 A staunch Democrat, Long supported the compromiser James Buchanan on the eve of the war in 1856.In 1862, Long ran for Congress and was elected as an anti-war Democrat from the Second District of Ohio, and he served in the U.S. House of Representatives as a member of the 38th Congress from March 4, 1863, until March 3, 1865.Long is best known for his opposition to the Civil War and being in favor of independence for the Confederacy on the basis of "states' rights".