1872

Ulysses S. Grant and the 1872 map

Grant won re-election in a landslide over the Liberal Republican nominee Horace Greeley, who was also endorsed by the Democrats. Greeley, the famous newspaper editor, died three weeks after the election before the Electoral College voted, causing his 66 electoral votes to be scattered among other candidates — the largest such dispersal in history. The Credit Mobilier scandal had damaged Grant's reputation but voters chose him over Greeley, whose eccentric campaign style failed to inspire confidence.