| 1896 presidential election | |
  Nominees McKinley and Hobart | |
| Convention | |
|---|---|
| Date(s) | June 16–18, 1896 |
| City | St. Louis,Missouri, U.S. |
| Chair | John M. Thurston |
| Candidates | |
| Presidential nominee | William McKinley ofOhio |
| Vice-presidential nominee | Garret A. Hobart ofNew Jersey |
| Voting | |
| Total delegates | 924 |
| Votes needed for nomination | 463 |
| Results (president) | McKinley (OH): 661.5 (71.59%) Reed (ME): 84.5 (9.15%) Quay (PA): 61.5 (6.66%) Morton (NY): 58 (6.28%) Allison (IA): 35.5 (3.84%) Not Voting: 22 (2.38%) Cameron (PA): 1 (0.11%) |
| Ballots | 1 |
| ‹ 1892 · 1900 › | |
The1896 Republican National Convention was held in a temporary structure south of the St. Louis City Hall inSt. Louis,Missouri, from June 16 to June 18, 1896.
FormerGovernorWilliam McKinley ofOhio was nominated forpresident on the first ballot with 661½ votes to 84½ for House SpeakerThomas Brackett Reed ofMaine, 61½ votes forSenatorMatthew S. Quay ofPennsylvania, 58 votes forGovernorLevi P. Morton ofNew York who wasvice president (1889–1893) under PresidentBenjamin Harrison.New Jersey bankerGarret A. Hobart was nominated for vice president overHenry Clay Evans ofTennessee.Joseph B. Foraker of Ohio placed McKinley's name in nomination.
The convention was originally slated for theSt. Louis Exposition and Music Hall. However it was determined that repairs and upgrading the Hall could not be done in time and so a temporary wood convention hall was built in 60 days at a cost of $60,000 on the lawn south of City Hall which was under construction.[1] At the conclusion of the convention, both the temporary building as well as the original Exposition Hall were torn down and a new Coliseum was built.
The 1896 Convention was held in St. Louis less than a month after theinfamous 1896 tornado that devastated a large swath of the city and killed at least 255 people. There was speculation that it might be unfeasible to hold the convention in the city, but, after a concerted cleanup effort was undertaken, the convention went ahead as planned.
The Republicanplatform of 1896 favored thegold standard but left the door open to free coinage of silver, it also supported acquisition ofHawaii and parts of theDanish West Indies, favored acanal acrossCentral America, naval expansion, sympathized with revolutionaries inCuba andArmenia, wanted exclusion of all illiterate immigrants, applauded gains inwomen's rights and pledged "equal pay for equal work". It also supported creation of a "National Board of Arbitration".
| Presidential Ballot | |
|---|---|
| Candidate | 1st |
| McKinley | 661.5 |
| Reed | 84.5 |
| Quay | 61.5 |
| Morton | 58 |
| Allison | 35.5 |
| Cameron | 1 |
| Not Represented | 14 |
| Not Voting | 8 |
Presidential Balloting / 3rd Day of Convention (June 18, 1896)
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For a running mate, McKinley had preferred Speaker Thomas B. Reed, with whom he had worked for many years in the House, but Reedwould accept only the top spot on the ticket.
Coming into the convention, former Vice PresidentLevi P. Morton had strong support to re-take his former office from delegates who favored thegold standard. However, McKinley's manager,Mark Hanna opposed Morton's addition to the ticket, instead favoringGarret A. Hobart or Minnesota SenatorCushman Kellogg Davis.[2] Though McKinley's camp did not strongly oppose the party's gold standard platform, Hanna feared that the nomination of Morton would causesilver Republicans such as Colorado SenatorHenry M. Teller to bolt the party. He also feared that the nomination of Morton would be considered a concession to Thomas Platt and the party bosses.[3] Hanna was ultimately successful at keeping Morton off the ticket, but many silver Republicans nonetheless supported the Democratic ticket ofWilliam Jennings Bryan andArthur Sewall.
| Vice Presidential Ballot | |
|---|---|
| Candidate | 1st |
| Hobart | 533.5 |
| Evans | 277.5 |
| Bulkeley | 39 |
| Walker | 24 |
| Lippitt | 8 |
| Depew | 3 |
| Reed | 3 |
| Brown | 2 |
| Grant | 2 |
| Thurston | 2 |
| Morton | 1 |
| Not Voting | 15 |
| Not Represented | 14 |
Vice Presidential Balloting / 3rd Day of Convention (June 18, 1896)
| Preceded by 1892 Minneapolis, Minnesota | Republican National Conventions | Succeeded by 1900 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
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