With the conclusion of the war in 1865, the pro-Union alliance between Ohio's Republicans and War Democrats dissolved, and the now-dominant Republicans looked elsewhere for a candidate. On June 15, Brough announced that he would not seek the gubernatorial nomination again but would not decline it if offered; it was not. Later that summer, Brough stumbled in the State House yard, bruising his hand and badly spraining his ankle. Using a cane caused inflammation over time and gangrene eventually set in.