12. ZACHARY TAYLOR
(Whig - Louisiana) 1849 - 1857
Vice President: Millard Fillmore
(Whig - Louisiana) 1849 - 1857
Vice President: Millard Fillmore
A hero of the Mexican-American War, Zachary Taylor was elected to the presidency despite never having held political office before, and having never even voted in a presidential election. He defeated Lewis Cass and Martin Van Buren in the election of 1848, after having been recruited by both major parties. While Taylor was a Louisianan slaveholder, he was opposed to the expansion of slavery into territories acquired from the Mexican War. Following a health scare in the summer of 1850, he signed the Bell-Clay Compromise, which admitted California, New Mexico and San Antonio into the Union, while upholding the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Although he was a Southerner, Taylor tried to negate sectional differences, and to promote compromise between different parties and regions.
Taylor was re-elected in 1852, defeating young Illinois Senator Stephen Douglas, and continued with his policy of moderation and compromise, while advocating for Whig policies such as internal improvements, and for a relatively strong federal government. With regards to foreign policy, the Taylor administration negotiated the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, regarding a Central American canal, and worked to continue to improve relations with Great Britain. Taylor's first Secretary of State, William Clayton, took a firm stand against filibustering attempts in the Caribbean, though this prohibition was less strictly followed in Taylor's second term. Taylor also worked to open up relations with Japan, with Commodore Matthew Perry making several trips under Taylor. President Taylor had pledged to avoid any new wars in his presidency, and he lived up to this promise, respecting the sentiment of a nation weary from the Mexican War.
Taylor was not a trained politician or diplomat, and there were tensions in his relationships with Congress, and with other nations, especially initially. However, he learnt quickly, and his natural skills as a leader came to the fore, working as a force of moderation in a polarizing and rhetorically-charged atmosphere. Taylor was initially opposed by northern anti-slavery Whigs, but most significant resistance eventually came from southern Democrats, who felt betrayed by Taylor's stance against the expansion of slave territory. Taylor was re-elected without support from any Deep South state except for his own, Louisiana. He retired in 1856, following the tradition of presidents only serving two terms. His Whig Party made great progress in both 1850 and 1852, before suffering a little in the mid-term elections of 1854. Taylor presided over a strong economy, as the nation continued to recover from the Panic of 1837, and was able to maintain much of his popularity from the Mexican War, even as he moved into the political sphere.