American History: President Hayes Promises Only One Term in Office

A Portrait of Rutherford Hayes

Correction attached

BARBARA KLEIN: Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION — American history in VOA Special English.

Rutherford Hayes was sworn into office as the nineteenth president of the United States in eighteen seventy-seven. Hayes, a Republican, became president after a disputed election.

Representatives of his party and the Democrats met secretly to work out a compromise.

The Democrats agreed to let Hayes be sworn in. In return, he agreed to end federal support of radical Republican governments in the South.

He promised to name southerners to his cabinet and other important jobs. And he said he would provide more federal aid for schools and railroads in the South.

As part of the agreement, Hayes promised not to act aggressively to support the civil rights of black southerners.

This week in our series, Steve Ember and Richard Rael tell the story of Rutherford Hayes.

STEVE EMBER: Rutherford Hayes was born in Ohio in eighteen twenty-two. He was a good student at Kenyon College and at Harvard Law School. He opened a law office in Cincinnati. When he was thirty years old, he married Lucy Webb. Later, he served as an officer in the Union army during America's Civil War. He was elected to the United States House of Representatives. He also served as governor of Ohio. In this job, he helped establish the college that became Ohio State University.

RICHARD RAEL: Hayes was a Republican. In eighteen seventy-six, he was the party's compromise candidate for president. His opponent in the national election was Democrat Samuel Tilden. Tilden won more popular votes than Hayes. In the American political system, whoever wins the most popular votes in a state usually gets all the electoral votes of that state.

In eighteen seventy-six, both the Republicans and Democrats claimed the electoral votes of three southern states: Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina. So it was not clear at first who had won the presidential election.

STEVE EMBER: Congress appointed a committee to decide the issue. The committee had a Republican majority. It gave the disputed electoral votes to Hayes. He won the election by just one electoral vote. The results came just a few days before the inauguration.

The swearing in of Rutherford Hayes in 1877
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The swearing in of Rutherford Hayes in 1877

Democrats protested that the Republicans had stolen the election. Yet they agreed to accept Hayes as president. In exchange, Hayes and the Republicans agreed to accept Democratic Party policies on several issues. Hayes's administration would deal mainly with national — not international — problems.

RICHARD RAEL: At first, people wondered: would President Hayes keep the promises that were made to help him win the election. Most thought he would not. Hayes surprised everyone. In his inaugural speech, he promised to put the country ahead of the party. He said, "He serves his party best who serves his country best."

Party leaders told Hayes which men to appoint to his cabinet. He refused and made his own choices. He ordered federal troops to withdraw from South Carolina and Louisiana. The troops had been there since the end of the Civil War. He also helped southern Democrats establish new governments in their states.

STEVE EMBER: Republican Party leaders criticized President Hayes. Anti-slavery groups also criticized him. They said former black slaves in the south had gained a lot under Republican rule.