The term was originally used to describe political movements in Europe at the end of nineteenth century that appealed to the rural poor. In the U.S. the Populist Party was formed in 1890 as a protest movement by farmers and laborers; it functioned until 1908. The term is now used to describe mass political movements, or a party platform that purports to represent a populist sentiment, usually understood as the collective voice of the ordinary person on social and economic issues.