1856 United States presidential election in New York

1856 United States presidential election in New York

← 1852 November 4, 1856 1860 →
Turnout	89.9%[1] 5.2 pp
Nominee John C. Frémont James Buchanan Millard Fillmore Party Republican Democratic American Home state California Pennsylvania New York Running mate William L. Dayton John C. Breckinridge Andrew J. Donelson Electoral vote 35 0 0 Popular vote 276,004 195,878 124,604 Percentage 46.27% 32.84% 20.89%
County Results Fremont   30–40%   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80% Buchanan   30–40%   40–50%   50–60% Fillmore   30–40%   40–50%
President before election Franklin Pierce Democratic Elected President James Buchanan Democratic

Elections in New York State
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State government New York gubernatorial elections 1777 1780 1783 1786 1789 1792 1795 1798 1801 1804 1807 1810 1813 1816 1817 1820 1822 1824 1826 1828 1830 1832 1834 1836 1838 1840 1842 1844 1846 1848 1850 1852 1854 1856 1858 1860 1862 1864 1866 1868 1870 1872 1874 1876 1879 1882 1885 1888 1891 1894 1896 1898 1900 1902 1904 1906 1908 1910 1912 1914 1916 1918 1920 1922 1924 1926 1928 1930 1932 1934 1936 1938 1942 1946 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 Attorney General elections 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 State Comptroller elections 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 State Senate elections 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024 State Assembly elections 99th district, 2006 2008 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024 State elections by year 1811-LtGSE 1844 1846 1847-JSE 1847 1848 1849 1850 1851 1852 1853 1854 1855 1856 1857 1858 1859 1860 1861 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866 1867 1868 1869 1870 1870–JSE 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1900 1902 1903 1904 1906 1907 1908 1910 1912 1913 1914 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1926 1927 1928 1930 1932 1933 1934 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1942 1943 1944 1946 1949 1950 1952 1953 1954 1956 1958 1959 1960 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1972 1973 1974 2002 2006 2008 2009 2010 2012 2016 2018 2020 2021 2022 2024
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v t e

The 1856 United States presidential election in New York took place on November 4, 1856, as part of the 1856 United States presidential election. Voters chose 35 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

New York was won by California Senator John C. Frémont (R–California), running with former Senator William L. Dayton (New Jersey), with 46.27 percent of the popular vote, against Senator James Buchanan (D–Pennsylvania), running with Representative and future presidential candidate in the 1860 presidential election John C. Breckinridge, with 32.84 percent of the popular vote and the 13th president of the United States Millard Fillmore (American^[a]–New York), running with the 2nd U.S. Ambassador to Germany Andrew Jackson Donelson, with 20.89 percent of the popular vote.^[2]

James Buchanan went on to win the presidential election but this election would end the Democratic Party's support from New York which they won five out of seven times since 1828. A Democrat would not win New York until Horatio Seymour's narrow victory in 1868. Frémont, the first presidential nominee of the newly formed Republican Party, would be the first of just three Republicans ever to carry the state without winning the presidency, the other two being Charles Evans Hughes in 1916 and Thomas E. Dewey in 1948 (both New Yorkers).

It was also the first time since voting for DeWitt Clinton in 1812 that New York backed a losing presidential candidate. This remains the only presidential election in history where New York voted Republican while neighboring Pennsylvania voted Democratic. Although New York would vote more Republican than Pennsylvania in the Republican landslides of 1952, 1956, and 1984.

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