1856 United States presidential election in Pennsylvania

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1856 United States presidential election in Pennsylvania
Flag of Pennsylvania.svg
  1852 November 4, 1856 1860  
  James Buchanan (cropped).jpg John Charles Fremont crop.jpg Fillmore (cropped).jpg
Nominee James Buchanan John C. Frémont Millard Fillmore
Party Democratic Republican Know Nothing
Home state Pennsylvania California New York
Running mate John C. Breckinridge William L. Dayton Andrew Donelson
Electoral vote2700
Popular vote230,686147,28682,189
Percentage50.13%32.01%17.86%

Pennsylvania Presidential Election Results 1856.svg
County Results

President before election

Franklin Pierce
Democratic

Elected President

James Buchanan
Democratic

The 1856 United States presidential election in Pennsylvania took place on November 4, 1856, as part of the 1856 United States presidential election. Voters chose 27 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

Contents

Pennsylvania voted for the Democratic candidate, James Buchanan, over the Republican candidate, John C. Frémont, and the Know Nothing candidate, Millard Fillmore. Buchanan, a lifelong Pennsylvanian, won his home state by a margin of 18.12%.

Despite the margin of victory, this was the last time a Democrat won Pennsylvania until Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936.

Results

1856 United States presidential election in Pennsylvania [1]
PartyCandidateVotesPercentageElectoral votes
Democratic James Buchanan 230,68650.13%27
Republican John C. Frémont 147,28632.01%0
Know Nothing Millard Fillmore 82,18917.86%0
Totals460,161100.0%27

Results by County

1856 United States Presidential Election in Pennsylvania (By County) [2]
CountyJames Buchanan

Democratic

John C. Frémont

Republican

Millard Fillmore

Know Nothing

Total votes cast
#%#%#%
Adams 2,63752.68%1,12022.37%1,24924.95%5,006
Allegheny 9,06237.41%13,67156.44%1,4886.14%24,221
Armstrong 2,68045.96%2,96350.81%1883.22%5,831
Beaver 1,90539.70%2,65855.39%2364.92%4,799
Bedford 2,45852.30%3066.51%1,93641.19%4,700
Berks 11,27270.92%1,0376.52%3,58622.56%15,895
Blair 2,06941.68%4458.96%2,45049.36%4,964
Bradford 2,31424.74%6,93874.18%1011.08%9,353
Bucks 6,51754.61%4,68239.23%7356.16%11,934
Butler 2,64843.30%3,40155.61%671.10%6,116
Cambria 2,98762.77%80416.89%96820.34%4,759
Carbon 1,86661.73%69222.89%46515.38%3,023
Centre 2,89555.28%3907.45%1,95237.27%5,237
Chester 6,33348.38%5,30840.55%1,44811.06%13,089
Clarion 2,76061.36%78817.52%95021.12%4,498
Clearfield 1,97859.94%71821.76%60418.30%3,300
Clinton 1,48553.32%61822.19%68224.49%2,785
Columbia 2,88966.46%1,23928.50%2195.04%4,347
Crawford 3,39138.55%5,36060.94%450.51%8,796
Cumberland 3,42752.90%1,47222.72%1,57924.37%6,478
Dauphin 3,09443.28%1,61522.59%2,43934.12%7,148
Delaware 2,00543.54%1,59034.53%1,01021.93%4,605
Elk 57563.75%27530.49%525.76%902
Erie 2,58432.18%5,15664.22%2893.60%8,029
Fayette 3,55452.13%2,08930.64%1,17417.22%6,817
Franklin 3,46948.53%2,44634.22%1,23317.25%7,148
Fulton 97057.81%1428.46%56633.73%1,678
Greene 2,74763.09%1,32130.34%2866.57%4,354
Huntingdon 2,16445.70%92619.56%1,64534.74%4,735
Indiana 1,76231.26%3,61264.08%2634.67%5,637
Jefferson 1,46346.58%1,06333.84%61519.58%3,141
Juniata 1,36552.66%48018.52%74728.82%2,592
Lancaster 8,73143.81%6,60833.15%4,59223.04%19,931
Lawrence 1,22027.85%3,06569.96%962.19%4,381
Lebanon 2,51146.83%2,41445.02%4378.15%5,362
Lehigh 4,42656.85%3,23741.58%1221.57%7,785
Luzerne 6,79154.29%4,85038.77%8686.94%12,509
Lycoming 3,32455.14%93429.36%1,77015.49%6,028
McKean 52637.98%81258.63%473.39%1,385
Mercer 2,69941.50%3,68656.68%1181.81%6,503
Mifflin 1,49154.08%2167.83%1,05038.08%2,757
Monroe 2,27578.34%56019.28%692.38%2,904
Montgomery 7,13458.27%2,84523.24%2,26518.50%12,244
Montour 1,27160.93%66631.93%1497.14%2,086
Northampton 5,26063.63%1,16814.13%1,83822.24%8,266
Northumberland 3,05961.61%56611.40%1,34026.99%4,965
Perry 2,13552.55%52112.82%1,40734.63%4,063
Philadelphia 38,22254.37%7,99311.37%24,08434.26%70,299
Pike 86275.15%27023.54%151.31%1,147
Potter 66734.43%1,26465.26%60.31%1,937
Schuylkill 7,03559.09%2,18818.38%2,68222.53%11,905
Snyder 1,25545.44%44316.04%1,06438.52%2,762
Somerset 1,76338.11%1,45831.52%1,40530.37%4,626
Sullivan 53860.11%30934.53%485.36%895
Susquehanna 2,54839.44%3,86159.77%510.79%6,460
Tioga 1,38623.28%4,54176.27%270.45%5,954
Union 1,09240.34%1,42952.79%1866.87%2,707
Venango 2,15750.52%2,04147.80%721.69%4,270
Warren 1,23136.52%2,09162.03%491.45%3,371
Washington 4,28848.78%4,23748.20%2653.01%8,790
Wayne 2,25949.71%2,17247.80%1132.49%4,544
Westmoreland 5,17254.09%4,09142.78%2993.13%9,562
Wyoming 1,17149.14%1,13847.75%743.11%2,383
York 6,87658.83%5114.37%4,30136.80%11,688
Totals230,70050.11%147,51032.04%82,17617.85%460,386

