Erastus Fairbanks, Vermont Governor 1852-1853, 1860-1861

Erastus Fairbanks, Vermont Governor 1852-1853, 1860-1861

Because Fairbanks failed to win the majority of the popular vote in his 1852 campaign for governor as the Whig candidate, he was elected by the legislature. His first term of office saw passage of legislation forbidding the sale or traffic in intoxicating beverages-a law that was not repealed until 1902. Although he received a plurality of the vote in the 1853 gubernatorial election, his failure to win the majority called once more for intervention by the state legislature, which selected his Democratic opponent. Seven years later, he ran for governor again, this time as the nominee for the Republican Party·to which he had switched when the party was founded. Fairbanks' primary responsibility during his second term was to raise and supply soldiers for the Civil War.
From: https://www.nga.org/cms/home/governors/past-governors-bios/page_vermont/col2-content/main-content-list/title_fairbanks_erastus.default.html

VHS-A-854