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The Confederate States Presidential Election of 1867, the 2nd C.S. presidential election, was held on November 5, 1867. General Robert E. Lee ran unopposed and became the 2nd President of the Confederate States.
Background[]
This was the first presidential election held after the conclusion of the Southern War of Independence. General Robert E. Lee, the man widely credited with leading the victorious war effort, was immensely popular throughout the Confederacy. He was initially unsure if he wanted to run and serve a six year term as president, but several of his friends managed to convince him to seek the job. Outgoing President Jefferson Davis endorsed Lee as soon as the candidacy was announced.
Lee was unsure who to choose as his running mate. Davis highly recommended his secretary of state Judah P. Benjamin, saying that he would be an invaluable help and perform his job with the utmost competence. Lee accepted this recommendation.
The Campaign[]
No one had a chance of beating the extremely beloved general, and not many tried. The only other campaign that gained any attention was that of William Crutchfield, a Unionist running out of Tennessee with the platform of bringing the Confederacy back into the U.S. He endured threats of violence all throughout his venture and moved to the U.S. in 1868.
There was some limited criticism of Lee and his campaign, mostly expressed through anonymous newspaper editorials. Some of them opined that, while Lee was a great military leader and undoubtedly a national hero, he did not align with the popular ideological beliefs of most Confederates at the time. He was called too moderate and too willing to compromise on the pivotal issues that had led to secession.
Lee's running mate Benjamin attracted more scorn. Benjamin was a Jew, and the editorials questioned if a non-Christian could be entrusted to such a high elected office in a thoroughly Christian nation. There were even conspiracies that Benjamin wished to achieve higher office so he could begin to convert the Confederacy to Judaism. In a close race, this criticism may have made the difference, but this election was far from a close race.
Lee himself did no campaigning; he knew that Southerners would vote for him just because they saw his name on the ballot.
Results and Aftermath[]
Lee won unanimously in the Electoral College and almost unanimously in the popular vote. He took over the position from Davis with much fanfare, and promised only to maintain the status quo. That was enough for the people.
President Lee would go on to declare and win the Mexican-Confederate War. He suffered a stroke soon after and died after two and a half years in office. For all he managed to accomplish in that short time, he was remembered as a great president.
Six years after his death, Lee's policies inadvertently helped lead to the formation of the Southern Party. Even though they did not agree with his policies, Southern Party politicians refused to drag Lee's name through the mud due to his mythic reputation in the South.
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