 The speech was a success and Ingersoll 's appellation of " plumed knight " remained a nickname for Blaine for years to come . On the first ballot , no candidate received the required majority of 378 , but Blaine had the most votes , with 285 and no other candidate had more than 125 . There were a few vote shifts in the next five ballots , and Blaine climbed to 308 votes , with his nearest competitor at just 111 . On the seventh ballot the situation shifted drastically as anti @-@ Blaine delegates began to coalesce around Hayes ; by the time the balloting ended , Blaine 's votes had risen to 351 , but Hayes surpassed him at 384 , a majority . 
