Phase in U.S. electoral politics (1896–1932) - The Fourth Party System was the [[Political parties in the United States | political party system]] in the [[United States]] from about 1896 to 1932 that was dominated by the [[History of the Republican Party (United States) | Republican Party]], except the 1912 split in which [[History of the Democratic Party (United States) | Democrats]] captured the White House and held it for eight years. - American history texts usually call the period the [[Progressive Era]]. The concept was introduced under the name "System of 1896" by [[Elmer Eric Schattschneider | E. E. Schattschneider]] in 1960, and the numbering scheme was added by political scientists in the mid-1960s. - The period featured a transformation from the issues of the [[Third Party System]], which had focused on the [[American Civil War]], [[Reconstruction era | Reconstruction]], race, and monetary issues. The era began in the [[Panic of 1893 | severe depression of 1893]] and the extraordinarily intense [[1896 United States presidential election | election of 1896]]. It included the Progressive Era, [[World War I]], and the start of the [[Great Depression in the United States | Great Depression]]. The Great Depression caused a realignment that produced the [[Fifth Party System]], dominated by the Democratic [[New Deal coalition | New Deal Coalition]] until the 1970s. - The central domestic issues concerned government regulation of railroads and large corporations ("[[Trust (business) | trusts]]"), the money issue (gold versus silver), the protective tariff, the role of labor unions, child labor, the need for a new banking system, corruption in party politics, primary elections, the introduction of the federal income tax, direct election of senators, racial segregation, efficiency in government, women's suffrage, and control of immigration. Foreign policy centered on the 1898 [[Spanish–American War]], [[Imperialism]], the [[Mexican Revolution]], World War I, and the creation of the [[League of Nations]]. Dominant personalities included presidents [[William McKinley]] (R), [[Theodore Roosevelt]] (R), and [[Woodrow Wilson]] (D), three-time presidential candidate [[William Jennings Bryan]] (D), and Wisconsin's progressive Republican [[Robert M. La Follette | Robert M. La Follette Sr]]. ## Sources - [wikipedia_page](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourth_Party_System)