Presidency of William McKinley
| The McKinley Cabinet | ||
|---|---|---|
| Office | Name | Term |
| President | William McKinley | 1897–1901 |
| Vice President | Garret A. Hobart | 1897–1899 |
| none | 1899–1901 | |
| Theodore Roosevelt | 1901 | |
| Secretary of State | John Sherman | 1897–1898 |
| William R. Day | 1898 | |
| John M. Hay | 1898–1901 | |
| Secretary of Treasury | Lyman J. Gage | 1897–1901 |
| Secretary of War | Russell A. Alger | 1897–1899 |
| Elihu Root | 1899–1901 | |
| Attorney General | Joseph McKenna | 1897–1898 |
| John W. Griggs | 1898–1901 | |
| Philander C. Knox | 1901 | |
| Postmaster General | James A. Gary | 1897–1898 |
| Charles Emory Smith | 1898–1901 | |
| Secretary of the Navy | John D. Long | 1897–1901 |
| Secretary of the Interior | Cornelius N. Bliss | 1897–1899 |
| Ethan A. Hitchcock | 1899–1901 | |
| Secretary of Agriculture | James Wilson | 1897–1901 |
The presidency of William McKinley began on March 4, 1897 at noon Eastern Standard Time, when William McKinley was inaugurated as President of the United States, and ended on September 14, 1901, upon his assassination and death, 194 days into his second term. McKinley, a Republican, was succeeded by Vice President Theodore Roosevelt.
The 25th United States president, he took office following the 1896 presidential election, in which he defeated Democrat William Jennings Bryan, after a front-porch campaign in which he advocated "sound money", promised that high tariffs would restore prosperity, and denounced Bryan's radicalism and class warfare. He defeated Bryan again in the 1900 presidential election, in a campaign focused on imperialism, protectionism, and free silver. McKinley's presidency marked the beginning of an era in American political history from the mid–1890s to 1932 that was generally dominated by the Republican Party.
McKinley led the nation to victory in the Spanish–American War, took ownership of Hawaii, the Philippines and Puerto Rico, restored prosperity, promoted pluralism among all groups, raised protective tariffs to promote American industry, and maintained the nation on the gold standard in a rejection of inflationary proposals. Rapid economic growth marked his presidency. He promoted the 1897 Dingley Tariff to protect manufacturers and factory workers from foreign competition, and in 1900, he secured the passage of the Gold Standard Act. McKinley hoped to persuade Spain to grant independence to rebellious Cuba without conflict, but when negotiation failed, he led the nation in the Spanish–American War of 1898; the U.S. victory was quick and decisive. As part of the peace settlement, Spain turned over to the United States its main overseas colonies of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines; Cuba was promised independence, but for a time remained under the control of the U.S. Army. The United States annexed the independent Republic of Hawaii in 1898 and it became a U.S. territory. As an innovator of American interventionism and pro-business sentiment, McKinley's presidency is generally ranked above average. Historian Lewis L. Gould argues that McKinley was effective in domestic and foreign affairs and was "the first modern president":
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