Insurgent Democracy : The Nonpartisan League in North American Politics

In 1915, western farmers mounted one of the most significant challenges to party politics America has seen: the Nonpartisan League, which sought to empower citizens and restrain corporate influence. Before its collapse in the 1920s, the League counted over 250,000 paying members, spread to thirteen states and two Canadian provinces, controlled North Dakota’s state government, and birthed new farmer-labor alliances. Yet today it is all but forgotten, neglected even by scholars. Michael J. Lansing aims to change that. __Insurgent Democracy__ offers a new look at the Nonpartisan League and a new way to understand its rise and fall in the United States and Canada. Lansing argues that, rather than a spasm of populist rage that inevitably burned itself out, the story of the League is in fact an instructive example of how popular movements can create lasting change. Depicting the League as a transnational response to economic inequity, Lansing not only resurrects its story of citizen activism, but also allows us to see its potential to inform contemporary movements. The Farmer-led Insurgency Known As The Nonpartisan League Thrived Between 1915 And 1924, Going So Far As To Take Control Of The North Dakota State Legislature. Challenging Entrenched Political And Corporate Interests In America And Canada Alike, The League And Its Grassroots Populism Had Particular Influence In The West. League Leaders Developed Local Communal Financial And Industrial Institutions, While Resisting National And International Speculators And Investors. Michael Lansing Shows That The League Was Not A Spasm Of Populist Rage That Burned Itself Out, Nor Is It A Historical Footnote. Rather, It Is An Instructive And Even Cautionary Exemplar Of How Populist Movements Take Shape Under Particular Social Conditions And Across Specific Geographies, How They Increase Their Influence, And How They Die Out. These Are Vital Topics Today, Given The Prominence Of Populist And Pseudo-populist Movements. Lansing Shows That The League Was Responding Less To Government Policies Than To Economic Threats And Transformations, Much As Today's Movements Do. In 1915, western farmers mounted one of the most significant challenges to party politics America has seen: the Nonpartisan League, which sought to empower citizens and restrain corporate influence. Before its collapse in the 1920s, the League counted over 250,000 paying members, spread to 13 states and two Canadian provinces, controlled North Dakota's state government, and birthed new farmer-labour alliances. Yet today it is all but forgotten, neglected even by scholars. Michael J. Lansing aims to change that. 'Insurgent Democracy' offers a new look at the Nonpartisan League and a new way to understand its rise and fall in the United States and Canada. Lansing argues that, rather than a spasm of populist rage that inevitably burned itself out, the story of the League is in fact an instructive example of how popular movements can create lasting change