1856 Chicago mayoral election

Chicago mayoral election, 1856
← 1855 March 10, 1856 1857 →
 
Candidate Thomas Dyer Francis Cornwall Sherman
Party Nebraska Democrat Anti-Nebraska Democrat
(Cross-nominated by the Know Nothing Party)
Popular vote 4,712 4,138
Percentage 53.24% 46.76%

Mayor before election

Levi Boone
Know Nothing

Elected mayor

Thomas Dyer
Democratic

In the 1856 Chicago mayoral election, Thomas Dyer defeated former mayor Francis Cornwall Sherman.[1] The race was shaped by the divisive national political debate surrounding the issue of slavery, particularly debate surrounding the controversial Kansas–Nebraska Act, and the election was treated by many as a referendum on it.[2] Dyer vocally supported the act, while Sherman stood in opposition to it.

The election was held on March 10.[3]

  1. ^ "RaceID=486035". Our Campaigns. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Einhorn was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Mayor Thomas Dyer Biography". www.chipublib.org. Chicago Public Library. Retrieved January 2, 2021.