During the 1864 Republican National Convention, his former chief of staff, James Garfield, head of the Ohio delegation, telegraphed Rosecrans to ask if he would consider running to be Abraham Lincoln's vice president.
Under det republikanske partikonvent i 1864 telegraferede hans tidligere stabschef James Garfield, som ledede delegationen fra Ohio, til Rosecrans for at høre om han ville overveje at stille op som Abraham Lincoln's vicepræsidentkandidat.