Progressive Party of 1924
The Progressive Party of 1924 was a third political party that emerged during the presidential campaign, spearheaded by U.S. Senator Robert La Follette of Wisconsin. It represented various groups disillusioned with the dominant Republican and Democratic parties, including midwestern populists, unionists, and trade union members. The party's platform focused on curbing corporate influence in politics and promoting progressive reforms such as public ownership of utilities, conservation efforts, and the protection of labor rights. Despite securing over 4.8 million votes—about 16.6 percent of the popular vote—and winning only Wisconsin's electoral votes, the party struggled with organizational challenges and lacked the infrastructure needed for a robust campaign.
Support for the Progressive Party encompassed diverse groups, including farmers, African Americans, and labor unions, but internal conflicts and limited funding hampered its effectiveness. The election ultimately highlighted a growing demand for more progressive options in a political landscape dominated by conservatism. Although discussions arose about solidifying the Progressive Party as a genuine third party, La Follette's death in 1925 marked a significant decline in momentum, though his legacy would briefly resurface with the Wisconsin Progressive Party in 1934.
Subject Terms
Progressive Party of 1924
Identification: American political party
Date: Founded in 1924
The Progressive Party was a third political party that emerged during the 1924 presidential campaign, organized around U.S. senator Robert La Follette of Wisconsin. The party provided a voice for those unhappy with the major political parties, including midwestern populists and unionists.
In 1924, several political forces dissatisfied with the two-party system amassed around the campaign efforts of Wisconsin senator Robert La Follette, a former Republican. They hoped to offer a challenge to the Republican and Democratic parties, or, if they could not replace one of the major parties, at least force one or both to shift in a more liberal direction. Although La Follette would only win Wisconsin in the presidential election, his campaign carried a number of Midwest precincts and accounted for over 16 percent of the popular vote.
The Birth of a Campaign
The party and its platform developed out of the Conference for Progressive Political Action (CPPA), a coalition of left-wing and progressive interest groups that first met in February 1922. On July 4, 1924, at the CPPA national convention in Cleveland, Robert La Follette Jr. appeared to announce his father’s intention to run as an independent Progressive candidate. The CPPA elected to back La Follette’s candidacy and adopted a platform that mirrored the senator’s own ideas. The Progressive Party mainly existed in name only, as La Follette did not want a third party to interfere in the election of Progressive Republicans and Democrats at the state and local level, and thus La Follette was the only candidate on the party’s ticket. Joining him as running mate was Montana senator Burton K. Wheeler, a Democrat, who had broken with his party when they nominated John W. Davis to challenge Republican incumbent Calvin Coolidge.
The central tenet of the Progressive Party’s platform was the guarding of freedom from corporate and industrial interests. In an effort to curb the rise of big business and unfair control of resources, the party continued to push for traditional progressive values, such as the use of government to break private monopolies, the election of all federal judges for limited terms, conservation of all natural resources, and public ownership of utilities, railroads, and major industries. They wanted the government to provide public works programs during depressions and institute a progressive tax on large incomes, estates, and inheritances. Their platform also called for the protection of collective bargaining rights for labor and agriculture, ratification of the Child Labor Amendment, an end to the influence of commercial interests on foreign policy, and revision of the Treaty of Versailles to bring it more in line with the terms of the armistice, among other measures.
Party Support
Supporters of the Progressive Party grew to include trade unions, populists, the Socialist Party, and African American groups. The Steuben Society, a German American organization, joined La Follette’s campaign with the promise to deliver six million votes, and the American Federation of Labor also voiced its support for La Follette and Wheeler, although the group refrained from endorsing the party itself.
Of all the Progressive Party supporters, western and midwestern farmers were the most loyal. Their support was so widespread and locked in that the Progressives did not see the need to campaign to them. Ultimately, farmers turned out to be the most effective of La Follette’s supporters at the ballot box, delivering over half of his votes.
Election Day
As the election neared, the Progressive Party found itself mired in complications. Without a preexisting party infrastructure, La Follette had to coordinate his campaign from scratch, relying on inexperienced supporters and organizations with often conflicting interests. As the Progressives attempted to organize and unite local efforts and campaigns, questions of what issues would dominate, who would control the flow of campaign contributions, where to direct the money, and which geographic areas to focus on added friction to the party machinery. In addition, La Follette had to use up much of his campaign’s resources simply to get on individual states’ ballots.
La Follette campaigned mainly in the East and the Midwest, while Wheeler started by touring heavily in his native New England and later campaigned in the western states that La Follette did not visit. Their efforts resulted in the Progressive Party receiving over 4.8 million votes, a total of 16.6 percent of the popular vote. They only won the electoral votes of one state, Wisconsin, although they made a strong showing in the Midwest and the West, finishing second behind the Republicans in eleven other states.
Impact
At a time when both major parties were fielding conservative candidates, La Follette and Wheeler provided a more progressive option. Although they captured over 16 percent of the popular vote, demonstrating significant support, they could not translate those numbers into victory. Organizational problems, the lack of a national party to provide centralized control, and insufficient funding prevented the Progressives from making a stronger showing. While there had been talk of making the Progressive Party a genuine third party after the election, La Follette’s death in 1925 caused the party to lose what little momentum remained. The movement would be briefly resurrected by La Follette’s sons as the Wisconsin Progressive Party in 1934.
Bibliography
Cooper, John Milton, Jr. “Why Wisconsin? The Badger State in the Progressive Era.” Wisconsin Magazine of History 87, no. 3 (Spring, 2004): 14–25. Discusses why Wisconsin became the leader of the American Progressive movement.
MacKay, Kenneth Campbell. The Progressive Movement of 1924. New York: Columbia University Press, 1947. Charts the rise and fall of the 1924 movement and addresses the difficulties faced by third parties in the United States.
Miller, John E. “Fighting for the Cause: The Rhetoric and Symbolism of the Wisconsin Progressive Movement.” Wisconsin Magazine of History 87, no. 4 (Summer, 2004): 14–25. Examines the tactics that helped the Progressive movement command public attention.
Nye, Russel B. Midwestern Progressive Politics: A Historical Study of Its Origins and Development, 1870–1950. East Lansing: Michigan State College Press, 1951. A narrative of Progressivism in the Midwest and its relationship to local regionalism.
Shideler, James H. “The La Follette Progressive Party Campaign of 1924.” Wisconsin Magazine of History 33, no. 4 (June, 1950): 444–457. An overview of the campaign and why it ultimately collapsed.