panic of 1873 caused the Republicans to lose control of the Congress in 1874 in one of the greatest turnovers in history. The Republicans did, however, emerge from that election with a new party symbol, the elephant, after it first appeared in a newspaper cartoon by Thomas Nast.In 1876 the Republicans nominated a virtual unknown, Rutherford B. HAYES of Ohio. The warring factions of the party were reunited as Hayes promised to remove the federal troops from the South and urged civil service reform. The Democratic candidate, Samuel J. TILDEN of New York, received the greatest number of popular votes, but widespread charges of electoral irregularities led to the appointment of a congressional electoral commission to review the results and decide who should receive disputed votes in four states. The commission, controlled by Republicans, granted all the votes to Hayes, thereby giving him the election by an electoral-college margin of 185 to 184.The Hayes administration was tarnished by the means in which it came to office but was generally efficient. Hayes ended Reconstruction, reformed the civil service, and espoused sound money policies. All these actions were unpopular with the old- guard Republicans led by Roscoe Conkling, and Hayes did not seek a second term. Instead, James A. GARFIELD was nominated as the Republican candidate in 1880. Chester A. ARTHUR of New York was nominated for vice-president. After winning a close election, Garfield was assassinated and Arthur became president. In spite of a past record as a "spoilsman," one who placed the party faithful in government jobs, Arthur astonished many with his success in getting passed the Pendleton Act, creating a civil service based on the merit system. He was never able to gain control of his party, however, and was the only president denied renomination by his party's convention. James G. Blaine of Maine received the nomination instead and faced Democrat Grover CLEVELAND of New Yo...
