Prohibition Party

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National Prohibition Convention, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1892.

The Prohibition Party is a political party in the United States. As the name implies, the party advocates the prohibition of the use of beverages containing alcohol and was an integral part of the temperance movement. While never one of the nation's leading parties, it was an important force in US politics in the late 19th century and the early years of the 20th century. In 1887, Prohibition Party member Susanna M. Salter of Argonia, Kansas, became the first female mayor in the United States.

The party was founded in 1867. Its first National Committee Chairman was John Russell of Michigan, who served from 1867-1872. The party succeeded in getting many communities and a number of states to outlaw the production and sale of intoxicating beverages. At the same time, the party's ideology broadened to include aspects of progressivism. The party contributed to the third-party discussions of the 1910s and sent Charles H. Randall to the 64th, 65th and 66th Congresses as the representative of California's 9th congressional district. Prohibitionist Sidney J. Catts was elected Governor of Florida in 1916, serving 1917-1921.

The party's greatest success was in 1919, with the passage of the 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which outlawed the production, sale, transportation, import, and export of alcohol. The era of illegal alcohol in the USA is generally known as "Prohibition". The enactment of national prohibition took away the party's main issue, and the party declined in importance. The "Prohibition" era saw the rise of "Speakeasies", bootleggers, and a great growth of organized crime. By the start of the Great Depression, the cause of prohibition was considered discredited by much of the public. National prohibition was repealed by the 21st Amendment in 1933. While hardline prohibitionists objected, the US Prohibition Party declined into insignificance.

From 1977 to 1980, the party was called the National Statesman Party. The party still exists today, though its following is small, and since 2003, there has been a schism between supporters and opponents of longtime former party chairman Earl Dodge. It has nominated a candidate for president in every election since 1872, and is thus the longest-lived American political party after the Democrats and Republicans.