made clear it would not countenance Pierpont leaving his post unless a suitable successor could be found, who, for political reasons, would have had to been a man with roots in the Commonwealth's post-1863 borders who was loyal to the United States, willing to recognize West Virginia, qualified to serve as a state governor and yet also willing to accept an office that it appeared would be little more than a figurehead position for an indeterminate period. As no viable candidate willing to succeed Pierpont could be found, Arthur I. Boreman was elected governor of West Virginia. At the same time, Pierpont reluctantly remained Governor of the "restored" state of Virginia. From 1863 until 1865, the Pierpont administration's de facto control was limited to those parts of the Commonwealth not claimed by West Virginia that were held by Federal arms - specifically, several Northern Virginia, Norfolk area, and Eastern Shore counties. While Pierpont claimed Richmond as the official state capital (as his administration had done since 1861), the de facto seat of government was established in Alexandria for the remainder of the Civil War. The pro-Confederate state government in Richmond maintained its claim to the Commonwealth's antebellum borders and administered the regions of the Commonwealth still held under Confederate arms - at the time of West Virginia's statehood, this included at least some measure of control about thirteen counties claimed by the newly admitted state. In 1864 Pierpont called a Constitutional Convention in Alexandria that recognized West Virginia, abolished slavery, and promulgated the civil Constitution in force in Virginia until 1869. On May 9, 1865, one month after the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, President Andrew Johnson recognized Pierpont as the Governor of Virginia. Pierpont immediately re-located the seat of government to Richmond. Reconstruction Pierpont followed a policy of forgiveness to those politicians who had served in the Confederate military and government. The Virginia government started to pass laws restoring ex-Confederates to their lost privileges, to the displeasure of most former Union Republicans. As the South became increasingly resistant to Reconstruction after the war, the United States Congress passed the Military Reconstruction Act of 1867. Through this Act, Virginia was designated the "First Military District" in 1868, and military commander John Schofield replaced Pierpont with Henry H. Wells until state delegates could write and enact a new constitution. According to the Civil War historian Richard Lowe, Hiram Bond,