Analysis

Following the election, Pennsylvania would establish itself as a Republican stronghold. This would be the final time that Pennsylvania would vote for a Democratic candidate until Franklin D. Roosevelt won the state in 1936, as well as the last time that the state voted for a non-Republican candidate until Theodore Roosevelt’s third-party bid in 1912. Along with this being the last time that a non-incumbent Democrat won the state until John F. Kennedy in 1960.

As of the 2024 presidential election, this is the only time Snyder County voted for a Democratic presidential candidate. [3] Lebanon County has voted for the Democratic presidential candidate once since, in 1936. Blair, Dauphin, and Philadelphia counties would not vote Democratic again until 1936, and Delaware County until 1964. Lancaster, Huntingdon, and Somerset counties have voted for a Democrat once since, in 1964.

This is the first time Adams county voted for a Democratic party candidate, though it did vote for Andrew Jackson in 1824, who would be the party's first two nominees in 1828 and 1832.

This remains the only presidential election in history in which New York voted Republican while its neighboring state, Pennsylvania, voted Democratic. This is also one of only four occasions where Pennsylvania and Michigan voted for different presidential candidates ever since the Democrats and Republicans became the two major parties in U.S. politics. [4] [a]

See also

Notes

  1. The other times were in 1932, 1940, and 1976.

References

  1. "1856 Presidential General Election Results – Pennsylvania". U.S. Election Atlas. Retrieved August 3, 2012.
  2. "Our Campaigns - PA US President Race - Nov 04, 1856". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved January 9, 2025.
  3. Menendez, Albert J.; The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868-2004, pp. 286-290 ISBN   0786422173
  4. Brownstein, Ronald (September 16, 2024). "Why these three states are the most consistent tipping point in American politics". CNN. Retrieved September 16, 2024.