1853 Texas' 2nd Congressional District Election

The 1853 Texas' 2nd Congressional District Election were held on August 1st, 1853 to elect a representative from Texas' 2nd Congressional District to the US House of Representatives. The election featured former Texian and US Army Colonel Micah S. Taylor, running as an independent, and incumbent Governor of Texas Peter Hansborough Bell, running as a Democrat. The election was tightly contested, as the two war heroes of both the Texas Revolution and Mexican-American War garnered much support. Despite Bell's popularity as Governor of Texas and firebrand rhetoric, Taylor's reputation and moderate views, plus a key endorsement from Sam Houston, held greater appeal with an increasingly divisive US House of Representatives, and he was able to secure a narrow victory of just over 700 votes. The election was characterized by the popularity of both candidates, and generated a high turnout of voters. Texas historian Eugene C. Barker said of the election, "The 1853 US House election for the 2nd District featured two highly regarded candidates, and many of the voters would have been happy with either Taylor or Bell in Washington, but only one could be sent to Capitol Hill."

Background
Micah C. Taylor, born on October 10th, 1795 in Bardstown, Kentucky, served as a Sergeant in the 1st Regiment of Riflemen from 1811-1814, before becoming a Captain in Slaughter's Kentucky Volunteers during the New Orleans Campaign, seeing action during the Battle of New Orleans under General Andrew Jackson, following the death of his wife earlier in the year in Louisville. After returning home to Kentucky with his new wife Annette, Taylor would purchase a plot of land in the recently established town of Gonzales, and would move to Green DeWitt's colony with their 2 children in 1826. Opening a blacksmith shop, and his wife Annette a tailoring business, the Taylor's would become respected members of the community, and Taylor would be elected a Lieutenant Colonel in the local militia. During the Battle of Gonzales, Taylor would be apart of the "Old Nineteen." Taylor would go on to serve as acting commander of the Gonzales Militia, under Stephen F. Austin's Army during the first stage of the Texas Revolution, distinguishing himself at the Grass Fight and Siege of Bexar. By chance, when visiting San Antonio de Béxar on business on February 23, 1836, Taylor found himself forced to seek refuge in the Alamo along with the garrison. Taylor would fight with the garrison for the majority of the siege, before William B. Travis would send a begrudging Taylor back to Gonzales as a courier on March 3rd, carrying dispatches, news, and letters from the garrison. After distinguished service at the Battle of San Jacinto, Taylor would remain commissioned as a Colonel in the militia, although he was sent to London and Paris in 1842 as an emissary of the Texian Government before returning home after news of the Mexican incursion reached him in London. A personal friend of Sam Houston, he would be appointed Secretary of Indian Affairs during Houston's second term, and attempted to restore relations with local tribes, to a limited degree of success. Taylor would also serve as the representative from Gonzales County in the House of Representatives of the Republic of Texas Congress from 1838-1841. After the Annexation of Texas in 1845, Taylor and his regiment of militia, widely regarded as the best in Texas, would join the army of Taylor's cousin Zachary Taylor at Corpus Christi. Serving with distinction alongside his sons Jacob and Mark during Z. Taylor's northern campaign, his regiment would be sent home after suffering irreplaceable casualties at the Battle of Buena Vista. Taylor would go to Tampico to join General Winfield Scott's staff at Scott's personal request, and would serve through the remainder of the war, being a founding member of the Aztec Club of 1847. Taylor would enter politics following his retirement from US Army service in 1851. Taylor chose to ran in the race as an independent, claiming that he did not identify with any major party.

Bell was born in Culpeper County, Virginia on May 11, 1810. He was educated in Virginia and Maryland before emigrating to Texas. By 1836 Bell was a member of the Texian Army and present at the Battle of San Jacinto. Joining the Texas Rangers under J. C. Hays, he would eventually rise to the rank of Inspector General of the Republic of Texas Army. In 1845, Bell was named a captain of the Texas Rangers. Given command of the Corpus Christi district, he protected the primary trade route between Texas and Mexico from outlaws. With the outbreak of the Mexican–American War, Bell became a lieutenant colonel in the Second Regiment Texas Mounted Volunteers. His actions during the Battle of Buena Vista were particularly distinguished. Following the war, he returned to the Rangers and served along the western frontier. During the 1849 Texas gubernatorial election, Bell ran on a platform advocating strong frontier defense and support of Texas's territorial claim to New Mexico. To this end, he called for additional resources to eradicate the Native American population and sending troops to Santa Fe in support of Texas' claim to Santa Fe County. This platform allowed him to defeat incumbent Governor George T. Wood by a vote of 10,319 to 8,754. Shortly after Bell's December 1849 inauguration at age 39, the Texas Legislature created three new counties from the southern section of Santa Fe County. The governor sent Robert Neighbors to oversee the organization of the new counties. Neighbors found the inhabitants of the new counties hostile to Texas interests and that residents of Santa Fe had written their own constitution. After Neighbors' report became public in June 1850, Governor Bell, aged 40, called a special session of the legislature to deal with these developments. The issue was resolved several months later in the Compromise of 1850, Bell signed Texas' acceptance legislation on November 25, 1850. Bell won re-election in 1851 due to his aggressive policies and his being the most Southern of the five candidates. Highlights of his second term were payment of Texas' public debt and resolution of land claim disputes between empresarios and their colonists. Announcing his bid to run for the 2nd District's representative in Washington after Taylor, who had already begun campaigning, Bell has considerably less time to campaign while trying to make up for lost time and balancing his schedule as Governor. Some historians have noted this to be the major difference in the race.