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Rutherford Hayes and Samuel Tilden: The 1876 American Election Won by a Single Vote

© John S. Cooper

The American election of 1876 was the closest in their history, with Rutherford Birchard Hayes winning over Samuel J. Tilden by a single vote. The vote created a constitutional crisis and threatened to start another civil war.

The 1876 Presidential Campaign

As the 1876 campaign began, the Democrats were favored to win for the first time since the Civil War. President Grant's second term, if anything, was even more corrupt than his first, and Republicans feared a backlash against them by a public outraged by the corruption.

Both parties nominated state governors known for honesty and reform. The Democrats nominated New York Governor Samuel J. Tilden, who had gained national attention by opposing the powerful Tammany Hall organization, and prosecuting the powerful Boss Tweed. The Republicans, after a long convention, nominated Governor Rutherford B. Hayes of Ohio, a war hero also well known as a reformer.
 
Last Minute Campaigning and Bribery

When the election was over, it looked as though the Democrats had indeed won by an electoral vote of 204-165, but late on the election night, a democratic state chairman wired the New York Times asking nervously for the latest totals from three states (Florida, Louisiana and South Carolina). John Reid, a Republican editor, wired other leaders to say that if "...[the Democrats] want to know the electoral vote, that means they are not certain they have won. If they are still in doubt, then we can go on from here and win the election."

Immediately, party officials, "visiting statesman" and "observers," went south to make sure their party won the states in doubt. Both parties offered bribes and spread money around liberally. The result was that Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina turned in 2 sets of electoral votes, one from the official election supervisory agency and another from the carpetbag Republican governments.

Counting the Electoral Votes

When it came time for the Congress to count the electoral votes, they were faced with 2 sets of electoral votes from 4 states. Twenty electoral votes were in dispute, just enough to change the outcome of the election. Tilden had 184 certain votes, and Hayes had 165. Hayes had to win all 20 of the disputed votes to win the election.

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