LAD #23: Populist Party Platform

Campaign poster for the Populist Party

The nation is in ruins, with corruption in elections and property becoming concentrated in the hands of capitalists. Influences dominate both Democrats and Republicans, but haven't been met with serious efforts to prevent them, and they haven't tried to reform, allowing the many to be destroyed in favor of a few corrupt millionaires. In short, the Populist Party wants to put power back into the hands of the "plain people."

They declared a permanent union of labor forces, that wealth belongs to he who earns it and it's robbery for others to take it, and that the government should own and manage the railroads.

They made several demands regarding finances, including that there should be an unlimited coinage of silver and gold in a 16:1 ratio, more money to be circulated, a graduated income tax, that state revenues be limited to only necessary spending, and that postal savings banks be established.

Transportation and communications should be operated by the government for the interest of the people, and land should not be monopolized nor given to aliens.

Summarized, they wanted a free ballot, for money to be distributed as fairly as possible, and for more power to be put into the hands of the working class.