In
August 1848 at Buffalo, New York, a meeting of anti-slavery members
of the Whig Party and the Liberty
Party established the Free-Soil
Party. The new party opposed the extension of slavery into the western
territories. The main slogan of the party was "free soil, free
speech, free labour, and free men".
In the 1848 presidential election, Martin Van
Buren, the party's candidate, polled 10 per cent of the vote.
He split the traditional Democratic
support and enabled the Whig candidate,
Zachary
Taylor, to win.
By 1852 the Free-Soil Party had 12 congressmen but in presidential
election, John
P. Hale won over 5 per cent of the vote. Two years
later, remaining members joined the Republican
Party.
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