1912 Convention of the Socialist Party of America

The 1912 Convention of the Socialist Party of America was held in Tomlinson Hall in Indianapolis from May 12 to May 18, 1912.

1912 Socialist National Convention
1912 presidential election
Nominees
Debs and Seidel
Convention
Date(s)May 12–18, 1912
CityIndianapolis, Indiana
VenueTomlinson Hall
Candidates
Presidential nomineeEugene Debs of Indianapolis
Vice-presidential nomineeEmil Seidel of Wisconsin
‹ 1908 · 1916 ›
Tomlinson Hall
Debs delivering a speech during the campaign
Debs and Seidel

The Convention

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The convention was held at the Tomlinson Hall in Indianapolis from May 12 to May 18, 1912.

The convention was called to order by party national secretary John M. Work and roll was called by delegate Gustave Strebel.[1] Party co-founder Morris Hillquit of New York served as chairman.

The Party leadership constructed an agenda to address pressing issues relevant to the Party's political orientation such as nominating presidential candidates to run. The leadership also sought input on topics of using direct action instead of only participating in electoral politics. The topic of direct action surfaced as the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) led a recent strike known as the Lawrence Strike.[2]

Presidential candidates

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Balloting for the party's nominee for the presidential ticket took place on May 17, 1912. The widely understood candidate was the party's previous nominee of 2 times, Eugene Debs. Debs was not present at the time of ballot casting as was tradition at the time. In his absence, questions emerged regarding his physical wellness and whether or not he would even accept the nomination. Delegates were assured that Debs was in fine health and that he would accept the nomination.

The other candidates for the nomination, Seidel and Slayton, each received around one sixth of total ballots cast. As Debs assumed a majority of ballots cast, both men released their delegates to make the nomination unanimous. Following his nomination, a dispatch was sent to notify Debs of his nomination. Debs sent a telegram the next day notifying the convention of his acceptance.

Presidential balloting

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Presidential Balloting
Candidate 1st Unanimous
Debs 165 287
Seidel 56
Russell 54
Blank 12

Vice presidential candidates

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Declined

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Russell was nominated, though withdrew his name from consideration due to reasons that he preferred not to state. Both Hogan and Slayton had not planned on campaigning for the nomination thus released their delegates to make Seidel's nomination unanimous. At this point, Seidel and Debs had yet to meet. Debs and Seidel would go on to achieve the most successful performance of a socialist ticket on the national stage in United States history.

Presidential Balloting
Candidate 1st Unanimous
Seidel 159 287
Hogan 73
Slayton 24
Blank 31

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Delegates to the 1912 Convention of the Socialist Party of America". marxists.wikis.cc. Marxists Internet Archive. September 1, 2024. Retrieved September 1, 2024.
  2. ^ "Richmond Palladium (Daily) 11 May 1912 — Hoosier State Chronicles: Indiana's Digital Historic Newspaper Program". newspapers.library.in.gov. Retrieved September 21, 2024.

Bibliography

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  • National Convention of the Socialist Party, held at Indianapolis, Ind., May 12 to 18, 1912;
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