[1] The Ocala convention was part of a trend in the Farmers' movement of moving from its fraternal and mutual benefit roots towards an increasingly political and radical position.
One successful campaign started in 1874 against those who were stealing produce and livestock eventually resulted in the Florida legislature prohibiting the sale of cotton from sunset to sunrise.
In the platform it supported improvements to education, creation of a railroad commission, a free ballot, and local option laws.
[5][better source needed] The "Demands" adopted by the Ocala convention called for the abolition of national banks; the establishment of sub-treasuries or depositories in every state, which would make low interest direct loans to farmers and property owners; the increase of money in circulation to not less than $50 per capita; the abolishment of futures of all agricultural and mechanical productions; the introduction of free silver; the prohibition of alien ownership of land, the reclamation of all lands held by railroads and other corporations in excess of what was actually used and needed by them, held for actual settlers only; legislation to ensure that one industry would not be built up at the expense of another; removal of the tariff tax on necessities of life; a graduated income tax; the limitation of all national and state revenues to the necessary expenses of the government economically and honestly administered; strict regulation or ownership of the means of public communication and transportation; and an amendment of the United States Constitution providing for the direct election of United States senators.
Originally the convention was going to be held in Jacksonville before the directors of the Florida Farmers' Alliance had learned that Ocala would have more financial incentive.
This exposition was divided into four sections depicting cultural and agricultural products from the western, central and southern parts of Florida along with a department catering to women as well.
2: We demand that the government shall establish sub-treasuries or depositories in the several states, which shall loan money direct to the people at a low rate of interest, not to exceed two per cent per annum, on non-perishable farm products, and also upon real estate, with proper limitations upon the quantity of land and amount of money.
4: We demand that Congress shall pass such laws as will effectually prevent the dealing in futures of all agricultural and mechanical productions; providing a stringent system of procedure in trials that will secure the prompt conviction, and imposing such penalties as shall secure the most perfect compliance with the law.
7: Believing in the doctrine of equal rights to all and special privileges to none, we demand— a: That our national legislation shall be so framed in the future as not to build up one industry at the expense of another.
d: We believe that the money of the country should be kept as much as possible in the hands of the people, and hence we demand that all national and state revenues shall be limited to the necessary expenses of the government economically and honestly administered.
e: We demand the most rigid, honest and just state and national government control and supervision of the means of public communication and transportation, and if this control and supervision does not remove the abuse now existing, we demand the government ownership of such means of communication and transportation.