1856 United States presidential election — 18th quadrennial U.S. presidential election
Buchanan's victory over Frémont and Fillmore marked the end of the Second Party System and was the last Democratic presidential win until 1884.
Key Facts
- Election date
- November 4, 1856
- Winner
- James Buchanan (Democrat)
- Fillmore popular vote share
- 21.5%
- Fillmore states carried
- 1 (Maryland)
- Quadrennial election number
- 18th
- Key legislation at issue
- Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 reignited sectional conflict over the expansion of slavery, producing a guerrilla civil war in Kansas Territory and making President Franklin Pierce deeply unpopular in the North. These tensions fractured the old party system, propelling the new Republican Party into national prominence while the nativist Know Nothing Party competed to replace the collapsing Whigs.
On November 4, 1856, Democratic nominee James Buchanan defeated Republican John C. Frémont and Know Nothing/Whig candidate Millard Fillmore. Buchanan won a plurality of the popular vote and a majority of the electoral college, carrying all but one slave state and five free states. Frémont finished second nationally, while Fillmore, despite 21.5% of the popular vote, carried only Maryland.
The Know Nothing Party rapidly collapsed after the 1857 Dred Scott ruling, with most of its anti-slavery members absorbed into the Republican Party. The election ended the Second Party System and cemented Republican ascendancy; Democrats would not win another presidential election until 1884. Buchanan's presidency failed to resolve the slavery crisis, setting the stage for secession and the Civil War.
Political Outcome
James Buchanan (Democrat) won the presidency with a plurality of the popular vote and a majority of the electoral vote, defeating John C. Frémont (Republican) and Millard Fillmore (Know Nothing/Whig).
Franklin Pierce (Democrat) presidency; competitive Second Party System with Democrats, Whigs, and Know Nothings
James Buchanan (Democrat) presidency; Republicans emerged as dominant opposition, Know Nothings collapsed, Second Party System ended