Letcher's defeat in Henry Clay's home district was a strong indication of the decline of Whig influence in Kentucky.

[4] He then read law in the office of Humphrey Marshall, was admitted to the bar, and commenced practice in Lancaster, Kentucky.

Consistent with his support of Clay, he promoted expansion of internal improvements, including the Maysville Road bill vetoed by Jackson.

Moore had previously represented the counties in the fifth district (Garrard excepted), and had just returned from a four-year stint as U.S. minister to Grenada.

[3] Four candidates were initially put forward for the office of governor, but two withdrew from consideration, leaving the contest between Letcher and Judge William Owsley.

[11] In the general election, Letcher defeated his Democratic opponent, Judge Richard French, by a majority of over 15,000 votes (out of 95,020 cast).

On January 11, 1841, Crittenden replied that he expected to be named attorney general and believed he could accept the post before Letcher's preferred deadline.

However, due to Harrison's death only a month after his inauguration, Crittenden was not able to keep Letcher's timeline; he was appointed attorney general by John Tyler on March 5, 1841.

Consistent with his Whig views, Letcher blamed the crisis on the federal government's failure to recharter the Second Bank of the United States.

To ameliorate the state's dire financial situation, Letcher drastically cut spending, including the suspension of turnpike construction and improvements on the Green, Kentucky, and Licking rivers.

[16] Although Letcher generally opposed debt relief measures, he did allow the passage of some minor legislation to aid those most in danger of foreclosure on their property.

The next year, the General Assembly eliminated the summer terms of the circuit courts, effectively delaying some foreclosure hearings.

After twenty-eight ballots, no winner emerged, and Letcher's supporters withdrew his name and nominated Joseph R. Underwood, who eventually won the seat.

[18] Letcher's primary responsibility was negotiating a treaty to protect the interests of some American citizens who had purchased the rights to construct a line of transit on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec.

Letcher wrote to Secretary of State John M. Clayton that the treaty fell short of what he had hoped for, but that he believed that its provisions were the best that could be obtained.

[20] A month after Letcher signed the treaty, Clayton was replaced as Secretary of State by Daniel Webster.

In response to concerns raised by one of the Americans hoping to construct the line of transit, Webster asked that Letcher attempt to obtain certain modifications to the treaty.

[21] Letcher, speaking with the blessing of the administration, intimated that the United States would take the region by force if the requested concessions were not made.

[24] Letcher attempted to negotiate a new treaty to re-acquire the rights nullified by the Mexican government, but by February 14, 1852, he reported that he did not expect to be able to reach any kind of agreement.

[27] Whigs were eager to avenge the loss in 1853, and Letcher wanted to be their candidate, but at their state convention, they chose Kentucky Attorney General James Harlan.

[30] Letcher, as he did for much of the campaign, responded by appealing to party loyalty; Breckinridge would misrepresent the district, he claimed, "because he is a Democrat".

On one occasion, Letcher so frequently attempted to interrupt Breckinridge that John J. Crittenden grabbed him by the coat tails to restrain him.

[33] Breckinridge responded by citing newspaper accounts of an 1848 campaign speech Letcher had made in Indiana on behalf of Zachary Taylor.

In the speech, he predicted that the constitutional convention then under way in Kentucky would produce a document that contained provisions for gradual emancipation, noting "It is only the ultra men in the extreme South who desire the extension of slavery.

"[34] Both candidates received financial support from outside the district, some of which was used to buy votes or bribe voters to stay home.

Breckinridge received several thousand dollars, with a substantial amount coming from Washington, D.C., banker William Wilson Corcoran; estimates of Letcher's support ranged from $30,000 to $100,000.

[38] After the dissolution of the Whig Party, Letcher generally supported Know-Nothing candidates in state politics.

Letcher and Crittenden both supported National Union candidate John Bell in the 1860 presidential election, believing he represented the best hope of peacefully resolving the tension between the north and south.