with the United States in 1859. If ratified, the treaty would have given the liberal regime cash, but it would have also granted the United States perpetual military and economic rights on Mexican territory. The treaty failed to pass in the U.S. Senate, but the U.S. Navy still helped protect Juárez's government in Veracruz.

Liberals accumulated victories on the battlefield until the conservative forces surrendered on 22 December 1860. Juárez returned to Mexico City on January 11, 1861 and held presidential elections in March.