Voter motivation among Minnesota Scandinavians, 1888-1894 : the durability of party image

Economic dislocation in Norway and Sweden and prosperity in America caused a vast flood of emigrants to leave Scandinavia during the 1880's and settle in the agricultural Midwest, especially Minnesota, The hard times that came upon the United States in the late 1880’s dashed the dreams of Minnesota Scandinavians and caused many to forsake their traditional Republicanism and vote for the Farmers1 Alliance and People's Party in protest against the lack of empathy for the plight of the farmer and laborer perceived within the GOP. These Norwegians and Swedes withdrew from any connection with the Democracy because they saw it as an organization which condoned immorality, alcoholism, popery, slavery, and sloth. The economic situation of the Scandinavian-American farmer was the deciding factor in his voting behavior. In western Minnesota, poverty and loss of property reached epidemic proportions because wheat farmers in that area had concentrated solely on grain production, thus allowing for no other source of income. Mortgages and debts accrued during good times could not be paid in the lean years. Farmers in western counties heartily embraced the agrarian parties. Swedes and Norwegians in prosperous counties, however, mainly east central and southeastern Minnesota, paid little heed to the cries of discontentment voiced by Alliancemen and Populists. Diversification in these counties and better prices for their commodities — milk and vegetables — kept farmers there afloat during the 1890’s. Neither third party found much support from Scandinavians in prosperous counties. While economic circumstances determined the vote of Minnesota Scandinavians, ethnocultural differences between Swedes and Norwegians also played a factor in the decision. Norwegian emigrants were accustomed to political activity whereas Swedish farmers tended to accept their lot in life and adapt to a diminished role in the political process. This propensity to change among Norwegians and reluctance to change among Swedes continued after the emigrants left their homelands and influenced their political decisions in Minnesota. Ethnocultural experiences and values preordained the response of Swedes and Norwegians to the agrarian movement, but economic circumstances ripened the situation and proved the determining factor in Scandinavian immigrant voting decisions in Minnesota during this period.