Prohibition Party - Encyclopedia

The Prohibition Party is a political party in the United States. As the name implies, the party advocates the prohibition of the use of beverages containing alcohol and was an integral part of the temperance movement. While never one of the nation's leading parties, it was an important force in US politics in the late 19th century and the early years of the 20th century. In 1887, Prohibition Party member Susanna M. Salter of Argonia, Ka ...

Prohibition Party, Prohibition Party - Presidential candidates, Robert P. Shuler, List of political parties in the United States, Alcohol during and after prohibition, Temperance organizations

The Prohibition Party is a political party in the United States. As the name implies, the party advocates the prohibition of the use of beverages containing alcohol and was an integral part of the temperance movement. While never one of the nation's leading parties, it was an important force in US politics in the late 19th century and the early years of the 20th century. In 1887, Prohibition Party member Susanna M. Salter of Argonia, Kansas, became the first woman mayor in the United States.

The party was founded in 1867. Its first National Committee Chairman was John Russell of Michigan, who served from 1867-1872. The party succeeded in getting many communities and a number of states to outlaw the production and sale of intoxicating beverages. The party's greatest success was in 1919, with the passage of the 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which outlawed the production, sale, transportation, import, and export of alcohol. The era of illegal alcohol in the USA is generally known as "Prohibition". The enactment of national prohibition took away the party's main issue, and the party declined in importance. The "Prohibition" era saw the rise of "Speakeasies", bootleggers, and a great growth of organized crime. By the start of the Great Depression, the cause of prohibition was considered discredited by much of the public. National prohibition was repealed by the 21st Amendment in 1933. While hardline prohibitionists objected, the US Prohibition Party declined into insignificance.

From 1977 to 1980, the party was called the National Statesman Party. The party still exists today, though its following is small, and since 2003, there has been a schism between supporters and opponents of longtime party chairman Earl Dodge. It has nominated a candidate for president in every election since 1872, and is thus the longest-lived American political party after the Democrats and Republicans.

1872 - James Black
1876 - Green Clay Smith
1880 - Neal Dow
1884 - John Saint John
1888 - Clinton B. Fisk
1892 - John Bidwell
1896 - Joshua Levering
1900 - John G. Woolley
1904 - Silas C. Swallow
1908 - Eugene W. Chafin
1912 - Eugene W. Chafin
1916 - Frank Hanly
1920 - Aaron Watkins
1924 - Herman P. Faris
1928 - William F. Varney
1932 - William D. Upshaw
1936 - D. Leigh Colvin
1940 - Roger Babson
1944 - Claude A. Watson
1948 - Claude A. Watson
1952 - Stuart Hamblen
1956 - Enoch A. Holtwick
1960 - Rutherford Decker
1964 - E. Harold Munn
1968 - E. Harold Munn
1972 - E. Harold Munn
1976 - Benjamin C. Bubar
1980 - Benjamin C. Bubar
1984 - Earl Dodge
1988 - Earl Dodge
1992 - Earl Dodge
1996 - Earl Dodge
2000 - Earl Dodge
2004 - Earl Dodge, Gene Amondson

Robert P. Shuler, List of political parties in the United States, Alcohol during and after prohibition, Temperance organizations