The election of 1876 was one of the most controversial presidential elections in the history of the United States of America, second only to that of 2001. The result, and subsequent effects, of the election are the main reason why the year 1876 was the last time for nearly a century that states of the south voted Republican. The issue at hand: to continue Reconstruction, or not to continue Reconstruction, that was the question.
Southern Military Reconstruction had dwindled considerably over the years after 1869; by the time of the 1876 election, only Louisiana, South Carolina, and Florida…