Question About the 1864 election

[kevikens]

As we all know Lincoln was trying very hard to get the seceded states back into the Union as quickly as possible, hence his 10% Plan of 1863. In the election of 1864 were any of the parts of the Confederacy that were under Union control permitted to participate in the balloting, say New Orleans or counties in Tennessee that had been under Union control for a while? If so are there any records of the results of the voting? thanks.

 

[jackt62]

I don't have the actual answer to your question, but it seems to me that given that the president was elected on the basis of votes in the electoral college, and that the electoral college is state based, it would have been difficult to allow voting in any states that were officially in rebellion, despite portions of those states being under Union control.

 

[John Winn]

As we all know Lincoln was trying very hard to get the seceded states back into the Union as quickly as possible, hence his 10% Plan of 1863. In the election of 1864 were any of the parts of the Confederacy that were under Union control permitted to participate in the balloting, say New Orleans or counties in Tennessee that had been under Union control for a while? If so are there any records of the results of the voting? thanks.

Votes were taken in the occupied portions of Tennessee and Louisiana but Congress did not count their elector votes. None of the other Confederate states participated although several new states did.

 

[kevikens]

Votes were taken in the occupied portions of Tennessee and Louisiana but Congress did not count their elector votes. None of the other Confederate states participated although several new states did.

Do you know what the results were?

 

[John Winn]

Do you know what the results were?

I don't think I've ever seen the actual results from Tennessee and Louisiana; just that their votes weren't counted.

 

[kevikens]

Had matter gone differently in the 1864 election, as they would 12 years later in 1876 when the electoral count was disputed, I wonder if they would have been counted.

 

[jackt62]

Had matter gone differently in the 1864 election, as they would 12 years later in 1876 when the electoral count was disputed, I wonder if they would have been counted.

Actually, the voting wasn't even close. Lincoln won by a landslide in 1864 (55% to 45% for McClellan). Lincoln also won 212 electoral votes to McClellan's 21.

 

[leftyhunter]

As we all know Lincoln was trying very hard to get the seceded states back into the Union as quickly as possible, hence his 10% Plan of 1863. In the election of 1864 were any of the parts of the Confederacy that were under Union control permitted to participate in the balloting, say New Orleans or counties in Tennessee that had been under Union control for a while? If so are there any records of the results of the voting? thanks.

A good source for past presidential elections is 270towin.com. Has others noted it was not a close election. McCellan only won Ky and his home state of Nj. Perhaps McCellan deserves some credit as other presidential candidates have lost by a larger margin.
Leftyhunter

 

[JeffBrooks]

A good source for past presidential elections is 270towin.com. Has others noted it was not a close election. McCellan only won Ky and his home state of Nj. Perhaps McCellan deserves some credit as other presidential candidates have lost by a larger margin.

He also won Delaware. And although it was not a "close" election, neither was it as much of a "Lincoln landslide" as people have expressed. A swing of just half a percent would have given McClellan victory in New York, a 1.5% swing would have given him Connecticut and a less than 2% swing would have given him Pennsylvania. This would have meant an electoral college difference of 147 for Lincoln to 86 for McClellan - still a Lincoln victory (117 votes were needed for election), but not as overwhelmingly as it historically. This could have happened even if military events had turned out as they did historically. Had the Confederates successfully held Atlanta and not been thrashed in the Shenandoah Valley, those states certainly would have gone into the Democratic column and it's quite likely that many others would as well.

 

[leftyhunter]

He also won Delaware. And although it was not a "close" election, neither was it as much of a "Lincoln landslide" as people have expressed. A swing of just half a percent would have given McClellan victory in New York, a 1.5% swing would have given him Connecticut and a less than 2% swing would have given him Pennsylvania. This would have meant an electoral college difference of 147 for Lincoln to 86 for McClellan - still a Lincoln victory (117 votes were needed for election), but not as overwhelmingly as it historically. This could have happened even if military events had turned out as they did historically. Had the Confederates successfully held Atlanta and not been thrashed in the Shenandoah Valley, those states certainly would have gone into the Democratic column and it's quite likely that many others would as well.

Not to mention giving Union soldiers furloughs to vote in their home states. Although more likely then not Lincoln would of easily won anyway.
Leftyhhunter

 

[leftyhunter]

He also won Delaware. And although it was not a "close" election, neither was it as much of a "Lincoln landslide" as people have expressed. A swing of just half a percent would have given McClellan victory in New York, a 1.5% swing would have given him Connecticut and a less than 2% swing would have given him Pennsylvania. This would have meant an electoral college difference of 147 for Lincoln to 86 for McClellan - still a Lincoln victory (117 votes were needed for election), but not as overwhelmingly as it historically. This could have happened even if military events had turned out as they did historically. Had the Confederates successfully held Atlanta and not been thrashed in the Shenandoah Valley, those states certainly would have gone into the Democratic column and it's quite likely that many others would as well.

Your right I missed little Del. We can say that McCllean didn't do that badly overall but since it was quite clear the CSA would loose it would be very difficult to beat Lincoln regardless of the candidate .
Leftyhunter

 

[John Winn]

He also won Delaware. And although it was not a "close" election, neither was it as much of a "Lincoln landslide" as people have expressed. A swing of just half a percent would have given McClellan victory in New York, a 1.5% swing would have given him Connecticut and a less than 2% swing would have given him Pennsylvania. This would have meant an electoral college difference of 147 for Lincoln to 86 for McClellan - still a Lincoln victory (117 votes were needed for election), but not as overwhelmingly as it historically. This could have happened even if military events had turned out as they did historically. Had the Confederates successfully held Atlanta and not been thrashed in the Shenandoah Valley, those states certainly would have gone into the Democratic column and it's quite likely that many others would as well.

I'm with you on Atlanta being the ticket to a landslide. Had the Confederacy managed to turn Atlanta into another Petersburg - even for only a few months - I think sentiment would have been a lot different in the north. Even Lincoln could see that as noted in that famous quote about the election. It seems to me that if wanting some negotiated end to the war wasn't a pretty prevalent idea that McClellan wouldn't have been nominated to begin with.

 

[JeffBrooks]

It seems to me that if wanting some negotiated end to the war wasn't a pretty prevalent idea that McClellan wouldn't have been nominated to begin with.

Well, McClellan issued a letter declaring that he would not abide by the "peace plank" in the Democratic National Platform. However, it's important to note that he did this only after Atlanta had fallen. Before that, he had been willing to hedge his bets. He had flirted with the Copperheads, endorsing one for governor of Pennsylvania in 1863 and establishing friendly contacts with Copperhead newspaper editors and so forth. One of them, Manton Marble (a major character in my novel Shattered Nation) claims that McClellan told him he would be willing to enter into a ceasefire with the rebels in order to try to get a negotiated peace on the basis of reunion. Of course, we have only Marble's word to go on.

 

[Lost Cause]

Several Republican soldiers were granted furloughs to go home and vote. Absentee balloting was brought about Union soldiers to vote while away from home. The election was marked by fraud, manipulation, and intimidation.

The book Emancipation, the Union Army, and The Reelection of Abraham Lincoln discussed this in detail.