Hail, Columbia! (The Election of 1828)

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Not since the days of Gilbert Lafayette had an American president enjoyed such enormous popularity as did François Blanchet at the end of his first administration, and the general prosperity of the country - combined by the patriotic fervor aroused by the onset of war with Britain - catapulted the president back into La Maison Blanchet with an overwhelming popular mandate. In provinces were electors were chosen by popular vote, Blanchet outpolled his Continental opponent by nearly twenty points, larger even than John Quincy Adams' quasi-victory against Martin Van Buren eight years earlier. Brimming with confidence, the newly-reelected chief executive ordered the armies of the Commonwealth to dislodge the last vestiges of British power on the North American continent, authorizing invasions of Jamaica and the Oregon country.

The four years that followed, however, would not be as kind to François Blanchet as had been his country's electorate. The war with Britain, begun with such enthusiasm by the Americans, quickly turned sour as the end of the French-Anglo War of 1823 allowed Britain to send legions battle-hardened redcoats to defend her American holdings. While American forces met some success in Jamaica, winning several small land and sea battles in 1825, they were quickly cut off by the superior British navy and forced to surrender. The invasion force headed for Oregon, meanwhile, never reached its target, instead wasting away in an ill-advised crossing of the Rockies. The British, for their part, found the American Commonwealth too vast a country to conquer. An invasion of Mexico, commanded by none other than the famed Duke of Wellington, was turned back after the Duke was killed during a battle outside of Mexico City, and an attempt to pry Quebec from the grasp of the Americans met with similar failure. Though the Royal Navy successfully terrorized the Mid Atlantic, burning Baltimore and laying waste to the Virginia coast, these victories had little effect on the outcome of the war, and following the successful defense of the federal capital in the summer of 1827, the British decided to sue for peace. The resultant Treaty of Geneva, signed by the combatants in the summer of 1828, effectively reaffirmed the pre-war status quo: neither Britain nor the Commonwealth gained or lost any land, with affirmations of the territorial integrity of each serving mainly to soothe the egos of the battered states.

As the Election of 1828 approaches, candidates for the presidency are acutely aware of the importance of popular perception of the war, with both the Continentals and Blanchet's Whigs seeking to spin the history of the last four years to their advantage. While the Continentals belabor the human and monetary expense of the fighting, Blanchet and the Whigs insist that the war was necessary to defend their country's honor, arguing that the American victories at Quebec, Franklin, and Mexico City reaffirmed the integrity and reputation of the Commonwealth. With the final text of the peace treaty yet to reach the continent, public opinion on the matter is decidedly uncertain, though the Whig's version of events is generally accepted outside of New England and the Mid Atlantic.


Secretary of the Treasury José María Bocanegra of Mexico [Whig]
Like Lafayette and Van Buren before him, President Blanchet has declined nomination to a third term, announcing his intention to retire following the 1828 election. To replace him, the Whigs have nominated the respected Secretary of the Treasury, José María Bocanegra of Mexico. Slightly more amicable to a protective tariff than his immediate predecessor, as Treasury Secretary Bocanegra presided over the deconstruction of the National Bank and the institution of a network of independent  provincial banks, a popular accomplishment in the South and on the Western frontier. Outside of fiscal policy, Bocanegra is known to favor universal free manhood suffrage and is generally supportive of provincial autonomy. If elected, he can be expected to continue Van Buren's policy of westward expansion and has recommended for the annexation of Cuba.


Senator Samuel L. Southard of New Jersey [Continental]
Leaders of the Continental Party had hoped to nominated John Q. Adams for the presidency in 1828, but he declined, insisting that he had no desire to make a third bid for the office. Instead, the caucus settled upon Samuel L. Southard, a Senator and former Governor from New Jersey. While Southard vhemently opposed "Blanchet's War," thus making him acceptable to the New England wing of the party, he has been a vocal supporter of a strong national navy in the past, which the Continentals hope will dispel rumors of pacifism that have dogged the party over the last four years. Steadfastly federalist, Southard has called for a Second National Bank and a strong tariff; in a bid to appeal to Western voters, he has likewise proposed lowering the price of public land on the frontier. Conversely, Southard also supports granting Congressional representation to the Five Civilized Tribes, an action that is sure to anger Western settlers. He has criticized the Whigs for "entangling" the Commonwealth in European affairs and promises to return to a policy of strict neutrality if elected.

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

Southard and Westward!

[Mr. Smith]

Southard

[Lexii, harbinger of chaos and sexual anarchy]

Samuel L. JacksonSouthard (not imperialist)

[Zioneer]

Southard and Westward!

[Cranberry]

Freedom for Cuba! Bocanegra!

[Clark Kent]

I would actually be okay with both of these

[/]

Southard

[Supersonic]

Southard

[Intell]

Bocanegra.

[Kingpoleon]

Bocanegra!

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Election of 1828

Samuel L. Southard [Continental-New Jersey]—48 Electors
José María Bocanegra [Whig-Mexico]—32 Electors

Twenty years since they had last won the presidency, many had assumed that the Continental Party was doomed to collapse, such was the strength of the Whig coalition that had delivered landslide Francois Blanchet in 1820 and 1824. Public opinion, however, had turned decidedly against Blanchet and his party towards the end of his second term, with the ill-advised invasion of Jamaica and Oregon and the near-defeat of the American armies tainting the president's once-spotless record. Enter Samuel L. Southard, a little-known senator in the Continental Congress from New Jersey who managed to beat the Whigs at their own game, uniting French Canadians, Northeastern financiers, and anglophone settlers on the frontier to topple Blanchet's empire. Thus, Southard became the first Continental president in nearly two decades, while the Whigs were left to nurse their wounds and prepare for a comeback in 1832.