It was formed "mainly as a result of farmer reaction to Labor's land tax policy and the extension to rural employees of the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act".
The success of the joint campaign led to an attempted merger with the CLP, which pre-emptively changed its name to the People's Liberal Party (PLP).
[5] However, the party's influence was already declining at this time due to the decision of the Victorian Farmers' Union to enter electoral politics.
[6] Future federal government ministers Arthur Rodgers and William Gibson were members of the People's Party.
[8] James Bennett, who was briefly the federal MP for Gippsland, was the inaugural secretary of the party and worked as a paid organiser.