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After losing re-election to Republican Benjamin Harrison in 1888 and leaving office in 1889, U.S. President Grover Cleveland was initially satisfied with his return to
The main reasons for Cleveland's return into politics were his desire to prevent New York Governor David B. Hill (a political rival of Cleveland's who also wanted the 1892 Democratic nomination) from winning the Democratic presidential nomination that year and Cleveland's staunch opposition to
Not counting the anomalous 1912 election, the 1892 U.S. presidential election was the first and only U.S. presidential election where both an incumbent U.S. president and an ex-U.S. President both ran as the major party nominees. With the exception of the new pro-
private life Private Life may refer to:
*life in the private sphere The private sphere is the complement or opposite to the public sphere. The private sphere is a certain sector of societal life in which an individual enjoys a degree of authority, unhampered by ...
. However, Cleveland's views about his retirement began to change at the time of the 1890 midterm elections, in which the Democrats won huge victories at the ballot box. In addition, Cleveland disliked what he perceived to be the frequent blunders of the Harrison administration. By the time 1891 ended, Grover Cleveland decided to re-enter American political life
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...
and run again for U.S. president in the 1892 U.S. presidential election
The 1892 United States presidential election was the 27th quadrennial United States presidential election, presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 8, 1892. In a rematch of the closely contested 1888 United States presidential election, 1 ...
.
Democratic nomination
The main reasons for Cleveland's return into politics were his desire to prevent New York Governor David B. Hill (a political rival of Cleveland's who also wanted the 1892 Democratic nomination) from winning the Democratic presidential nomination that year and Cleveland's staunch opposition to free silver
Free silver was a major economic policy issue in the United States in the late 19th-century. Its advocates were in favor of an expansionary monetary policy featuring the unlimited coinage of silver into money on-demand, as opposed to strict adhe ...
, a prominent political issue back then. Cleveland considered Governor Hill to be a corrupt machine boss, and he staunchly believed that the Democrats should maintain their support of the gold standard. Cleveland hired former U.S. Navy Secretary William C. Whitney
William Collins Whitney (July 5, 1841February 2, 1904) was an American political leader and financier and a prominent descendant of the John Whitney family. He served as Secretary of the Navy in the first administration of President Grover Clev ...
as his campaign manager
{{Political campaigning
A campaign manager, campaign chairman, or campaign director is a paid or volunteer individual whose role is to coordinate a political campaign's operations such as fundraising, advertising, polling, getting out the vote ( ...
that year. Cleveland and Whitney frequently contacted Southern
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politicians and newspaper editors in an attempt to get them to support Cleveland's 1892 Presidential bid. Cleveland portrayed himself as a candidate who could unify the Democratic Party (due to his status as a former president and the only Democrat elected U.S. president since the U.S. Civil War) and tried appealing to Southerners by opposing federal oversight of African American voting rights. Whitney also fundraised huge amounts of cash from wealthy bankers and businessmen in order to finance Cleveland's presidential campaign. An attempt by New York Democratic Party chairman Edward Murphy to strengthen Governor Hill's chances for the 1892 Democratic nomination by giving him all of New York
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's delegates backfired and ended up helping Cleveland (since most of the delegates from the other states ended up supporting him afterwards). When the 1892 Democratic National Convention
The 1892 Democratic National Convention was held in Chicago, Illinois, June 21–June 23, and nominated former President Grover Cleveland, who had been the party's standard-bearer in 1884 and 1888. This marked the last time a former president was ...
convened on June 21, 1892, in Chicago, Cleveland was narrowly able to win the Democratic party nomination for U.S. president on the first ballot. Specifically, on the first ballot of the convention, Cleveland gained 617 1/3 votes, just ten more votes than the necessary two-thirds majority.
General election
Not counting the anomalous 1912 election, the 1892 U.S. presidential election was the first and only U.S. presidential election where both an incumbent U.S. president and an ex-U.S. President both ran as the major party nominees. With the exception of the new pro-free silver
Free silver was a major economic policy issue in the United States in the late 19th-century. Its advocates were in favor of an expansionary monetary policy featuring the unlimited coinage of silver into money on-demand, as opposed to strict adhe ...
Populist Party and its candidate James B. Weaver
James Baird Weaver (June 12, 1833 – February 6, 1912) was a member of the United States House of Representatives and two-time candidate for President of the United States. Born in Ohio, he moved to Iowa as a boy when his family claimed a ...
, the 1892 election was a rematch of the 1888 election, since Cleveland and Harrison competed against each other for the U.S. presidency back then as well. Cleveland ran on a platform of lowering tariffs (especially the McKinley Tariff), supporting the gold standard (something which he made his VP nominee Adlai Stevenson Adlai Stevenson may refer to:
* Adlai Stevenson I (1835–1914), U.S. Vice President (1893–1897) and Congressman (1879–1881)
* Adlai Stevenson II (1900–1965), Governor of Illinois (1949–1953), U.S. presidential candida ...
do as well) and on opposing the Republican-backed Force Bill. In addition, the Democrats criticized the Republicans for causing the Homestead Strike to occur due to their protectionist policies. Breaking tradition, Cleveland delivered his acceptance speech for the Democratic nomination in front of 20,000 supporters at New York City’s Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...
. Cleveland did not actively campaign much (partially due to U.S. First Lady
The first lady of the United States (FLOTUS) is the title held by the hostess of the White House, usually the wife of the president of the United States, concurrent with the president's term in office. Although the first lady's role has never ...
Caroline Harrison's battle with tuberculosis throughout the 1892 campaign season), but his vice presidential nominee Adlai Stevenson Adlai Stevenson may refer to:
* Adlai Stevenson I (1835–1914), U.S. Vice President (1893–1897) and Congressman (1879–1881)
* Adlai Stevenson II (1900–1965), Governor of Illinois (1949–1953), U.S. presidential candida ...
of Illinois heavily campaigned for the Democratic ticket. Cleveland's campaign did spend nearly $2,350,000 (or $46,300,000 in 2002 dollars) on his campaign, a greater amount than incumbent Republican U.S. President Benjamin Harrison spent on his re-election campaign. Whitney (Cleveland's campaign manager) eventually managed to get New York Governor David B. Hill and the Tammany Hall political machine
In the politics of Representative democracy, representative democracies, a political machine is a party organization that recruits its members by the use of tangible incentives (such as money or political jobs) and that is characterized by a hig ...
to reluctantly support Cleveland in 1892, which might have helped Cleveland narrowly win his home state of New York
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* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
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. Grover Cleveland won the general election by the largest popular vote margin (three percent) in twenty years. In addition, Cleveland won almost two thirds of the Electoral College vote, winning all of the states that he won in 1884
Events
January–March
* January 4 – The Fabian Society is founded in London.
* January 5 – Gilbert and Sullivan's ''Princess Ida'' premières at the Savoy Theatre, London.
* January 18 – Dr. William Price atte ...
in addition to Illinois, Wisconsin, and California. Due to winning in 1892, Grover Cleveland became the first (and to this date only) ex-U.S. President to be elected U.S. president again.
See also
* Grover Cleveland 1884 presidential campaign * Grover Cleveland 1888 presidential campaignReferences
{{Democratic presidential campaigns 1892 United States presidential election Presidential campaign Democratic Party (United States) presidential campaigns