United States Presidential Election, 1852 - Nominations - Democratic Party Nomination - Candidates Gallery

Candidates Gallery

  • Former Senator Franklin Pierce of New Hampshire

  • Senator Lewis Cass of Michigan

  • Former Secretary of State James Buchanan of Pennsylvania

  • Former Secretary of War William L. Marcy of New York

  • Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois

As Democrats convened in Baltimore in June 1852, four major candidates vied for the nomination: Lewis Cass of Michigan, the nominee in 1848, who had the backing of northerners in support of the Compromise of 1850; James Buchanan of Pennsylvania, popular in the South as well as in his home state; Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois, candidate of the expansionists and the railroad interests; and William L. Marcy of New York, whose strength was centered in his home state. Throughout the balloting, numerous favorite son candidates received a few votes.

Cass led on the first 19 ballots, with Buchanan second, and Douglas and Marcy exchanging third and fourth places. Buchanan took the lead on the 20th ballot and retained it on each of the next nine tallies. Douglas managed a narrow lead on the 30th and 31st ballots. Cass then recaptured first place through the 44th ballot. Marcy carried the next four ballots. Franklin Pierce of New Hampshire, a former Congressman and Senator, did not get on the board until the 35th ballot, when the Virginia delegation brought him forward as a compromise choice. He consolidated his support in subsequent voting and was nominated nearly unanimously on the 49th ballot.

In a peace gesture to the Buchanan wing of the party, Pierce's supporters allowed Buchanan's allies to fill the second position, knowing that they would select Alabama Senator William R. King. On the second ballot, with only minor opposition, King finally obtained the Democratic vice-presidential nomination. During the ensuing campaign, King's tuberculosis, which he believed he had contracted while in Paris, France, denied him the active behind-the-scenes role that he might otherwise have played, although he worked hard to assure his region's voters that New Hampshire's Pierce was a "northern man with southern principles."

Presidential Ballot
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 88 88 88 88 87 86 87 88 88 87 87 87 87 85 85 92 102 104 104 103 101
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 27 26 26
Stephen A. Douglas 20 23 21 33 34 34 34 34 39 40 50 51 51 51 51 51 50 56 63 64 64 77 78 80 79
Others 40 33 36 34 34 34 35 35 31 32 31 32 33 33 33 33 34 34 33 33 44 46 50 54 56
Presidential Ballot
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 55 282
Lewis Cass 33 32 28 27 33 65 93 123 130 131 122 120 107 106 107 107 101 101 101 96 78 75 72 2
James Buchanan 101 98 96 98 91 83 74 72 49 39 28 28 28 28 27 27 27 27 27 27 28 28 28 0
William L. Marcy 26 26 26 26 26 26 26 25 33 34 58 70 84 85 85 85 91 91 91 97 98 95 89 0
Stephen A. 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
Others 56 55 58 54 54 30 23 16 31 25 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 16 16 19 10

Source: US President – D Convention. Our Campaigns. (August 24, 2009).

Vice Presidential Ballot
Ballot 1st 2nd
William R. King 125 277
Solomon W. Downs 30 0
John B. Weller 28 0
David R. Atchison 25 0
Gideon J. Pillow 25 0
Robert Strange 23 0
William O. Butler 13 0
Thomas J. Rusk 13 0
Jefferson Davis 2 11
Howell Cobb 2 0
Abstaining 2 0

Source: US Vice President – D Convention. Our Campaigns. (August 25, 2009).

Read more about this topic:  United States Presidential Election, 1852, Nominations, Democratic Party Nomination

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