The Independent Republican Party of South Carolina was a political party of

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 = ...

during

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...

. It was founded in 1872 to oppose the election of Franklin J. Moses Jr. for

Governor of South Carolina The governor of South Carolina is the head of government of South Carolina. The governor is the '' ex officio'' commander-in-chief of the National Guard when not called into federal service. The governor's responsibilities include making year ...

after he had been nominated by the Republicans on August 21, 1872. Former governor

James Lawrence Orr James Lawrence Orr (May 12, 1822May 5, 1873) was an American diplomat and politician who served as the 22nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1857 to 1859. He also served as the 73rd governor of South Carolina from 186 ...

denounced the selection of Moses and led the formation of a new party.

Election of 1872

The Republicans in opposition to Moses met on August 22, 1872, at the Richland courthouse to select a ticket for the general election. The delegates warned that the future of the Republican party was at stake if reform was not initiated and corrupt politicians were elected to office. Reuben Tomlinson was nominated for

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, but the choice was largely uninspiring to the white populace. The Independent Republican ticket was heavily defeated on October 16, 1872, with its candidate for governor losing 34%–65%. It was estimated that 40,000 whites did not vote, which would have been enough to tip the election in favor of the Independent Republicans.

Election of 1874

After the nomination of

Daniel Henry Chamberlain Daniel Henry Chamberlain (June 23, 1835April 13, 1907) was an American planter, lawyer, author and the 76th Governor of South Carolina from 1874 until 1876 or 1877. The federal government withdrew troops from the state and ended Reconstruction ...

for governor at the state Republican convention on September 8, 1874, a group of Republicans dissatisfied with the selection met on October 2 to choose their ticket for the general election. They chose John T. Green, a judge from Sumter, as their nominee for governor and for lieutenant governor,

Martin R. Delany Martin Robison Delany (May 6, 1812January 24, 1885) was an Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist, journalist, physician, soldier, and writer, and arguably the first proponent of black nationalism. Delany is credited with the Pan-Africani ...

, a black doctor from Charleston. The

Conservative Party of South Carolina The Conservative Party of South Carolina was a political party of South Carolina during Reconstruction. It was founded in 1874 by James Chestnut from the State Tax Union to provide an organization for the mobilization of white voters. The absence o ...

expressed its support for the statewide candidates of the Independent Republicans on October 8. On November 3, 1874, Chamberlain defeated Green by just over 11,000 votes in the closest election for governor since 1865. The Independent Republicans achieved some success on the Federal level with the election of Edmund W.M. Mackey in the Second District for

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

. Through the fusion with the Conservative Party in Charleston, they were also able to win some seats in the

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...

Election of 1876

With the reestablishment of a strong

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 ...

, there was no organized opposition to Governor Chamberlain among the Republicans to form an Independent Republican slate of candidates. Those Republicans that did not support the Republican ticket instead gave their support to

Wade Hampton Wade Hampton may refer to the following people: People *Wade Hampton I (1752–1835), American soldier in Revolutionary War and War of 1812 and U.S. congressman *Wade Hampton II (1791–1858), American plantation owner and soldier in War of 1812 *W ...

References

*{{cite book , first = John S. , last = Reynolds , title = Reconstruction in South Carolina , url = https://archive.org/details/reconstructioni01reyngoog , year = 1969 , publisher = Negro University Press , isbn = 0-8371-1638-4 Political parties established in 1872 History of South Carolina Defunct state and local conservative parties in the United States 1872 establishments in South Carolina