Big GOP Victory in 1876

What if the Republicans had won Indiana, New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut in the 1876 election, thus cementing their win without needing to make any sort of deals with the Democrats?

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The GOP was fortunate enough to even have a prayer of winning the Presidency, let alone winning an outright majority. The economy was terrible, the once-popular Grant administration had been tainted by several scandals, and the Democrats nominated a popular hero in Samuel Tilden. Then there's the fact that the Democrats used voter suppression, aided by white racist violence, to prevent African-Americans from voting in the South. The only reason that Hayes was able to become President despite clearly losing the election was A) the commission determining the outcome of the election was controlled by partisan Republicans and B) a crooked deal with the South to make Hayes President in exchange for an end to Reconstruction.

And all that happened by nominating Hayes. A war veteran, unoffensive to many, and Governor of a key state - Hayes was by far the best Republican candidate in 1876. Just about any other Republican candidate would have lost. In order to get the GOP to win outright in 1876, you'd have to prevent the economic depression (which didn't just occur in the U.S.) and make Grant consult the Senate before nominating men to the Cabinet - none of which can be accomplished with a single POD.
 
Not a lot. By Nov 1876 the Republicans were out of power in all but three Southern states, and were hanging on by the fingertips even in those. So even if troops stay in the South a few years longer, it's only a matter of when. If Hayes keeps troops in the South, most likely the Dems win in 1880 and President Hancock withdraws them. The Northern public were fed up to the back teeth with the "autumnal outbreaks" and couldn't wait to wash their hands of the whole business. .
 
Well, if we have a POD far back enough that Grant’s administration goes more smoothly (no Panic of 1873 or Credit Mobilier scandal) and Tilden gets some sort of nasty October Surprise, the Republicans might have an outside chance at a real win.
 
The remarkable thing about 1876 is that the Republicans were even able to keep it close, given their losses in 1874 and the fact that that the severe depression that started in 1873 was by no means over. I just don't see them carrying Tilden's own state of New York and especially not New Jersey (NJ had voted for McClellan in 1864 and Seymour in 1868 and would later vote for Hancock in 1880).
 
Small point. If Hayes had swept the North as shown in the OP's map, would SC, FL and LA have been counted for him, or just left uncounted as were LA and AR in 1872? Since Hayes had a majority even without them, would they have been considered worth disputing?
 
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