1856 United States presidential election in Pennsylvania

The 1856 United States presidential election in Pennsylvania took place on November 4, 1856, as part of the 1856 United States presidential election. Voters chose 27 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

Pennsylvania voted for the Democratic candidate, James Buchanan, over the Republican candidate, John C. Frémont, and the Know Nothing candidate, Millard Fillmore. Buchanan, a lifelong Pennsylvanian, won his home state by a margin of 18.12%.

Following the election, Pennsylvania would establish itself as a Republican stronghold. This would be the final time that Pennsylvania would vote for a Democratic candidate until Franklin D. Roosevelt won the state in 1936, as well as the last time that the state voted for a non-Republican candidate until Theodore Roosevelt’s third-party bid in 1912.

As of the 2020 presidential election, this is the only time Snyder County voted for a Democratic presidential candidate. Lebanon County has voted for the Democratic presidential candidate once since, in 1936. Blair, Dauphin, and Philadelphia counties would not vote Democratic again until 1936, and Delaware County until 1964. Lancaster, Huntingdon, and Somerset counties have voted for a Democrat once since, in 1964.

This remains the only presidential election in history in which New York voted Republican while its neighboring state, Pennsylvania, voted Democratic.