<P> The Union party was formed in 1851, an offshoot of the Whig party in several Southern states, including Georgia . As the 1852 presidential election approached, Union party leaders decided to wait and see who was nominated by the two major parties . The movement to nominate Daniel Webster as a third - party candidate began in earnest following the Whig Convention, largely driven by those who had been strenuously opposed to Winfield Scott's nomination, among them Alexander Stephens, Robert Toombs, and George Curtis . While Webster was against what he perceived as a "revolt" from the Whig Party and preferred not to be nominated, he let Americans vote for him should the party choose to nominate him . </P> <P> The Union Party held its Georgia state convention on August 7, 1852 and nominated Webster for president and Charles J. Jenkins of Georgia for vice-president . A formal convention was held at Faneuil Hall in Boston, Massachusetts on September 15, affirming the nominations made at the state convention in Georgia and rejecting Winfield Scott as nothing more than a military figure . The Webster / Jenkins ticket received nationwide support, particularly among Southern Whigs, but also in Massachusetts and New York, but it was largely perceived by many as nothing more than getting voters who would, in different circumstances, support Scott . </P> <P> Webster had no real chance of winning the election, but even the new Know - Nothing party endorsed Webster, nominating him without even his own permission . However, Webster died nine days before the election of a cerebral hemorrhage on October 24, 1852 . </P> <P> Around the mid-1840s, nativists were present in New York politics, under the aegis of the American Republican Party . The American Republican party was formed in 1843 in major opposition to immigration and Catholicism . In 1845, the party changed its name to the Native American Party . Their opponents nicknamed them the "Know Nothings" and the party liked the name and it became the nickname of the party after that until it collapsed in 1860 . In 1852, the original candidate planned by the Native American Party was Daniel Webster, the nominee of the Union party as well as Secretary of State . They nominated Webster without his permission, with George Corbin Washington (grandnephew of George Washington) as his running mate . Webster died of natural causes nine days before the election, and the Know Nothings quickly replaced Webster by nominating Jacob Broom as president and replaced Washington with Reynell Coates . With Webster collecting a few thousand votes, Broom received too few, and lost the election . In the future, former president Millard Fillmore would be their candidate in 1856 . </P>

Who were the candidates in the presidential election of 1852 and what issues did each support