Wisconsin Progressive Party

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Script error: No such module "Infobox".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".Template:Progressivism US The Wisconsin Progressive Party (1934–1946) was a political third party that briefly held a major role in Wisconsin politics under the two sons of the late Robert M. La Follette.[1] It was on the political left wing, and it sometimes cooperated with the New Deal.[2][3]

History

Background and formation

The Party was the brainchild of Philip La Follette and Robert M. La Follette, Jr., the sons of Wisconsin Governor and Senator Robert M. La Follette, Sr. The party was established in 1934 as an alliance between the longstanding "Progressive" faction of the Republican Party of Wisconsin, led by the La Follette family and their political allies, and certain radical farm and labor groups active in Wisconsin at the time.[4] Journalist John Nichols argues that the 1924 platform that Robert La Follette Sr., ran on:

"taxing the rich, cracking down on Wall Street abuses, empowering workers to organize unions, defending small farmers, breaking up corporate trusts, strengthening public utilities — fueled a resurgence of left-wing populist movements across the upper Midwest: the Non-Partisan League of North Dakota, the Farmer-Labor Party of Minnesota and the Progressive Party of Wisconsin."

The formation of the Wisconsin Progressive Party was held on May 19, 1934, at Fond du Lac City, Fond du Lac County,[5] William T. Evjue served as chairmen during the founding convention.[6]

Buoyed by popular discontent with both major parties, the La Follette brothers were successful in their bids, and the party saw a number of other victories in the 1934 gubernatorial election.[7] In 1935, a faction within the party formed the Farmer-Labor Progressive Federation (FLPF),[8] after which the party was victorious in the 1934 state Senate elections and won several U.S. House seats and a majority of the Wisconsin State Senate and Wisconsin State Assembly in 1936. In 1936 it was informally allied with the New Deal coalition and supported the reelection of President Franklin Roosevelt.[7]

Progressive governance

Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote".Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Following the re-election of Philip, he took a far different tone for his second term than he had for his first. In his second inaugural address he stressed the need for reform in more concrete terms, advocating for an increase in executive power and calling for increased spending towards schools and wages despite a projected $9 million dollar shortfall in the budget.[9]Template:R/superscript

Cooperation with the Socialists

During its heyday, the Progressive Party usually did not run candidates in the Socialists (known as the "sewer socialists") stronghold of Milwaukee. There were strong ideological differences between the two movements as the two aligned with differing national parties. (Socialist State Representative George L. Tews said during a 1932 debate on unemployment compensation and how to fund it argued for the Socialist bill and against the Progressive substitute, stating that a Progressive was "a Socialist with the brains knocked out"),[10] when both faced opposition from the conservative major parties. During the period from 1939 on, the Progressives and the Socialists of Milwaukee sometimes made common cause, with Socialist legislators caucusing with the minority Progressives. In 1942, Socialist Frank P. Zeidler, later to be elected mayor of Milwaukee, was the nominee on the Progressive party line for State Treasurer of Wisconsin.

1938

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Governor Philip La Follette announces formation of the National Progressives of America, April 28, 1938.

In an attempt to take the success of the Wisconsin Progressive Party to the national level the National Progressives of America (NPA) was founded in 1938, at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.[11] Philip sought a return to the policy of the "old days" in which

"our country did not pay people to remain idle or to do unproductive work. We gave everyone an opportunity to do wealth-creating work. If they did not take that offer, they could sink or swim as they pleased. Today we have idle resources, and also idle people.... Again we must provide every able-bodied man and woman with a real opportunity for wealth-creating work at decent hours and at decent pay. Then, let us return to the principle that he who is able and does not work—well, then, at least he shall not live at the expense of his neighbor."[12]

Ralph Immell was appointed as the National Progressive's National Director, Immell would go on to state:

"The next decade holds the most critical chapter of American history. it will unfold the story of the eclipse of the two major political parties in America in the struggle of our people to beat off the unwanted European doctrines of Communism, Fascism, and Nazism, and the unworkable European doctrine of pure socialism. We all should be too concerned with the insecurity and want amid plenty to smugly stand by and not play what part we can in the drive of the National Progressives of America to make America once again the land of opportunity and security for every child and man."[13]

By the 1938 elections, the divisions in the state Progressive Party had grown even more wide, and while the La Follette brothers remained neutral, they privately supported their ally Ekern over the more radical Amlie in the Senate primary that year, as the primary became a conflict between the traditionalist Progressive faction of the party and the more radical leftist progressive faction, and their lack of endorsement exacerbated tensions between both sides, with supporters of Amlie threatening to leave the party over it.[9]Template:R/superscript[14]Template:R/superscript

With ongoing scandals and accusations of authoritarianism, fascism and demagoguery, the Progressive party succumbed to a united Democratic and Republican front in 1938 which swept most of them out of office, including in the gubernatorial race, where Philip La Follette lost re-election to Julius P. Heil.[15][14]

