The fourteenth amendment, which was passed by Congress, addressed the rights all blacks and minimized the power of ex-Rebels within southern states. When his opponents tried to block the ratification by preventing a quorum, Brownlow had them arrested. In order to establish a quorum, he had them brought to the capitol where he confined them in a room and counted them as being present but not voting. Soon after the ratification, Tennessee was admitted back into the …show more content…
With the support of most freedmen behind him, Brownlow wanted to make certain that nothing could stand in his way. He therefore concocted a story in which the Conservatives were planning on overthrowing the state government in order to convince the legislature to create a military force. By doing this, Brownlow was able to use the State Guard to protect the freedmen’s votes and also into intimidated the registered voters to vote for him and his administration. Consequently, Brownlow was able to win the election quite