Progressive Party

Progressive Party, name of three 20th century U.S. political organizations. Each was largely characterized by programs of social and economic reform. The Progressive Party of 1912 (better known as the Bull Moose Party) chose ex-President Theodore Roosevelt as its nominee. It left the Republican Party after the nomination of William Taft, but they were reunited during the campaign of 1916.

The Progressive Party of 1924 was formed by farm and labor leaders dissatisfied with the conservatism of the Republican administration. Its position, like that of the Bull Moose Party, was that there should be governmental control of trusts, and it upheld the right of government intervention in private wealth. Its presidential nominee was Robert La Follette, who received almost five million votes. The Progressive Party of 1948 nominated former Democratic vice president Henry A. Wallace for the presidency. The party sought better relations with the USSR and an end to the Cold War. It had support from many left-wing groups and was labeled by some a Communist-front organization. It polled little more than one million votes out of 48 million.