1939–1946

Script error: No such module "Unsubst". As one of the Senate's leading isolationists, Robert helped found the America First Committee in 1940 to oppose Roosevelt's foreign policy and denounce risk of U.S. entry into World War II.[16] Soon Philip found himself working alongside figures such as Charles Lindbergh, which led some to assume he had shifted towards more conservative politics.[17][18][19][20]

Some Progressive leaders such as Evjue began pushing for greater affiliation with the Democratic Party. By the early 1940s Amlie led an exodus of liberals and left-wingers in joining with the Democratic party with Philip viewing these defectors as traitors.[14]Template:R/superscript

Orland Steen Loomis was the last Progressive to be elected Governor of Wisconsin, in the 1942 election. He died, however, before his inauguration as governor.[21][22]

Dissolution

By 1946, the Wisconsin Progressive Party had all but collapsed, barely qualifying for major party status after the 1944 elections. Over the years the party became factionalized between the support of a rural electorate that was in the middle of ideologically shifting from progressivism to conservatism and the urban left-wing. While Philip La Follette had desired for the party to continue on, after being advised to stay out of the 1946 convention, the Party voted to dissolve itself, voting 284 to 131 to rejoin the Republican Party.[23][24][9]Template:R/superscript

Aftermath

Robert La Follette Jr. held on to his Senate seat until 1946, when the party decided to disband itself. Robert La Follette ran for re-election that year as a Republican rather than a Progressive, but was defeated in the Republican primary by Joe McCarthy.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". The last politician to hold office from the Wisconsin Progressive Party nationally was Merlin Hull, a U.S. Representative from Wisconsin, elected as a Progressive in 1944. (Hull continued to be re-elected on the Republican ticket, and served until his death in 1953.)[a]

Officeholders

Federal

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U.S. Senators
U.S. Representatives

State

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Executive branch officials
County officials
State Senators
State Assemblymen

Electoral history

Wisconsin state offices

Governor Lieutenant governor Attorney general
Year Nominee # votes % votes Place Notes Year Nominee # votes % votes Place Notes Year Nominee # votes % votes Place Notes
1934 Philip La Follette 373,093 Template:Composition bar Elected 1934 Henry Gunderson 313,682 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 7 1934 Fred M. Wylie 303,387 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 7
1936 573,724 Template:Composition bar Re-elected 1936 465,918 Template:Composition bar Elected 1936 Orland Steen Loomis 394,252 Template:Composition bar Elected
1938 353,381 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 5 1938 George A. Nelson 313,066 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 5 1938 316,657 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 4
1940 Orland Steen Loomis 546,436 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 5 1940 Anton M. Miller 411,055 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 4 1940 Otto F. Christenson 367,009 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 4
1942 397,664 Template:Composition bar Elected 1942 Henry J. Berquist 256,851 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 5 1942 William H. Dieterich 205,730 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 5
1944 Alexander Otto Benz 76,028 Template:Composition bar 3rd of 5 1944 Clough Gates 79,068 Template:Composition bar 3rd of 4 1944 84,989 Template:Composition bar 3rd of 4
Secretary of state Treasurer
Year Nominee # votes % votes Place Notes Year Nominee # votes % votes Place Notes
1934 Theodore Dammann 419,249 Template:Composition bar Re-elected 1934 Albert C. Johnson 302,639 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 6
1936 601,638 Template:Composition bar Re-elected 1936 Solomon Levitan 457,942 Template:Composition bar Elected
1938 391,150 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 5 1938 368,707 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 5
1940 Adolph W. Larsen 332,505 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 4 1940 Frank Zeidler 382,237 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 4
1942 John H. Kaiser 196,287 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 5 1942 Albert C. Johnson 215,995 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 5
1944 Adelaide Woelfel 12,681 Template:Composition bar 4th of 4 1944 73,451 Template:Composition bar 3rd of 4
Wisconsin Senate Wisconsin Assembly
Election Leader Votes Seats Position Control Election Leader Votes Seats Position Control
No. Share No. ± No. Share No. ±
1934 N/A 136,749 32.53% Template:Infobox political party/seats Increase 11 2nd Democratic–Republican 1934 Jorge W. Carow 304,804 34.09% Template:Infobox political party/seats Increase 45 1st Progressive minority
1936 Walter J. Rush 242,631 42.00% Template:Infobox political party/seats Increase 5 1st Progressive minority 1936 437,916 38.73% Template:Infobox political party/seats Increase 1 1st Progressive minority
1938 N/A 154,891 35.00% Template:Infobox political party/seats Decrease 5 2nd Republican minority 1938 Paul Alfonsi Template:Infobox political party/seats Decrease 12 2nd Republican
1940 Philip E. Nelson 212,631 32.09% Template:Infobox political party/seats Decrease 5 2nd Republican 1940 N/A Template:Infobox political party/seats Decrease 7 2nd Republican
1942 85,806 25.18% Template:Infobox political party/seats Steady 2nd Republican 1942 Andrew Biemiller Template:Infobox political party/seats Decrease 12 3rd Republican
1944 N/A 47,895 8.81% Template:Infobox political party/seats Decrease 1 3rd Republican 1944 Lyall T. Beggs Template:Infobox political party/seats Decrease 7 3rd Republican

