United States presidential election, 1836

United States presidential election, 1836 was the thirteenth quadrennial presidential contest, held from Thursday, November 3 to Wednesday, December 7, 1836. It pitted the handpicked Democratic successor of the popular Andrew Jackson, Martin Van Buren, against a fractured opposition of regional Whig Party candidates. The election is notable for being the only time a major political party attempted to defeat an opponent by running multiple candidates, a strategy that ultimately failed as Van Buren secured both a popular and electoral majority, though his running mate faced an unusual contingent election in the United States Senate.

Background

The political landscape was dominated by the aftermath of Andrew Jackson's two tumultuous terms and the Bank War against the Second Bank of the United States. Jackson’s forceful policies, including the Specie Circular and his opposition to federal internal improvements, solidified the Democratic Party but also galvanized a diverse coalition of opponents into the nascent Whig Party. This coalition included former National Republicans, states' rights advocates from the South, and supporters of Henry Clay's American System. The Panic of 1837 had not yet struck, but economic unease was growing due to Jackson's financial policies. Furthermore, the issue of slavery began to surface more prominently in national politics, influencing regional alignments.

Nominations

The 1835 Democratic National Convention in Baltimore unanimously nominated Martin Van Buren, Jackson's Vice President, for president. The convention selected Richard Mentor Johnson of Kentucky as his running mate, despite some Northern opposition to Johnson due to his open relationship with an enslaved woman. The Whigs, lacking a national organization, did not hold a convention. Instead, they ran multiple regional candidates hoping to throw the election into the United States House of Representatives. In the North, the Whigs backed William Henry Harrison of Ohio, a hero of the Battle of Tippecanoe. In the South, they supported Hugh Lawson White of Tennessee, a former Jackson ally. In Massachusetts, the party put forward Daniel Webster, while in South Carolina, the legislature nominated Willie Person Mangum as a states' rights protest candidate.

General election

The campaign was largely a referendum on Andrew Jackson and his chosen heir, Martin Van Buren. Whigs attacked Van Buren as an untrustworthy political manipulator, labeling him "Martin Van Ruin" and "The Little Magician," while celebrating their own candidates as champions of economic stability and constitutional liberty. The strategy was to deny Van Buren an electoral majority by having William Henry Harrison win in the Northwest and Mid-Atlantic states, Hugh Lawson White carry the South, and Daniel Webster hold New England. Campaign tactics included rallies, partisan newspapers like the Washington Globe and the National Intelligencer, and the widespread use of political symbols and songs. Van Buren campaigned on a platform of continuing Jackson's policies, advocating for hard money and opposing federal involvement in internal improvements.

Results

Martin Van Buren won the election with 764,176 popular votes (50.8%) and 170 electoral votes from 15 states, including crucial victories in New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. The Whig strategy failed as Van Buren secured a clear electoral majority. William Henry Harrison finished second with 73 electoral votes from states like Ohio, Indiana, and New Jersey. Hugh Lawson White won 26 electoral votes from Tennessee and Georgia. Daniel Webster secured only the 14 electoral votes of Massachusetts, and Willie Person Mangum won the 11 votes of South Carolina, which were still chosen by the state legislature. However, no vice-presidential candidate received a majority of electoral votes, as 23 faithless electors from Virginia refused to vote for Richard Mentor Johnson, sending the selection to the United States Senate for a contingent election.

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