In 1872, incumbent President Ulysses S. Grant sought re-election. His administration had been marred by several scandals, but he remained personally popular, especially for his role in leading the Union to victory during the Civil War.
Grant’s opponent was Horace Greeley, a newspaper editor and the candidate of the Liberal Republican Party, which had split from the Republican Party over dissatisfaction with Grant’s administration and his Reconstruction policies. Greeley was also endorsed by the Democrats, forming a broad anti-Grant coalition.
Despite the opposition, Grant was re-elected in a landslide. He won 286 electoral votes to Greeley’s 66. However, Greeley died shortly after the election, and his electoral votes were split among several other candidates. Grant’s victory ensured the continuation of Reconstruction, though the period was beginning to wane as Northern interest in Southern affairs diminished.