This is the electoral history of James Buchanan. He was the 15th president of the United States (1856-1860); 17th United States Secretary of State; United States Minister to the United Kingdom and Russia; U.S. representative from Pennsylvania's third (1821-1823) and fourth congressional district (1823-1831); and U.S. senator from Pennsylvania (1834-1845).
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Federalist | James Buchanan | 7,809 | 27.9 | |
Federalist | John Phillips | 7,709 | 27.5 | |
Democratic-Republican | Jacob Hibshman | 6,396 | 22.8 | |
Democratic-Republican | James M. Wallace | 6,100 | 21.8 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Jacksonian | James Buchanan | 7,021 | 18.6 | |
Jacksonian | Isaac Wayne | 6,870 | 18.2 | |
Jacksonian | Samuel Edwards | 6,839 | 18.1 | |
Democratic-Republican | William Darlington | 5,723 | 15.2 | |
Democratic-Republican | William Anderson | 5,646 | 15.0 | |
Democratic-Republican | Jacob Hibshman | 5,639 | 14.9 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Jacksonian | James Buchanan | 6,968 | 18.0 | |
Jacksonian | Samuel Edwards | 6,802 | 17.5 | |
Anti-Jacksonian | Charles Miner | 6,756 | 17.4 | |
Democratic-Republican | Isaac D. Barnard | 6,129 | 15.8 | |
Democratic-Republican | William Anderson | 6,098 | 15.7 | |
Democratic-Republican | Samuel Houston | 6,028 | 15.5 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Jacksonian | James Buchanan | 5,950 | 18.5 | |
Anti-Jacksonian | Samuel Anderson | 5,732 | 17.8 | |
Anti-Jacksonian | Charles Miner | 5,670 | 17.6 | |
Jacksonian | Joshua Evans Jr. | 4,983 | 15.5 | |
Jacksonian | John McCamant | 4,933 | 15.3 | |
Jacksonian | George Gray Leiper | 4,902 | 15.2 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Jacksonian | James Buchanan | 10,004 | 17.6 | |
Jacksonian | Joshua Evans Jr. | 9,932 | 17.5 | |
Jacksonian | George Gray Leiper | 9,538 | 17.4 | |
Anti-Jacksonian | Samuel Anderson | 9,023 | 15.9 | |
Anti-Jacksonian | Townsend Haines | 9,006 | 15.9 | |
Anti-Jacksonian | William Hiester | 8,957 | 15.8 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | James Buchanan | 66 | 49.62 | |
Anti-Masonic | Amos Ellmaker | 31 | 23.31 | |
Democratic | James Clarke | 26 | 19.55 | |
National Republican | Joseph Lawrence | 6 | 4.51 | |
Democratic | Joel Sutherland | 1 | 0.75 | |
N/A | Not voting | 3 | 2.26 | |
Totals | 133 | 100.00% |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | James Buchanan | 85 | 63.91 | |
Whig | Thomas M. T. McKennan | 24 | 18.05 | |
Whig | Charles B. Penrose | 21 | 15.79 | |
Democratic | Thomas Cunningham | 1 | 0.75 | |
Democratic | Isaac Leet | 1 | 0.75 | |
N/A | Not voting | 1 | 0.75 | |
Totals | 133 | 100.00% |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | James Buchanan | 74 | 56.06 | |
Whig | John Banks | 54 | 40.91 | |
Democratic | Richard Brodhead | 1 | 0.76 | |
Unknown | John Gibons | 1 | 0.76 | |
N/A | Not voting | 2 | 1.52 | |
Totals | 132 | 100.00% |
Ballots | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9[a] | 9[b] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Martin Van Buren | 146 | 127 | 121 | 111 | 103 | 101 | 99 | 104 | 2 | 0 |
Lewis Cass | 83 | 94 | 92 | 105 | 107 | 116 | 123 | 114 | 29 | 0 |
Richard M. Johnson | 24 | 33 | 38 | 32 | 29 | 23 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
James Buchanan | 4 | 9 | 11 | 17 | 26 | 25 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
John C. Calhoun | 6 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Levi Woodbury | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Charles Stewart | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Marcus Morton | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
James K. Polk | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 231 | 266 |
Blank | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Ballots | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Lewis Cass | 125 | 133 | 156 | 179 |
Levi Woodbury | 53 | 56 | 53 | 38 |
James Buchanan | 55 | 54 | 40 | 33 |
John C. Calhoun | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
William Jenkins Worth | 6 | 5 | 5 | 1 |
George M. Dallas | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
William Orlando Butler | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Abstaining | 39 | 39 | 36 | 36 |
Ballot | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th | 11th | 12th | 13th | 14th | 15th | 16th | 17th | 18th | 19th | 20th | 21st | 22nd | 23rd | 24th | 25th |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Franklin Pierce | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Lewis Cass | 116 | 118 | 119 | 115 | 114 | 114 | 113 | 113 | 112 | 111 | 101 | 98 | 98 | 99 | 99 | 99 | 99 | 96 | 89 | 81 | 60 | 43 | 37 | 33 | 34 |
