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| Elections in New York State |
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The 1855 United States Senate election in New York was held on February 6, 1855, by the New York State Legislature to elect a U.S. Senator (Class 3) to represent the State of New York in the United States Senate.
William H. Seward had been elected in 1849 to this seat and his term would expire on March 3, 1855.
At the time the Democratic Party was split into two opposing factions: the "Hards" and the "Softs". After most of the "Barnburners" had left the party, joining the Whigs, the majority of "Hunkers" split over the question of reconciliation with the minority of Barnburners who had remained Democrats. The Hard faction (led by Daniel S. Dickinson) was against it, in true Hunker fashion claiming all patronage for themselves; the Soft faction (led by William L. Marcy, which included the former Barnburners, advocated party unity as a necessity to defeat the Whigs.
In 1854, the Republican Party was founded as a national party, but in New York the Whigs and the Anti-Nebraska Party ran concurrently at the State election. The unification of these occurred in New York only during the nomination convention for the State election in November 1855. Also running in the 1854 election were the American Party and nominees of the Temperance movement. In a general way, party lines were blurred until the re-alignment during the late 1850s after the disbanding of the American Party.
At the State election in November 1853, 23 Whigs, 7 Hards and 2 Softs were elected for a two-year term (1854-1855) in the State Senate. At the State election in November 1854, Whig State Senator Myron H. Clark was elected Governor of New York, and 82 Whigs, 26 Softs, 16 Hards and 3 Temperance men were elected for the session of 1855 to the New York State Assembly. "Know Nothings are sprinkled miscellaneously among Whigs, Hards and Softs; and exactly how many there are of these gentry in the Assembly Nobody Knows." [1] The 78th New York State Legislature met from January 2 to April 14, 1855, at Albany, New York.
The incumbent U.S. Senator William H. Seward ran for re-election as a Whig.
In the Assembly, Seward received 69 votes, given by 65 Whigs; 1 Democrat; 1 Temperance man; 1 Republican and 1 Whig-Republican. Dickinson received 14 votes, given by 13 Democrats and 1 American. Horatio Seymour received the votes of 12 Democrats. Dix received 7 votes, given by 5 Democrats; 1 Independent Democrat and 1 Temperance man. Fillmore received 4 votes, given by 2 Whigs; 1 Democrat and 1 Temperance-American. Horatio Seymour, Jr., received the votes of 2 Americans. King, Butler, Lester, Wait and Bronson received 1 Democratic vote each. Campbell received 1 Temperance-American vote. Howell received 1 American vote. Hoffman and Haven received 1 Whig vote each.
In the State Senate, Seward received 18 Whig votes, Dickinson 5 Hard votes, and Allen 2 Whig votes. Preston and Church received 1 Soft vote each. Hoffman, Babcock, Ullmann and Fillmore received 1 American vote each.
William H. Seward was the choice of both the Assembly and the Senate, and was declared elected.
| Office | Candidate | Party | Senate (32 members) | Assembly (128 members) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Senator | William H. Seward | Whig | 18 | 69 |
| Daniel S. Dickinson | Dem./Hard | 5 | 14 | |
| Horatio Seymour | Dem./Soft | 12 | ||
| Washington Hunt | Whig | 9 | ||
| John Adams Dix | Dem./Soft | 7 | ||
| Millard Fillmore | Whig | 1 | 4 | |
| William F. Allen | Democrat | 2 | ||
| Horatio Seymour Jr. [2] | 2 | |||
| Preston King | 1 | 1 | ||
| Ogden Hoffman | Whig | 1 | 1 | |
| Daniel Ullmann | American | 1 | ||
| Sanford E. Church | Democrat | 1 | ||
| George R. Babcock | Whig | 1 | ||
| William W. Campbell | American | 1 | ||
| Benjamin F. Butler | Democrat | 1 | ||
| Albert Lester | Democrat | 1 | ||
| Greene C. Bronson | Democrat | 1 | ||
| Solomon G. Haven | Opposition | 1 | ||
| John D. Howell | 1 | |||
| L. or J. Wait | 1 | |||
Seward remained in the U.S. Senate until March 3, 1861, and two days later became U.S. Secretary of State, appointed by President Abraham Lincoln.
