The Electoral Commision was a fifteen-member body that was used to resolve disputes in U.S. presidential elections, best known for its use in the 1876 election between Samuel G. Tilden and Rutherford B. Hayes. The United States presidential elections determine who becomes the President of the United States for the next four years. ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... Rutherford Birchard Hayes ( October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was the 19th ( 1877 – 1881) President of the United States. ...

Three states: Louisiana, South Carolina, and Florida, had disputed results with differing sets of returns. On a technicality, one of the Oregon electors was removed from the College but later re-certified in a controversial action. Facing a constitutional crisis the likes of which the nation had never seen, on January 29, 1877 the U.S. Congress passed a law forming the Commission to settle the result. Five members came from each house of the U.S. Congress(the House and the Senate), as well as five members of the United States Supreme Court. Louisiana is a southern state of the United States of America. ... State nickname: Palmetto State Other U.S. States Capital Columbia Largest city Columbia Governor Mark Sanford Official languages English Area 82,965 km² (40th)  - Land 78,051 km²  - Water 4,915 km² (6%) Population (2000)  - Population 4,012,012 (26th)  - Density 51. ... State nickname: Everglade State, Sunshine State Other U.S. States Capital Tallahassee Largest city Jacksonville Governor Jeb Bush Official languages English Area 170,451 km² (22nd)  - Land 137,374 km²  - Water 30,486 km² (17. ... State nickname: Beaver State Other U.S. States Capital Salem Largest city Portland Governor Ted Kulongoski Official languages None Area 255,026 km² (9th)  - Land 248,849 km²  - Water 6,177 km² (2. ... The United States Electoral College is the electoral college which chooses the President and Vice President of the United States at the conclusion of each Presidential election. ... January 29 is the 29th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1877 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Seal of the Congress. ... Seal of the Congress. ... The House of Representatives is the larger of two houses that make up the U.S. Congress, the other being the United States Senate. ... The United States Senate is the upper house of the U.S. Congress, smaller than the United States House of Representatives. ... The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court of the United States, located in Washington, D.C., is the highest court (see supreme court) in the United States; that is, it has ultimate judicial authority within the United States to interpret and decide questions of federal law, including...

As the House was controlled by the Democrats, three of its five commission members were members of the Democratic party. The Senate meanwhile was controlled by the Republicans, whose members were similarly apportioned in the Republican Party's favor. Finally from among the Supreme Court members, the Republicans and Democrats each chose two, with the four chosen electing the fifth and final justice; ostensibly to make the commission as impartial as possible. The House of Representatives is the larger of two houses that make up the U.S. Congress, the other being the United States Senate. ... The Democratic Party is one of the two major political parties in the United States. ... The United States Senate is the upper house of the U.S. Congress, smaller than the United States House of Representatives. ... The Republican Party, often called the GOP (for Grand Old Party, although one early citation described it as the Gallant Old Party) [1], is one of the two major political parties in the United States. ... The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court of the United States, located in Washington, D.C., is the highest court (see supreme court) in the United States; that is, it has ultimate judicial authority within the United States to interpret and decide questions of federal law, including...

The justices selected Justice David Davis, but he was elected to the Senate by Illinois' state legislature, and he resigned from the Supreme Court, forcing them to choose an alternate, Justice Joseph P. Bradley, a Republican but still considered the most impartial remaining member of the court. This proved insufficient however, as on each of the four disputed states he joined with the other 7 Republican members to form an 8-7 majority verdict to award all the votes to Hayes. David Davis III (March 9, 1815 - June 26, 1886) was a United States Senator from Illinois and associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. ... State nickname: The Prairie State Other U.S. States Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Governor Rod Blagojevich Official languages English Area 149,998 km² (25th)  - Land 143,968 km²  - Water 6,030 km² (4. ... Joseph Philo Bradley (March 14, 1813-January 22, 1892), was an American jurist. ...

In response, Senate Democrats threatened a filibuster to prevent the commission from reporting its results. To prevent this, the Republicans negotiated an agreement known as the Compromise of 1877: federal troops were withdrawn from the south, a southerner was appointed to Hayes' cabinet, and the south received various economic benefits. The withdrawal of Federal troops marked the end of Reconstruction and post-Civil War efforts to bring about racial equality. Filibuster can mean a legislative tactic. ... In United States politics, the Compromise of 1877 was a compromise made necessary by the disputed Election of 1876. ... In the history of the United States, Reconstruction was the period after the American Civil War when the southern states of the defeated Confederacy, which had seceded from the United States, were reintegrated into the Union. ...

Wisconsin's votes were challenged although the state had clearly gone to Hayes, due to the fact that the Democrats thought they had been cheated out of victory. A filibuster incurred in the House when the body refused to vote.

After the long filibuster in the House was dissolved, Wisconsin's votes were counted for Hayes for a 185-184 electoral vote majority. The decision was handed down on March 2, 1877, at 4:10am, declaring Rutherford B. Hayes the winner of the election. The election was viewed by some as having been stolen, and Hayes was dubbed "Ruthefraud" by his opponents. March 2 is the 61st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (62nd in leap years). ...

Members of the Electoral Commission