The Union Reform 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 ...

. Originally called the Citizen's Party, it was founded by reform-minded Republicans in the spring of 1870 to oppose the reelection of

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 ...

Robert Kingston Scott. At the time, the electorate of South Carolina was predominantly composed of recently

freed slaves A freedman or freedwoman is a formerly enslaved person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, enslaved people were freed by manumission (granted freedom by their captor-owners), emancipation (granted freedom a ...

who were unwilling to cast a vote for 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 ...

. The white conservatives of the state recognized that the Democratic Party was a hopeless vehicle for power and instead sought to unite with the bolting Republicans. Not only would the alliance weaken the position of Scott’s government, but the conservatives would then be in a position to influence a new government if elected. The reform Republicans and white conservatives convened on June 15, 1870 in Columbia to form a new party in order to oppose the policies of the

Radical Republicans The Radical Republicans (later also known as "Stalwarts") were a faction within the Republican Party, originating from the party's founding in 1854, some 6 years before the Civil War, until the Compromise of 1877, which effectively ended Recons ...

. A large number of blacks also attended the convention because they had been promised two dollars a day. The Union Reform Party nominated

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

Republican Richard B. Carpenter for Governor and Matthew Butler for Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina, Lieutenant Governor to contest the elections of 1870 by prearranged agreement. There initially were plans to nominate a black man for Lieutenant Governor, but both black men approached for the position declined and the blacks themselves nominated Butler. For the legislative races, a black man was placed on the ticket in every district. On October 10, 1870, Governor Scott was South Carolina gubernatorial election, 1870, reelected decisively over Carpenter, 62% - 38%. The Republicans swept all of the contests for United States Congressional Delegations from South Carolina, Congress and maintained a large majority in the South Carolina General Assembly, General Assembly. The Union Reform Party failed to gain many black votes because most blacks saw little difference between it and the Democratic Party. The general sentiment among blacks was that although the Republican party was corrupt, the Union Reform Party would limit and curtail their civil rights. After the election, the party became the opposition and its members split between the

and the Independent Republican Party of South Carolina, Independent Republican Party for the election of 1872. Richard B. Carpenter himself was taken back into the Republican party and elected in 1872 by the General Assembly for the judgeship of the Fifth Circuit.Reynolds, p. 229

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* * *{{cite book , first = Richard , last = Zuczek , title = State of Rebellion: Reconstruction in South Carolina , year = 1996 , publisher = University of South Carolina Press , pages = 76–83 , isbn = 1-57003-105-3 Political parties established in 1870 History of South Carolina Defunct state and local conservative parties in the United States 1870 establishments in South Carolina

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