1876 United States presidential election in Colorado

Main article: 1876 United States presidential election

The 1876 United States presidential election in Colorado took place on November 7, 1876, as part of the 1876 United States presidential election. The state legislature chose three representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president, which would be the first and only time the state would do so.

1876 United States presidential election in Colorado

November 7, 1876 1880 →

Nominee Rutherford B. Hayes Samuel J. Tilden Party Republican Democratic Home state Ohio New York Running mate William A. Wheeler Thomas A. Hendricks Electoral vote 3 0 Legislative vote 50 24 Percentage 67.57% 32.43%

President before election Ulysses S. Grant Republican Elected President Rutherford B. Hayes Republican

Colorado voted in its first ever presidential election, having become the 38th state on August 1 of that year. The state cast three electoral votes for the Republican candidate Rutherford B. Hayes. These electors were chosen in a 50 to 24 vote^[1] by the Colorado General Assembly, the state legislature, rather than by popular vote,^[2] the last time in American history that a state's electors were chosen without a popular vote and one of only two (along with Florida in 1868) times after the American Civil War.^[3] This proved to be decisive as Hayes would win the electoral vote by a margin of one vote. Had Colorado not been a state in time for the 1876 election, Hayes would have lost the 1876 election to Democratic candidate Samuel J. Tilden.

Results

1876 United States presidential election in Colorado
Party		Candidate	Legislative Vote	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Republican	Rutherford B. Hayes	50	67.57%	3
	Democratic	Samuel J. Tilden	24	32.43%	0
Total			74	100.00%	3

References

1. Dill, R.G. (1895). "The Political Campaigns of Colorado". Arapahoe Publishing Company, John Dove. p. 27. Retrieved May 28, 2023.
2. Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas; Presidential General Election Results – Colorado
3. Schalit, Naomi (October 1, 2020). "Could a few state legislatures choose the next president?". The Conversation. Retrieved November 2, 2020.