RISE OF THE WHIGS The National Republicans, renamed Whigs, won the White House in 1840 with William Henry Harrison, left, and John Tyler, but Harrison died after 31 days in office. President Tyler, dubbed "His Accidency," infuriated the Whigs by vetoing a new national bank and higher tariffs. The Whigs nominated House Speaker Henry Clay to replace him, but he lost to a Democratic dark-horse candidate, James K. Polk. The slogan "Tippecanoe and Tyler, Too" commemorated Harrison's victory in an Indian uprising at Tippecanoe, Ind. [ PREVIOUS | NEXT ]