In the 1892 presidential election , the Populist ticket of James B. Weaver and James G. Field won 8.5 percent of the national popular vote and carried four Western states , becoming the first third party since the end of the American Civil War to win electoral votes . Despite the support of labor organizers like Eugene V. Debs and Terence V. Powderly , the party largely failed to win the vote of urban laborers in the Midwest and the Northeast . Over the next four years , the party continued to run state and federal candidates , building up powerful organizations in several Southern and Western states . Prior to the 1896 presidential election , the Populists became increasingly polarized between " fusionists , " who wanted to nominate a joint presidential ticket with the Democratic Party , and " mid-roaders " like Mary Elizabeth Lease , who favored the continuation of the Populists as an independent third party . After the 1896 Democratic National Convention nominated Bryan , a prominent bimetallist , the Populists nominated Bryan but rejected the Democratic vice presidential nominee in favor of party leader Thomas E. Watson . In the 1896 election , Bryan won much of the South and West , but was defeated by Republican William McKinley
1896 Democratic National Convention
1896 Democratic National Convention
People's Party (United States)