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| Elections in Iowa |
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The 1846 Iowa gubernatorial election was held on 26 October 1846 in order to elect the first Governor of Iowa upon Iowa acquiring statehood on 28 December 1846. Democratic nominee Ansel Briggs defeated Whig nominee Thomas McKnight. [1]
On election day, 26 October 1846, Democratic nominee Ansel Briggs won the election by a margin of 247 votes against his opponent Whig nominee Thomas McKnight, thereby gaining Democratic control over the new office of Governor. Briggs was sworn in as the 1st Governor of the new state of Iowa on 28 December 1846. [2]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Ansel Briggs | 7,626 | 50.82 | |
| Whig | Thomas McKnight | 7,379 | 49.18 | |
| Total votes | 15,005 | 100.00 | ||
| Democratic gain from Whig | ||||
Ansel Briggs was an American pioneer who rose from a stagecoach driver to a member of the Iowa Territorial House of Representatives (1842–1846) and the first Governor of Iowa (1846–1850).
William Thompson, a lawyer, clerk, newspaperman, longtime Army officer, and, was the first person elected to Congress from Iowa's 1st congressional district. His race for re-election in 1848 was the only Iowa U.S. House election to be revoted. After Thompson's opponent, Whig candidate Daniel F. Miller, challenged Thompson's apparent victory, Congress ordered his seat vacated and a special election conducted, which Thompson lost. He was a cavalry officer in the Union Army during the Civil War, and in the regular army for ten years thereafter.
The Iowa Democratic Party (IDP) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Iowa.
Thomas McKnight was an American pioneer, businessman, and politician who settled in Dubuque, Iowa.
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The following is a list of events of the year 1846 in Iowa.
