Vice President Blanche Bruce 1881

In 1880, there was a small push to make Senator Blanche Bruce the running mate on the Republican ticket?

What if it had gone through and the United States had an African-American Vice President come 1881?
 
I'd speculate Garfield doesn't get assassinated since Charles Guiteau, though certifiably crazy, was motivated by a desire to make Chester Arthur president on the assumption that he was against civil service reform.

So Bruce goes through the motions of being VP and is little more than a footnote in history except inasmuch as he might inspire young African-Americans across the country on what they can accomplish.
 
I'd speculate Garfield doesn't get assassinated since Charles Guiteau, though certifiably crazy, was motivated by a desire to make Chester Arthur president on the assumption that he was against civil service reform.

So Bruce goes through the motions of being VP and is little more than a footnote in history except inasmuch as he might inspire young African-Americans across the country on what they can accomplish.
You are partially correct on the assassination. He was assassinated mostly because Garfield refused to give Guiteau the Ambassadorship to France, as Guiteau thought he helped Garfield win the election even thought the speech he gave was very minor.
 
You are partially correct on the assassination. He was assassinated mostly because Garfield refused to give Guiteau the Ambassadorship to France, as Guiteau thought he helped Garfield win the election even thought the speech he gave was very minor.
Yes, but he also explicitly identified as a Stalwart (i.e., a member of Arthur's faction); he might have been less inclined to assassinate Garfield if someone else was the VP.

That said, the election itself was fairly close; having a black running mate would almost certainly have flipped quite a few states, and possibly swung the election to Hancock (2% in New York is all that would be needed).
 
This is just not going to happen. Bruce got eight votes at the GOP national convention, compared to 464 for Chester Arthur, 193 for Elihu Washburne, etc. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1880_Republican_National_Convention (True, Bruce did get more votes than his white fellow Mississippian James Alcorn!) There would be little political advantage to it; African Americans had already been disfranchised in the South to the extent necessary to make that region "solid"; there were few African American in the North, and they would almost certainly vote Republican anyway; and in a close election like that of 1880, racism would certainly defeat the GOP ticket (which only very narrowly won in OTL.)
 
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