1856 Presidential Election
November 4, 1856 · Civil War & Reconstruction · 296 electoral votes, 149 to win
The new Republican Party's first campaign carried eleven free states behind Frémont, while Buchanan won on Southern solidity plus Pennsylvania. Fillmore's Know Nothings took a fifth of the vote, the high-water mark of organized nativism.
Elected
James Buchanan
Democratic
Electoral vote
174 of 296
Popular vote
45.3%
1,836,072 votes
Turnout
79.4%
The result
| EV share | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Buchanan | Democratic | John C. Breckinridge | 174 | 1,836,072 | 45.30% | 19 | |
| Millard Fillmore | Know Nothing | Andrew Jackson Donelson | 8 | 873,053 | 21.60% | 1 | |
| John C. Frémont | Republican | William L. Dayton | — | 1,342,345 | 33.10% | 11 |
4,051,470 votes recorded for the candidates listed.
Results by state
| Alabama | James Buchanan | 62.1% | 9 | Millard Fillmore · 37.9% |
| Arkansas | James Buchanan | 67.1% | 4 | Millard Fillmore · 32.9% |
| California | James Buchanan | 48.4% | 4 | Millard Fillmore · 32.8% |
| Connecticut | John C. Frémont | 53.2% | 6 | James Buchanan · 43.6% |
| Delaware | James Buchanan | 54.8% | 3 | Millard Fillmore · 43.0% |
| Florida | James Buchanan | 56.8% | 3 | Millard Fillmore · 43.2% |
| Georgia | James Buchanan | 57.1% | 10 | Millard Fillmore · 42.9% |
| Illinois | James Buchanan | 44.1% | 11 | John C. Frémont · 40.2% |
| Indiana | James Buchanan | 50.4% | 13 | John C. Frémont · 40.1% |
| Iowa | John C. Frémont | 48.8% | 4 | James Buchanan · 50.7% |
| Kentucky | James Buchanan | 52.5% | 12 | Millard Fillmore · 47.5% |
| Louisiana | James Buchanan | 51.7% | 6 | Millard Fillmore · 48.3% |
| Maine | John C. Frémont | 61.3% | 8 | James Buchanan · 35.7% |
| Maryland | Millard Fillmore | 54.6% | 8 | James Buchanan · 45.0% |
| Massachusetts | John C. Frémont | 63.6% | 13 | James Buchanan · 23.1% |
| Michigan | John C. Frémont | 57.2% | 6 | James Buchanan · 41.5% |
| Mississippi | James Buchanan | 59.4% | 7 | Millard Fillmore · 40.6% |
| Missouri | James Buchanan | 54.4% | 9 | Millard Fillmore · 45.6% |
| New Hampshire | John C. Frémont | 53.7% | 5 | James Buchanan · 45.7% |
| New Jersey | James Buchanan | 47.2% | 7 | John C. Frémont · 28.5% |
| New York | John C. Frémont | 46.3% | 35 | James Buchanan · 32.8% |
| North Carolina | James Buchanan | 56.8% | 10 | Millard Fillmore · 43.2% |
| Ohio | John C. Frémont | 48.5% | 23 | James Buchanan · 44.2% |
| Pennsylvania | James Buchanan | 50.1% | 27 | John C. Frémont · 32.1% |
| Rhode Island | John C. Frémont | 57.9% | 4 | James Buchanan · 33.7% |
| South Carolina | James Buchanan | — | 8 | — |
| Tennessee | James Buchanan | 52.2% | 12 | Millard Fillmore · 47.8% |
| Texas | James Buchanan | 66.7% | 4 | Millard Fillmore · 33.4% |
| Vermont | John C. Frémont | 78.1% | 5 | James Buchanan · 20.9% |
| Virginia | James Buchanan | 60.0% | 15 | Millard Fillmore · 40.0% |
| Wisconsin | John C. Frémont | 55.7% | 5 | James Buchanan · 43.9% |
The Congress it seated
35th Congress
1857–1859
Unified government
Senate
39–20
Democratic vs Republican · 5 others
House
131–94
Democratic vs Republican · 13 others