In 1876 , various independent delegates gathered in Indianapolis to nominate a presidential ticket to campaign on those issues . For president , they chose Peter Cooper , an 85-year-old industrialist and philanthropist from New York , with Samuel Fenton Cary , a former congressman from Ohio , as his running mate . The Greenback ticket fared poorly in the election that November , attracting just 81,740 votes — less than 1 % of the total . As bad economic times continued , however , the party gained momentum . Labor unrest the following year , culminating in the Great Railroad Strike of 1877 , added to many laborers ' alienation from the two major parties . Local movements , like California 's Workingmen 's Party , began to agitate for laws to improve the condition of laborers ( and for an end to Chinese immigration ) . By 1878 , the third-party movement had become strong enough to elect 22 independents to the federal House of Representatives , most tied in some way to the Greenback movement . As the 1880 presidential election approached , members of the Greenback Party ( or Greenback-Labor Party , as it was sometimes known ) had reason to believe that they could improve on the results of 1876
delegates gathered
1876 Greenback National Convention
1880 Greenback National Convention