The 1876 election is perhaps the most disputed and controversial in American history. The Republican candidate was Rutherford B. Hayes, the governor of Ohio, and the Democratic candidate was Samuel J. Tilden, the governor of New York.
Tilden won the popular vote by a clear margin, and initially appeared to have won the electoral vote as well. However, results in four states—Florida, Louisiana, South Carolina, and Oregon—were contested due to allegations of fraud and voter intimidation, leaving 20 electoral votes in dispute. Tilden had 184 electoral votes, just one short of the 185 needed to win, while Hayes had 165.
Congress created a special electoral commission to resolve the dispute. After intense negotiation, a deal was struck known as the Compromise of 1877. In exchange for conceding the election to Hayes, the Republicans agreed to withdraw federal troops from the South, effectively ending Reconstruction.
Hayes was awarded all 20 disputed electoral votes, giving him a narrow victory of 185 to 184. His presidency marked the beginning of the end of federal efforts to protect African American rights in the South, and the onset of the Jim Crow era of racial segregation.
These elections reflect a pivotal period in U.S. history, marked by the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the eventual retreat from Reconstruction’s goals of racial equality.