Benjamin Harrison

Although the United States is a popular democracy, the American electorate has shown a predisposition for political dynasties: the Adamses, the Kennedys, and the Bushes. Benjamin Harrison, an Indianapolis lawyer, came from a political family and was the grandson of the ninth president, William Henry Harrison. Benjamin’s political career, like his grandfather’s, was aided by his military service. During the Civil War, he raised the Seventieth Indiana Regiment, which would be instrumental in the capture of Atlanta. Ending his military career in 1865 as a brigadier general, Harrison became involved in Indiana politics and was elected to the Senate in 1881. A compromise nominee of the Republican Party for the presidency in 1888, he defeated incumbent Democrat Grover Cleveland in the general election. Harrison’s presidency was dominated by economic issues, especially high taxes—or tariffs—but the growth of government spending on his watch caused a backlash, and Cleveland came back to defeat him in the 1892 election.