year old George Hearst, who served a single, brief term as Governor of California in the 1860s and who held vast silver investments, would be nominated for Vice President of the United States upon the Silver ticket.

Results
In the election, President Trumbull won with 39.6% of the vote, with Blaine coming in a close second with 36.9% of the vote. Cameron and Banks came in a distant third and fourth respectively, with Cameron winning 2.3% of the vote, and Banks winning 11.9% of the vote.