The President Who Wasn't

One hundred fifty years ago, in 1876, America experienced one of the closest presidential elections in its history. The Democratic nominee, New York State Governor Samuel J. Tilden garnered 50.92% of the popular vote to 47.92% for the Republican nominee, Ohio Governor Rutherford B. Hayes. The initial Electoral College tally had Tilden with 184 votes (one shy of a majority) and Hayes with just 165.

But, 20 Electoral College votes were in dispute—from Florida, Louisiana, South Carolina and Oregon—due to duplicate slates of electors being presented. Moreover, Republican voters in many southern states were intimidated and even killed. Barely a decade after the end of the Civil War, the nation faced another constitutional crisis. 

Congress decided to resolve the dispute through establishment of a 15-member Electoral Commission (7 Democrats, 7 Republicans and one Independent). A series of 8-7 votes gave all 20 disputed Electoral College votes to Republican Hayes—beating Tilden by a margin of 185-184.

Democrats in Congress were initially outraged, but their rage was tempered by newly inaugurated President Hayes supporting the Compromise of 1877. The act effectively ended Reconstruction by withdrawing all federal troops from the last two Southern states that were still occupied: South Carolina and Louisiana. The aftermath was the era of Jim Crow and its institutionalized discrimination against African-Americans throughout the South. And, no Republican presidential candidate would win a former Confederate state until Warren G. Harding in 1920.

So, Tilden—who won the popular vote—lost the presidency through a political contrivance of Congress. And, a disputed presidential election had impact on American society for at least a century afterward.

Cincinnatus Or Caesar?

Early in the Roman Republic, the city of Rome was surrounded by enemy armies and faced total defeat. The Roman Senate created the role of “dictator” under emergency powers in a new constitution. Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus was appointed as dictator and given six months of unlimited power to save the city. Cincinnatus defeated the enemy in 16 days and promptly resigned his position to return to the “plow” and work in relative anonymity on his farm. 

When the new American nation was deciding on the powers and limits of its executive, there was a heated debate. Many wanted a powerful, almost regal, presidency that would give the new government credibility in the world. Others wanted executive powers to be restrained and limited by Congress. A sort of compromise ensued that was put to the test by the first occupant of the office, George Washington. Famously, after serving two terms, Washington chose the “Cincinnatus” approach and refused to run for a third term. Wrote Washington to a friend, "Prudence on my part must arrest any attempt of the well meant, but mistaken views of my friends, to introduce me again into the Chair of Government." He walked away and set an informal precedent for his successors.

After many later “imperial”, Caesar-like presidencies (e.g., Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War and Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who was elected to four terms), the Constitution was amended in 1951—prohibiting any person from being elected to the office more than twice. So—at least in terms of succession—the Cincinnatus model has prevailed over that of Caesar.