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Uprising against the political Machine

Progressive reforms in the United States were supported by teachers, doctors, lawyers, priests, farmers, and small and medium entrepreneurs, all socially proactive categories who demanded that corruption be removed from the government. They struggled to revive traditional principles of American life which had been taken over by the omnipotent trusts and begun to threaten the interests of the middle classes.

Progressive-oriented people also promoted reforms, especially the implementation of new scientific methods in education, medicine, theology and many other sectors. Yet, we are most interested in their political and economic demands.

The Progressive Movement viewed the political machines running the entire country as their key enemy. They were most powerful in large cities, including New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Boston and so on. These machines had a strict hierarchy with a boss on top, who controlled local business leaders, elected and non- elected officials. They provided high voter turnouts in support of their bosses' political force. In turn, the winning party awarded the supporters with positions, public contracts and other privileges. This scheme was a vicious circle.

The most well-known political machine was Tammany Hall, a New York-based organisation of the Democratic Party which controlled nominations and patronage in Manhattan from 1854 to 1934. Among other steps, Tammany Hall assisted immigrants who were disciplined voters to rise up the ladder in America's politics. Political machines needed only slightly more votes than their competitors to win seats for their bosses, and it was mainly Irish immigrants who benefitted from this. Later immigrants, including Ukrainians, could barely expect any beneficial cooperation with these machines.

First, reform-oriented voters demanded that corrupt politicians be fired. They were supported by muckraking journalists who revealed examples of political corruption in their investigations. Very soon, however, it became clear that replacing certain individuals was insufficient because only by changing the entire system could these bosses be over-ruled. Oregon was the pilot project of these reformers. In 1902, local voters were allowed to pass laws and amendments to the state constitution through referendums, followed in 1908 by the right to recall elected officials. Oregon pioneered direct election of Senators, which was preceded by election by legislators, and primaries, elections within a party that allowed party members to decide their candidate for the presidency.