However, Morris' personal generosity and his gambling, business and political dealings took him into financial difficulty. In 1771, Thomas Morgan, MP for Monmouthshire and a member of the powerful Morgan family of Tredegar House, died, and Morris resolved to stand in the by-election against Thomas' brother, John. A contested election was highly unusual at the time, and the Morgans attacked Morris as an outsider, a Creole, and a slaveowner. For his part, Morris appealed to the "honest unbiassed men" of Monmouthshire to "shake off all shackles, assert your independency, and once in your life have courage to dare elect the man of your choice". Morris lost the election, by 535 votes to Morgan's 743.
