The 1835 Democratic National Convention was held from May 20 to May 22, 1835, in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

. It was the second

presidential nominating convention A United States presidential nominating convention is a political convention held every four years in the United States by most of the political parties who will be fielding nominees in the upcoming U.S. presidential election. The formal purp ...

held in the history of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, following the 1832 Democratic National Convention. The convention nominated incumbent

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

Martin Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party (Uni ...

for

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

and Representative

Richard Mentor Johnson Richard Mentor Johnson (October 17, 1780 – November 19, 1850) was an American lawyer, military officer and politician who served as the ninth vice president of the United States, serving from 1837 to 1841 under President Martin Van Buren ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

for vice president. Former

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerf ...

Andrew Stevenson Andrew Stevenson (January 21, 1784 – January 25, 1857) was an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. He represented Richmond, Virginia in the Virginia House of Delegates and eventually became its speaker before being elected to the United S ...

served as the convention chairman. With the support of President

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

, Van Buren won the presidential nomination unanimously. Johnson narrowly won the two-thirds majority necessary for the vice presidential nomination, overcoming a challenge from

William Cabell Rives William Cabell Rives (May 4, 1793April 25, 1868) was an American lawyer, planter, politician and diplomat from Virginia. Initially a Jackson Democrat as well as member of the First Families of Virginia, Rives served in the Virginia House of Delega ...

of Virginia. The Democratic ticket of Van Buren and Johnson went on to win the 1836 presidential election.

Background

On February 23, 1835, President

wrote to James Gwin of

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

and claimed a preference for someone who would "most likely to be the choice of the great body of republicans" in regard to his successor. He expressed the desire to hold another national convention to nominate candidates for the presidency and vice presidency. He instructed Gwin to show the letter to the editor of the ''Nashville Republican''. The newspaper later reprinted the letter.

Proceedings

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

served as the chairman and convention president. Six convention vice presidents and four secretaries were appointed. Tennessee,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, and

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

sent no delegates to the convention.

Presidential nomination

Presidential candidates

Image:Martin Van Buren MET ap93.19.2 (cropped 3x4).jpg, President Jackson had long planned for Vice President Martin Van Buren to succeed him, and Van Buren was the unanimous choice of the delegates for the presidency.

Vice Presidential nomination

Vice Presidential candidates

Image:Richard Mentor Johnson A29919 (cropped 3x4).jpg, Image:Rives, William Cabell.jpg, Jackson and other major Democrats had settled on

, a Kentucky representative who had fought in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

, as Van Buren's running mate, but many Virginia Democrats backed

, the former Ambassador to France. A man from Tennessee, Edward Rucker, who was present at the convention but was not sent as a delegate, cast all 15 votes Tennessee was entitled to for Van Buren, and for Johnson for the vice presidential nomination. Johnson was nominated for vice president after winning one vote more than the two-thirds majority required. The delegation of Virginia declared that it had no confidence in Johnson's character and principles, and would not support him. File:1835DemocraticVicePresidentialNomination1stBallot.png, Letters went out on May 23 from the convention president and vice presidents asking for the acceptance of the nominations by the nominees. Van Buren replied and accepted the nomination on May 29; Johnson, likewise on June 9.

General election

The Whigs did not put forward a national ticket nominated by national convention. Van Buren defeated his many competitors for the presidency in the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

. While the electors of Virginia supported Van Buren for the presidency, they cast their vice presidential votes for William Smith. Consequently, Johnson received a plurality, but not a majority, of the electoral votes for the vice presidency. In the subsequent contingent election in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, Johnson was elected vice president.

Notes

References

Proceedings of the convention
''Niles' Weekly Register'', Volume XLVIII, March 1835 to September 1835 {{Authority control 1836 United States presidential election 1835 in Maryland 19th century in Baltimore Political conventions in Baltimore Maryland Democratic Party Political events in Maryland Democratic National Conventions 1835 conferences May 1835 events