The Progressive Movement, also known as the Progressive Era, was a period of widespread social activism and political reform across the United States from 1896 to 1917. The movement aimed to address the problems caused by rapid industrialization, urbanization, immigration, and political corruption. The main themes of the movement were defeating corruption, monopoly, waste, and inefficiency. The movement operated chiefly at the local level, but later expanded to the state and national levels. The key objectives of the Progressive Era movement were to eliminate corruption within the government, to make big business more responsible through regulations of various kinds, to clean up corrupt city governments, to improve working conditions in factories, and to better living conditions for those who lived in slum areas. The movement also sought to establish a more transparent and accountable government which would work to improve U.S. society. The Progressives drew support from the middle class, and supporters included many lawyers, teachers, physicians, ministers, and business people. The movement established direct primary elections, direct election of senators, initiative and referendum, and womens suffrage to revitalize democracy and bring a "purer" female vote into the arena. The Progressive Era ended during American involvement in World War I while the waste and efficiency elements continued into the 1920s.