In September 1812, when the unpopular War of 1812 against Great Britain helped the opposing Federalists to regain reputation, King led an effort at the Federalist party caucus to nominate a Federalist ticket for the presidential election that year, but the effort failed, as Democratic Republican DeWitt Clinton had the best chances to defeat his fellow party member Madison, which made the Federalists field no candidate. However, some sought to make King the nominee, in order to have a candidate under the Federalist banner on the ballot, and though little came of it, he did finish third in the popular vote with approximately 2% of the total. Shortly thereafter, King celebrated his first success after 10 years, when he was elected to his "second tenure on Senate" in 1813.