The following information discusses the problems between the black and white Republicans during Reconstruction.
While white Republicans were concerned with black demands
for office, blacks were concerned that whites blocked them from achieving
office. Throughout the state, black political leaders were more assertive than
in previous elections. At the district convention of Senator Matthew Gaines's
Sixteenth, blacks went so far as to demand an all-Negro slate, since they
formed the party's voting strength. DeGress, in an attempt to prevent what
appeared to be a destructive move, argued that it would destroy the party's
chances in the district. Since the blacks outnumbered the whites, however, the
delegates selected a slate composed completely of Negroes. Concerned with the
state party's neglect of their situation and their ambitions, blacks at the
local level moved to take over the party for themselves.21
In some cases blacks were ready to see what kind of
deal they could make with the Democrats. In the Thirteenth District the
Democrats supported Walter Burton, the Negro sheriff of
[1] Carl H.
Moneyhon, Republicanism in Reconstruction