Campaign lapel pin for McClellan and Pendleton, 1864
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- Chicago History Museum, ICHi-52516
McClellan’s Return
The 1864 presidential election pitted the incumbent Lincoln against his former general-in-chief, George B. McClellan, whom he had dismissed in 1862. McClellan disagreed with Lincoln’s emancipation policy and thought the original purpose of the war — the preservation of the Union — had been obscured by “other issues.” Lincoln defeated McClellan with 55 percent of the popular vote and 90 percent of the electoral vote.