James Buchanan | 93 | 95 | 94 | 89 | 89 | 88 | 88 | 88 | 87 | 86 | 87 | 88 | 88 | 87 | 87 | 87 | 87 | 85 | 85 | 92 | 102 | 104 | 103 | 103 | 101 |
William L. Marcy | 27 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 |
Stephen A. Douglas | 20 | 23 | 21 | 31 | 34 | 32 | 34 | 34 | 39 | 40 | 50 | 52 | 51 | 51 | 51 | 51 | 50 | 56 | 63 | 64 | 64 | 77 | 78 | 80 | 79 |
William Butler | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 15 | 20 | 23 | 24 |
Daniel S. Dickinson | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Joseph Lane | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 |
Sam Houston | 8 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 |
John B. Weller | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Henry Dodge | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Linn Boyd | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
William R. King | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Charles Ingersoll | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Blank | 9 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 7 | 13 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
Ballot | 26th | 27th | 28th | 29th | 30th | 31st | 32nd | 33rd | 34th | 35th | 36th | 37th | 38th | 39th | 40th | 41st | 42nd | 43rd | 44th | 45th | 46th | 47th | 48th | 49th |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Franklin Pierce | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 30 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 44 | 49 | 55 | 283 |
Lewis Cass | 33 | 32 | 28 | 27 | 33 | 65 | 98 | 123 | 130 | 131 | 122 | 120 | 107 | 106 | 107 | 107 | 101 | 101 | 101 | 96 | 78 | 75 | 72 | 2 |
James Buchanan | 101 | 98 | 96 | 93 | 91 | 83 | 74 | 72 | 49 | 39 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 0 |
William Marcy | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 25 | 33 | 44 | 58 | 70 | 84 | 85 | 85 | 85 | 91 | 91 | 91 | 97 | 98 | 95 | 89 | 0 |
Stephen Douglas | 80 | 85 | 88 | 91 | 92 | 92 | 80 | 60 | 53 | 52 | 43 | 34 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 32 | 32 | 33 | 33 | 2 |
William Butler | 24 | 24 | 25 | 25 | 20 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Daniel S. Dickinson | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Joseph Lane | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Sam Houston | 10 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 1 |
Linn Boyd | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
William R. King | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Charles Ingersoll | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Blank | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 3 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 |
Presidential Ballot | |||||||||||||||||
Ballot | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th | 11th | 12th | 13th | 14th | 15th | 16th | 17th |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
James Buchanan | 135.5 | 139 | 139.5 | 141.5 | 140 | 155 | 143.5 | 147.5 | 146 | 147.5 | 147.5 | 148 | 150 | 152.5 | 168.5 | 168 | 296 |
Franklin Pierce | 122.5 | 119.5 | 119 | 119 | 119.5 | 107.5 | 89 | 87 | 87 | 80.5 | 80 | 79 | 77.5 | 75 | 3.5 | 0 | 0 |
Stephen Douglas | 33 | 31.5 | 32 | 30 | 31 | 28 | 58 | 56 | 56 | 62.5 | 63 | 63.5 | 63 | 63 | 118.5 | 122 | 0 |
Lewis Cass | 5 | 6 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 7 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 4.5 | 6 | 0 |
Presidential candidate | Party | Home state | Popular vote(a) | Electoral vote |
Running mate | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Count | Percentage | Vice-presidential candidate | Home state | Electoral vote | ||||
James Buchanan Jr. | Democratic | Pennsylvania | 1,836,072 | 45.28% | 174 | John Cabell Breckinridge | Kentucky | 174 |
John Charles Frémont | Republican | California | 1,342,345 | 33.11% | 114 | William Lewis Dayton | New Jersey | 114 |
Millard Fillmore | American | New York | 873,053 | 21.53% | 8 | Andrew Jackson Donelson | Tennessee | 8 |
Other | 3,177 | 0.08% | — | Other | — | |||
Total | 4,054,647 | 100% | 296 | 296 | ||||
Needed to win | 149 | 149 |
Source (Popular Vote): Leip, David. "1856 Presidential Election Results". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved July 27, 2005. Source (Electoral Vote): "Electoral College Box Scores 1789–1996". National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved July 31, 2005.
(a) The popular vote figures exclude South Carolina where the Electors were chosen by the state legislature rather than by popular vote.
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