Editing Reconstruction era (section)

=== 1866 ===
By 1866, the faction of [[Radical Republicans]] led by Representative [[Thaddeus Stevens]] and Senator [[Charles Sumner]] was convinced that Johnson's Southern appointees were disloyal to the Union, hostile to loyal Unionists, and enemies of the Freedmen. Radicals used as evidence outbreaks of [[mob violence]] against Black people, such as the [[Memphis riots of 1866]] and the [[New Orleans massacre of 1866]]. Radical Republicans demanded a prompt and strong federal response to protect freedmen and curb Southern racism.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Conklin |first=Forrest |date=1993 |title='Wiping Out' Andy" Johnson's Moccasin Tracks: The Canvass of Northern States By Southern Radicals, 1866 |journal=[[Tennessee Historical Quarterly]] |volume=52 |issue=2 |pages=122–133 |jstor=42627061 |oclc=9973918681}}</ref>

Stevens and his followers viewed secession as having left the states in a status like new territories. Sumner argued that [[Secession in the United States|secession]] had destroyed statehood but the Constitution still extended its authority and its protection over individuals, as in [[Organized incorporated territories of the United States|existing U.S. territories]]. The Republicans sought to prevent Johnson's Southern politicians from "restoring the historical subordination of Negroes". Since slavery was abolished, the [[Three-fifths Compromise]] no longer applied to counting the population of Blacks. After the 1870 Census, the South would gain numerous additional representatives in Congress, based on the full population of freedmen.<ref group="lower-roman">All Blacks would be counted in 1870, whether or not they were citizens.</ref> One Illinois Republican expressed a common fear that if the South were allowed to simply restore its previous established powers, that the "reward of treason will be an increased representation".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Valelly |first=Richard M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V4__EYITWk4C |title=The Two Reconstructions: The Struggle for Black Enfranchisement |publisher=University of Chicago Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-226-84530-2 |page=29 |via=Google Books}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Trefousse |first=Hans L. |title=The Radical Republicans |publisher=Louisiana State University Press |year=1975 |isbn=9780807101698 |location=Baton Rouge}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=February 2024}}

The election of 1866 decisively changed the balance of power, giving the Republicans two-thirds majorities in both houses of Congress, and enough votes to overcome Johnson's vetoes. They moved to [[Impeachment of Andrew Johnson|impeach Johnson]] because of his constant attempts to thwart Radical Reconstruction measures, by using the [[Tenure of Office Act (1867)|''Tenure of Office Act'']]. Johnson was acquitted by one vote, but he lost the influence to shape Reconstruction policy.{{sfnp|Donald |Baker |Holt |2001|loc=ch. 28–29}}