Wisconsin federal offices

U.S. Senate U.S. House of Representatives
Year Nominee # votes % votes Place Notes Election Leader Votes Seats Position Control
1934 Robert M. La Follette Jr. 440,513 Template:Composition bar Re-elected 1934 George J. Schneider 334,345 37.76% Template:Infobox political party/seats Increase 7 1st Progressive
1936 No seat up 1936 George J. Schneider 479,263 42.69% Template:Infobox political party/seats Steady 1st Progressive
1938 Herman Ekern 249,209 Template:Composition bar 2nd of 6 1938 George J. Schneider 330,823 36.26% Template:Infobox political party/seats Decrease 5 2nd Republican
1940 Robert M. La Follette Jr. 605,609 Template:Composition bar Re-elected 1940 N/A 469,063 36.96% Template:Infobox political party/seats Increase 1 2nd Republican
1942 No seat up 1942 N/A 185,114 24.72% Template:Infobox political party/seats Decrease 1 3rd Republican
1944 Harry Sauthoff 73,089 Template:Composition bar 3rd of 5 1944 N/A 104,377 9.01% Template:Infobox political party/seats Decrease 1 3rd Republican

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Served as a Republican (1931–1933)
  2. ↑ Served as a Republican (1931–1933)
  3. ↑ Served as a Republican (1931–1933) in Template:Ushr
  4. ↑ Elected as a Republican
  5. ↑ Served as a Republican (1929–1931) in Template:Ushr, Template:Ushr (1946–1953)
  6. ↑ Served as a Republican (1923–1933) in Template:Ushr
  7. ↑ Served as a Republican (1931–1933) in Template:Ushr, Template:Ushr (1949–1961)
  8. ↑ Served as a Republican (1940–1944)
  9. ↑ served as a Republican (1933–1937)
  10. ↑ served as a Republican in the State Assembly (1933–1935)
  11. ↑ served as a Socialist in the State Assembly (1931–1933)

References

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  1. ↑ Paul W. Glad, The History of Wisconsin, Volume V: War, a New Era, and Depression, 1914-1940. Vol. 5 (Wisconsin Historical Society, 1990) pp.398-565.
  2. ↑ Donald R. McCoy, Angry voices; left-of-center politics in the New Deal era (1971) pp.47–53.
  3. ↑ Jonathan Kasparek, Fighting son: a biography of Philip F. La Follette (Wisconsin State Historical Society, 2006) chapter 5.
  4. ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
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  7. ↑ a b William E. Leuchtenburg. Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal, 1932-1940. 1963, p. 190.
  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ Kaveny, Edward T. "$10,000,000 Tax: Assembly Passes Compromise Bill by 73 to 15 Vote" Milwaukee Sentinel January 6, 1932; p. 1, cols. 7-8
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Further reading

  • Backstrom, Charles Herbert. "The Progressive Party of Wisconsin, 1934-1946" (PhD. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin, Madison; ProQuest Dissertations & Theses,  1956. 0018371).
  • Beck, Elmer A. The Sewer Socialists: A History of the Socialist Party of Wisconsin, 1897–1940. Fennimore, WI: Westburg Associates, 1982.
  • Brye, David L. "Wisconsin Scandinavians and Progressivism, 1900-1950." Norwegian-American Studies 27 (1977): 163–193. online
  • Glad, Paul W. The History of Wisconsin, Volume V: War, A New Era, and Depression, 1914–1940. (State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1990). pp. 398–565.
  • Gosnell, Harold F., and Morris H. Cohen. "Progressive Politics: Wisconsin an Example." American Political Science Review 34#5, (1940), pp. 920–35. online
  • Johnson, Roger T. Robert M. LaFollette, Jr. and the Decline of the Progressive Party in Wisconsin (The State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1964).
  • Kasparek, Jonathan. Fighting Son: A Biography of Philip F. La Follette. pp. 125–249.
  • McCoy, Donald R. "The Formation of the Wisconsin Progressive Party in 1934." The Historian 14.1 (1951): 70–90. online
  • Miller, John Edward. "Governor Philip F Lafollette, the Wisconsin Progressives, and the New Deal, 1930–1939," (PhD dissertation, University of Wisconsin - Madison; ProQuest Dissertations & Theses,  1973. 7321167).
  • Rosenof, Theodore. "The Political Education of an American Radical: Thomas R. Amlie in the 1930's." Wisconsin Magazine of History (1974) 56#1: 19–30 online
  • Schmidt, Lester Frederick. "The Farmer-Labor Progressive Federation: The Study of a 'United Front' Movement Among Wisconsin Liberals, 1934-1941" (PhD Dissertation, University of Wisconsin—Madison;  ProQuest Dissertations & Theses,  1955. 0201215.)
  • "Progressive Party, Wisconsin." Encyclopedia of American History. Answers Corporation, 2006. Answers.com 26 February 2009. http://www.answers.com/topic/progressive-party-wisconsin

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