The 45th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1877, to March 4, 1879, during the first two years of Rutherford Hayes's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1870 United States census. The Senate had a Republican majority, and the House had a Democratic majority. The 45th Congress remained politically divided between a Democratic House and Republican Senate. President Hayes vetoed an Army appropriations bill from the House which would have ended Reconstruction and prohibited the use of federal troops to protect polling stations in the former Confederacy. Striking back, Congress overrode another of Hayes’s vetoes and enacted the Bland-Allison Act that required the purchase and coining of silver. Congress also approved a generous increase in pension eligibility for Northern Civil War veterans. Major events March 4, 1877: Rutherford B. Hayes became President of the United States Major legislation February 28, 1878: Bland–Allison Act (Coinage Act (Silver Dollar)), Sess. 2, ch. 20, April 29, 1878: National Quarantine Act of 1878, Sess. 2, ch. 66, June 3, 1878: Timber and Stone Act, Sess. 2, ch. 151, June 18, 1878: Posse Comitatus Act, Sess. 2, ch. 263, §15, Party summary The count below identifies party affiliations at the beginning of the first session of this Congress, and includes members from vacancies and newly admitted states, when they were first seated. Changes resulting from subsequent replacements are shown below in the "Changes in membership" section. During this Congress, two Senate seats and one House seat were added for the new state, Colorado. Senate House of Representatives Leadership Senate President: William A. Wheeler (R) President pro tempore: Thomas W. Ferry (R) Republican Conference Chairman: Henry B. Anthony Democratic Caucus Chairman: William A. Wallace House of Representatives Speaker: Samuel J. Randall (D) Democratic Caucus Chairman: Hiester Clymer Republican Conference Chairman: Eugene Hale Democratic Campaign Committee Chairman: Joseph Clay Stiles Blackburn Members This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed in order of seniority, and representatives are listed by district. Senate Senators were elected by the state legislatures every two years, with one-third beginning new six-year terms with each Congress. Preceding the names in the list below are Senate class numbers, which indicate the