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The Confederate States presidential election of 1873 was the third election held for President of the Confederate States. It was the first contested presidential elections, as in both prior elections the president had been elected unanimously.
The winner of the election was John C. Breckinridge of Kentucky, who ran as a member of the newly formed National League with Zebulon B. Vance of North Carolina as his running mate. His sole opponent was an independent, Joseph E. Johnston of Virginia, who had Raphael Semmes of Alabama as his running mate. Johnston and Semmes were endorsed by the retiring president, James Longstreet, but Longstreet was unpopular and his endorsement worked against them, leading to a large victory for Breckinridge.