1872 United States presidential election

1872 United States presidential election
Brady-Handy Photograph Collection, Library of Congress · Public domain · source
Election name	1872 United States presidential election
Country	United States
Type	presidential
Previous election	1868 United States presidential election
Previous year	1868
Next election	1876 United States presidential election
Next year	1876
Votes for election	352 members of the Electoral College
Needed votes	177 electoral
Turnout	71.3% ▲ 6.8 pp
Election date	November 5, 1872
Nominee1	Ulysses S. Grant
Party1	Republican Party (United States)
Home state1	Illinois
Running mate1	Henry Wilson
Electoral vote1	286
States carried1	37
Popular vote1	3,598,235
Percentage1	55.6%
Nominee2	Horace Greeley
Party2	Liberal Republican Party (United States)
Alliance2	Democratic Party
Home state2	New York
Running mate2	Benjamin Gratz Brown
Popular vote2	2,834,761
Percentage2	43.8%
Title	President
Before election	Ulysses S. Grant
Before party	Republican Party (United States)
After election	Ulysses S. Grant
After party	Republican Party (United States)

1872 United States presidential election was the 22nd quadrennial presidential contest, held on Tuesday, November 5, 1872. Incumbent President Ulysses S. Grant, leader of the Republican Party, easily won a second term against a fractured opposition. His victory came over Horace Greeley, the eccentric editor of the New-York Tribune who was nominated by both the breakaway Liberal Republican Party and the Democratic Party. The election was marked by significant post-Civil War political realignments, debates over Reconstruction policies, and the tragic death of the challenger before the Electoral College cast its votes.

Background

The political landscape was dominated by the ongoing Reconstruction of the South following the American Civil War. President Grant’s first term was marred by scandals like the Crédit Mobilier affair and growing fatigue with Radical Republican policies, which fueled dissent within his own party. This discontent coalesced into the Liberal Republican Party, formed in Cincinnati in 1872 by reformers advocating civil service reform, lower tariffs, and an end to federal military intervention in the former Confederate states. Key figures like Charles Sumner and Carl Schurz broke with Grant, arguing that Reconstruction had achieved its goals and that corruption within the Grant administration demanded a new direction.

Nominations

The 1872 Republican National Convention in Philadelphia unanimously renominated President Grant and selected Senator Henry Wilson of Massachusetts as his new running mate, replacing the controversial Schuyler Colfax. Meanwhile, the 1872 Liberal Republican Convention in Cincinnati witnessed a chaotic and protracted battle, ultimately nominating the unlikely Horace Greeley, a longtime Republican known for his erratic political views and fierce editorial opposition to the Democrats. In an unprecedented move, the desperate Democratic Party, meeting at their 1872 Democratic National Convention in Baltimore, subsequently endorsed the Greeley ticket and nominated his running mate, Missouri Governor Benjamin Gratz Brown, hoping to unite all anti-Grant forces. Minor parties, including the Prohibition Party and an Equal Rights Party ticket featuring Victoria Woodhull, also entered the fray.

General election

The campaign was intensely personal and focused on the character of the candidates. Grant’s supporters, or “Grantists,” campaigned on the president’s heroic war record as General of the Army and the successes of Reconstruction, including the ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment. They attacked Greeley’s inconsistent record, particularly his past support for utopian communities and harsh criticism of the Democrats. Greeley and the Liberal Republicans relentlessly hammered on the corruption scandals plaguing the Grant administration and called for a more conciliatory policy toward the South. The campaign was fought largely through newspapers, with Greeley’s own New-York Tribune being a central platform, while Grant followed the tradition of incumbents and did not actively campaign.

Results

Grant won a decisive victory, capturing 37 of the 37 states that participated and 286 electoral votes to Greeley’s none. Grant secured 55.6% of the popular vote to Greeley’s 43.8%. The president swept the North and West and made significant inroads in the Reconstructed South, with states like Arkansas and Tennessee voting Republican. However, the election was overshadowed by the death of Horace Greeley on November 29, 1872, weeks after the popular vote but before the Electoral College met. This created a constitutional crisis, as 66 of the electoral votes pledged to Greeley were scattered among other candidates, including Benjamin Gratz Brown, Charles J. Jenkins, and David Davis. Congress ultimately ruled these votes invalid. Victoria Woodhull received no electoral votes.

Aftermath

Grant’s second inauguration in March 1873 was clouded by the gathering storm of the Panic of 1873, which triggered a severe economic depression. The Liberal Republican movement dissolved after its crushing defeat, with many of its members returning to the Republican Party (like, like Political defector(https://en (United States|reformers to the United States) and Democratic Party (United States) returning to the United States|United States|United States) |United States) returning to the Republican Party (United States|United States| returning to the United States|returning to the United States|returning to the United States|returning to the United States|returning to the United States|return to the United States|return to the United States|returning the United States|returning the return to return to return to the returning the United States|return to the United States|return to the United States|returning the return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return to return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return| return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return return.