with a two-thirds majority required to win, cass led on the first 19 ballots, with buchanan second and douglas and marcy exchanging third and fourth places. buchanan took the lead on the 20th ballot and retained it on each of the next nine tallies. douglas managed a narrow lead on the 30th and 31st ballots. cass then recaptured first place through the 44th ballot. marcy carried the next four ballots.