The
1848 Democratic National Convention, a
presidential nominating convention of United States
Democratic Party delegates representing all thirty states in the union at the time, met in Baltimore on May 22, 1848. Former Speaker of the House
Andrew Stevenson of
Virginia was made the president (chair) of the convention. After readopting the two-thirds rule for selecting the nominee, the assembly turned to the thorny problem of competing delegations representing different factions of the New York party. The convention adopted a compromise (by a vote of 126 to 125) of splitting the thirty-six votes between the pro-
Van Buren faction and the
Hunkers that opposed them. Unsatisfied, the pro-Van Burenite
Barnburners withdrew and the remaining New Yorkers refused to vote.