After failed attempts at economic rehabilitation and social and political reforms in the South dubbed Reconstruction, the United States was left in a state similar to how it was it was before with “redeemed” Southern states governed by white Democrats and a majority of African Americans working as sharecroppers, a lesser form of slavery. This degenerate situation was transformed by the boom in technological advancements and economics called the Golden Age. During this era, entrepreneurs were able to establish large business empires through monopolies, government played a more active role in the economy, politics became more important to ordinary citizens with the creation of political machines, corruption spread in every reason government action did. What did not happen before regarding the large monopolies is that there was no government party specifically concerned with helping farmers in the 1880s. Republicans wanted government activism, but their primary goal was to promote economic development, so they encouraged industrialization believing that government should help in the process. Farmers would receive no help from them regarding railroads as the Republicans wanted to encourage big business growth and not limit it. On the other hand, Democrats have opposed high tariffs, arguing that tariffs should be kept at a minimum sufficient only to pay government costs because it is an unfair tax and hinders consumers. This meant that the agricultural South would face global competition, thus needing to reduce prices further. The lack of help received by the peasants gave rise to the Populist Party or People's Party in 1890, a new anti-elitist party dedicated to meeting the needs of poor peasants and highly critical of capitalism. With platforms heavily based on economic issues, the party was held together by declining commodity prices and farmers blaming their problems on railroads and other big business. In 1892, the Populist presidential candidate, James B. Weaver, managed to win one of the twelve million popular votes, twenty-two electoral votes out of four hundred and forty-four, and five of the forty-four states, but the party was still disillusioned with the two-party system, reluctant to adopt their relief proposals. Although the Populist movement did not reach the presidential level, Populist senators were elected, and in 1896 the party supported Democrat William J. Bryan for president with