Changes

Following the controversy over the Compromise of 1850, Democratic leaders sought to reunite the party by nominating a Northern candidate and a Southern running mate, neither of whom had been absolutely opposed to the Compromise. As 1852 began, leading contenders for the nomination included Senators [[Stephen A. Douglas]] of [[Illinois]], [[Lewis Cass]] of [[Michigan]], and [[Sam Houston]] of [[Texas]]; former [[Secretary of State]] [[James Buchanan]] of [[Pennsylvania]]; and former [[Secretary of War]] [[William L. Marcy]] of [[New York]]. Of these, Douglas and Buchanan were the apparent frontrunners, but each was ultimately unable to unite a majority of the party behind him. With the more obvious candidates canceling each other out, Democrats began seeking a "dark horse," and by March a movement had emerged in favor of Franklin Pierce, a former U.S. senator from New Hampshire who had distinguished himself in the [[Mexican War]]. To his supporters, Pierce's chief qualifications were that he was much younger than the other candidates (except for Douglas), was personally amiable and had not alienated large sections of the party, and stood for enforcement of the Compromise of 1850 (including the [[Fugitive Slave Act]]). At the Democratic convention in [[Baltimore]] in early June, Pierce was not initially put forth as a candidate, but once the others failed to gain a majority, he was, as planned, put forward as an alternative, and won on the 49th ballot. [[William R. King]], a former U.S. senator from [[Alabama]], was nominated for Vice-President.

===Whig Party nomination===