Election of 1840

Martin Van Buren was re-nominated unenthusiastically by the Democrats in 1840; no candidate was nominated for the vice presidency. To many of those countrymen who had suffered through years of depression, he was "Martin Van Ruin."

Henry Clay felt his time had finally arrived and anticipated receiving the Whig nomination. Other forces in the party, however, knew that Clay's prominence over the years had earned him many enemies and they backed William Henry Harrison once again. Harrison was an old war hero and had made few pronouncements on public issues—a situation similar to Andrew Jackson in 1824. For regional balance, John Tyler of Virginia was selected as the vice-presidential candidate; Tyler was a former Democrat and would later return to many of his earlier beliefs. The campaign slogan was, "Tippecanoe and Tyler, too!"

The campaign of 1840 was heavy on image-making, less so on substance—a harbinger of things to come. One Democratic wag observed that Harrison would probably be just as happy with a jug of hard cider to sip in front of his log cabin as serving as president. The Whigs turned this contemptuous statement to their advantage and launched the "log cabin and hard cider" campaign, playing up Harrison's appeal to the masses and serving large quantities of hard cider at rallies. On the other side Van Buren was attacked for alleged elitism; he was a well-dressed dandy and consumer of fine wines and exotic foods. Aspiring political poets of the day offered such verse as:

Neither portrayal was accurate. Harrison had many aristocratic qualities and came from a wealthy family, while Van Buren was a self-made man who was a firm believer in democratic values.

The election results appeared to be a landslide in the Electoral College, but the popular vote was close.

Election of 1840 Candidates	Party	Electoral Vote	Popular Vote
William Henry Harrison (OH) John Tyler (VA)	Whig	234	1,275,612
Martin Van Buren (NY) (no vice presidential nominee)	Democratic	60	1,130,033

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Election of 1840
Election of 1840 2004 1968 1932 1896 1860 2000 1964 1928 1892 1856 1996 1960 1924 1888 1852 1992 1956 1920 1884 1848 1988 1952 1916 1880 1844 1984 1948 1912 1876 1840 1980 1944 1908 1872 1836 1976 1940 1904 1868 1832 1972 1936 19Election of 1840 2004 1968 1932 1896 1860 2000 1964 1928 1892 1856 1996 1960 1924 1888 1852 1992 1956 1920 1884 1848 1988 1952 1916 1880 1844 1984 1948 1912 1876 1840 1980 1944 1908 1872 1836 1976 1940 1904 1868 1832 1972 1936 1900 1864 1828 ...
^{http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/showelection.php?year=1840}

The Political Graveyard: Election of 1840
Questions? Return to The Political Graveyard main page. Election of 1840 Electoral College Details President WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON: 234 electoral votes Connecticut (8), Delaware (3), Georgia (11), Indiana (9), Kentucky (15), Election of 1840 Electoral College Details President WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON: 234 electoral votes Connecticut (8), Delaware (3), Georgia (11), Indiana (9), Kentucky (15), Louisiana (5 ...
^{http://politicalgraveyard.com/offices/pres-vp-1840.html}

Presidential Election of 1840
Meanwhile, President Van Buren was unanimously renominated by the Democrats. The election of 1840 was the first campaign with slogans, songs and modern campaign paraphernalia. The slogan that became best known was "Tippecanoe election of 1840 was the first campaign with slogans, songs and modern campaign paraphernalia. The slogan that became best known was "Tippecanoe and Tyler too".
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Election of 1840

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