1872: The Strangest Presidential Election

Video Description

Of all the presidential elections in American history, 1872 was the weirdest. It wasn't close (President Ulysses Grant easily won re-election) and at first glance it looks like a snoozer, but in reality the twists and turns of this election tested the very limits of the U.S. Constitution. It was the last election where one of the major parties decided to sit it out entirely, the only one where one of the candidates died, and possibly the most important election in the history of women's suffrage until the passage of the 19th Amendment. In this video we'll take a deep dive into why this contest was so strange, what happened, what the stakes were, and why it shouldn't be glossed over as one of the snoozers. Major sources for this video include the books Grant by Jean Edward Smith (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001); Ordeal by Fire: The Civil War and Reconstruction b James M. McPherson (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1982), Susan B. Anthony: A Biography of a Singular Feminist by Kathleen Barry (New York: Ballantine Books, 1990); Horace Greeley, Voice of the People by William Harlan Hale (New York: Harper, 1950), and various primary source documents including U.S. Congressional records. My Book, The 50 Most Important Things in History: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C6YRTMXF My website: https://www.seanmunger.com My Ko-fi: https://Ko-fi.com/seanmunger My blog: https://gardenofmemory.net/ Chapters: 00:00-06:04: Intro & Road Map 06:04-20:09: Reconstruction 20:09-26:32: Grant 26:32-37:43: The Liberal Republicans 37:43-45:12: Horace Greeley 45:12-53:40: The Democrats 53:40-1:00:34: The Campaign 1:00:34-1:08:52: The Voting 1:08:52-1:14:29: The Death of Greeley 1:14:29-1:27:40: The Count 1:27:40-1:38:01: The Struggle for Women's Rights 1:38:01-1:50:05: The Aftermath 1:50:05-1:52:31: Conclusion