1863 Maine gubernatorial election

1863 Maine gubernatorial election

←  1862 September 14, 1863 1864  →

Nominee Samuel Cony Bion Bradbury Party National Union Democratic Popular vote 68,339 50,687 Percentage 57.42% 42.58%

County results Cony:     50-60%     60-70% Bradbury:     50-60%

Governor before election Abner Coburn Republican Elected Governor Samuel Cony National Union

The 1863 Maine gubernatorial election took place on September 14, 1863, in order to elect the governor of Maine. ^[1] The National Union candidate Samuel Cony won his first one-year term as governor ^[2] against Democratic candidate Bion Bradbury. ^[3]

Candidates

Union Party

• Samuel Cony, the Union nominee, was a member of the Maine House of Representatives, having been elected in 1862. He had previously been a member of the Democratic party, serving as the Maine State Treasurer from 1850 to 1854, on the Executive Council of Maine in 1839, and in the Maine House of Representatives from 1835 to 1836. ^[2]

Democratic Party

• Bion Bradbury, the Democratic nominee, was a member of the Maine House of Representatives, having been elected in 1861. ^[4]

During his campaign, Bradbury claimed that president Abraham Lincoln had violated the Constitution by suspending habeas corpus, and was a vocal opponent of emancipation. ^[5] While a controversy occurred where General Samuel J. Anderson ^[6] claimed in an interview that Bradbury would withdraw Maine's troops from the American Civil War, Bradbury denied this and accused Anderson of libel. ^[7]

Election

Statewide

1863 Maine gubernatorial election ^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	National Union	Samuel Cony	68,339	57.42
	Democratic	Bion Bradbury	50,687	42.58
Total votes			119,026	100.00
	National Union gain from Republican

References

1. Dubin, Michael J. (2014). United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1861–1911 | The Official Results by State and County. McFarland. ISBN   9780786456468.
2. "Samuel Cony". National Governors Association . January 5, 2011. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
3. "An Oily Man". The Daily Sentinel and Times. Brunswick, Maine. August 27, 1863. p. 1. Retrieved April 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Bion Bradbury in '62 and '63". Lewiston Daily Evening Journal. August 29, 1863. Retrieved April 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Bion Bradbury, Then and Now". The Daily Press. Portland, Maine. August 28, 1863. p. 2. Retrieved April 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
6. "The Union and Journal". Biddeford, Maine. August 21, 1863. p. 2. Retrieved April 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Slightly Mixed Up – Who is Cheated?". The Daily Press. Portland, Maine. August 26, 1863. p. 2. Retrieved April 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.