<P> Political patronage, also known as the "spoils system," was the issue that angered many reform - minded Republicans, leading them to reject Blaine's candidacy . In the spoils system, the winning candidate would dole out government positions to those who had supported his political party prior to the election . Although the Pendleton Act of 1883 made competency and merit the base qualifications for government positions, its effective implementation was slow . Political affiliation continued to be the basis for appointment to many positions . </P> <P> In the early 1880s, the issue of political patronage split the Republican Party down the middle for several consecutive sessions of Congress . The party was divided into two warring factions, each with creative names . The side that held the upper hand in numbers and popular support were the Half - Breeds, led by Senator James Blaine of Maine . The Half - Breeds supported civil service reform, and often blocked legislation and political appointments put forth by their main congressional opponents, the Stalwarts, led by Roscoe Conkling of New York . </P> <P> Ironically, Blaine was from the reform wing of his own party, but the Mugwumps rejected his candidacy . This division among Republicans may have contributed to the victory in 1884 of Grover Cleveland, the first president elected from the Democratic party since the Civil War . In the period from 1876 to 1892, presidential elections were closely contested at the national level, but the states themselves were mostly dominated by a single party, with Democrats prevailing in the South and the Republicans in the Northeast . Although the defection of the Mugwumps may have helped Cleveland win in New York, one of the few closely contested states, historians attribute Cleveland's victory nationwide to the rising power of urban immigrant voters . </P> <P> The 1883 law only applied to federal jobs: not to the state and local jobs that were the main basis for political machines . Ethical degeneration was halted by reform in civil service and municipal reform in the Progressive Era, which led to structural changes in administrative departments and changes in the way the government managed public affairs . </P>

Who rejected civil service protection after his presidency