While serving as governor, Ward was also elected chairman of the Republican National Committee, and he served from 1866 to 1868. In 1868, Ward became the first president of the Newark Industrial Exhibition. After leaving the governor's office, Ward resumed his business and civic interests. In 1872, he was a successful candidate for Congress in the newly created 6th District, and he served one term, 1873 to 1875. He was defeated for reelection in 1874 by Democrat Frederick H. Teese. Ward contracted malaria while on a trip to Florida in early 1884. He returned home, but did not recover. Ward died in Newark on April 25, 1884, and was buried at Mount Pleasant Cemetery. In 1840, Ward married Susan Longworth Morris, the daughter of John and Elizabeth (Longworth) Morris and a member of the same family that included Nicholas Longworth (1783-1863 and Nicholas Longworth (1844-1890) and Nicholas Longworth (1869-1931). The Wards were the parents of Joseph Morris (1841-1911), Elizabeth Morris (1843-1848), Frances Lavinia (1844-1846); Marcus L. Ward, Jr. (1847-1920), Catharine Almira Morris (1849-1860), Nicholas Longworth (1852-1857), John Longworth Morris (1854-1855), and Frances Brown (1856-1864). Only two children, Joseph and Marcus, lived to adulthood. After Ward's death, his son Marcus used part of the family fortune to found a home for elderly bachelors and widowers, the Ward Homestead. The site is now part of a larger retirement complex known as Winchester Gardens. In 1941, the Schoolmen’s Club of Newark and the Newark Museum dedicated a memorial plaque to Ward in the Alice Ransom Dreyfuss Memorial Garden behind the Newark Museum. The museum was built on the site of Ward's former home.