 At the time McKinley was nominated , it was not clear who his Democratic rival would be . Cleveland 's opponents within his party had mobilized into an organized effort to take over the Democratic Party and pass a platform supporting free silver . The platform was deemed of highest priority , and only once that fight was won was a candidate for president to be considered . Despite this resolution , several Democrats sought the nomination , with the foremost being former Missouri representative Richard P. Bland and former Iowa governor Horace Boies . Others either seeking or spoken of for the nomination included South Carolina Senator Benjamin Tillman , Senator Joseph C. Blackburn of Kentucky , and former Nebraska representative William Jennings Bryan . 
