There are two major contemporary political parties, and William Jennings Bryan belongs to one of them.
The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States , along with the Republican Party . William Jennings Bryan ( March 19 , 1860 -- July 26 , 1925 ) was an American orator and politician from Nebraska , and a dominant force in the populist wing of the Democratic Party , standing three times as the Party 's nominee for President of the United States ( 1896 , 1900 , and 1908 ) .