The Barnburners and Hunkers were the names of two opposing factions of the New York state Democratic Party in the mid-19th century. The main issue dividing the two factions was that of slavery, with the Barnburners being the anti-slavery faction. While this division occurred within the context of New York politics, it reflected the national divisions in the United States in the years preceding the American Civil War.
Horatio Seymour was an American politician. He served as Governor of New York from 1853 to 1854 and from 1863 to 1864. He was the Democratic Party nominee for president in the 1868 presidential election, won by Republican and General Ulysses S. Grant.
The 1854 New York state election was held on November 7, 1854, to elect the governor, the lieutenant governor, a Canal Commissioner and an Inspector of State Prisons, as well as all members of the New York State Assembly.
The 1853 New York state election was held on November 8, 1853, to elect the Secretary of State, the State Comptroller, the Attorney General, the State Treasurer, the State Engineer, two Judges of the New York Court of Appeals, a Canal Commissioner, an Inspector of State Prisons and the Clerk of the Court of Appeals, as well as all members of the New York State Assembly and the New York State Senate.
The 1855 New York state election was held on November 6, 1855, to elect the Secretary of State, the State Comptroller, the Attorney General, the State Treasurer, the State Engineer, two judges of the New York Court of Appeals, a Canal Commissioner and an Inspector of State Prisons, as well as members of the New York State Assembly and the New York State Senate.
The 1839—1840 United States Senate election in New York was held on February 5, 1839 and January 14, 1840. Incumbent Senator Nathaniel P. Tallmadge was re-elected to a second term in office over scattered opposition.
The 1845 United States Senate special election in New York was held on January 18, 1845 by the New York State Legislature to elect two U.S. Senators to represent the State of New York in the United States Senate. The regular 1845 United States Senate election in New York was held on February 4, 1845, to elect a U.S. Senator to represent the State of New York in the United States Senate.
The 1849 United States Senate election in New York was held on February 6, 1849, by the New York State Legislature to elect a U.S. Senator to represent the State of New York in the United States Senate.
The 1851 United States Senate election in New York was held on February 4 and March 18/19, 1851, by the New York State Legislature to elect a U.S. Senator to represent the State of New York in the United States Senate.
The 1857 United States Senate election in New York was held on February 3, 1857 by the New York State Legislature. Incumbent Whig Senator Hamilton Fish did not stand for re-election. The seat was won by Preston King, a former U.S. Representative and member of the newly-formed Republican Party. King was the first Republican elected to represent New York, although William H. Seward had joined the party after being elected as a Whig in 1855.
The 1861 United States Senate election in New York was held on February 5, 1861, by the New York State Legislature to elect a U.S. Senator to represent the State of New York in the United States Senate.
The 1850 and 1851 United States Senate elections were elections which had the Democratic Party lose seats, but retain a majority in the United States Senate.
The 1848 and 1849 United States Senate elections were elections which had the Democratic Party lose seats but maintain control of the United States Senate.
The 1856 and 1857 United States Senate elections were elections which had the young Republican Party assume its position as one of the United States's two main political parties. The Whigs and Free Soilers were gone by the time the next Congress began.
The 1854 and 1855 United States Senate elections were elections which saw the final decline of the Whig Party and the maintained majority of the Democrats. Those Whigs in the South who were opposed to secession ran on the "Opposition Party" ticket, and were elected to a minority. Along with the Whigs, the Senate roster also included Free Soilers, Know Nothings, and a new party: the Republicans. Only five of the twenty-one senators up for election were re-elected.
The 1860 and 1861 United States Senate elections were elections corresponding with Abraham Lincoln's election to the presidency. The nascent Republican Party increased their Senate seats in the regular elections, and after southern Democrats withdrew to join the Confederacy, Republicans gained control of the United States Senate. To establish a quorum with fewer members, a lower total seat number was taken into account.
The 68th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 7 to May 14, 1845, during the first year of Silas Wright's governorship, in Albany.
The 77th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 3 to April 17, 1854, during the second year of Horatio Seymour's governorship, in Albany.
The 78th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 2 to April 14, 1855, during the first year of Myron H. Clark's governorship, in Albany.
The 79th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 1 to April 9, 1856, during the second year of Myron H. Clark's governorship, in Albany.
