Sticking with the convention of the times, Buchanan did not himself campaign, but he wrote letters and pledged to uphold the Democratic platform. In the election, Buchanan carried every slave state except for Maryland, as well as five free states, including his home state of Pennsylvania. He won 45 percent of the popular vote and 174 electoral votes, compared to Frémont's 114 electoral votes and Fillmore's 8 electoral votes. Buchanan's election made him the first and so far only president from Pennsylvania. In his victory speech, Buchanan denounced Republicans, calling the Republican Party a 'dangerous' and 'geographical' party that had unfairly attacked the South. President-elect Buchanan would also state, 'the object of my administration will be to destroy sectional party, North or South, and to restore harmony to the Union under a national and conservative government.'