November 1831 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

November 1831 Massachusetts gubernatorial election
	County results; Lincoln: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90%; Lathrop: 40–50% 50–60%; Morton: 50–60%
Governor before election; Levi Lincoln Jr. ; National Republican	Elected Governor ; Levi Lincoln Jr. ; National Republican

Last updated June 24, 2024

The second 1831 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on November 14.

General election

Candidates

Samuel Lathrop, former U.S. Representative and State Senator from West Springfield (Anti-Masonic)
Levi Lincoln Jr., incumbent Governor since 1825 (National Republican)
Marcus Morton, Associate Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court, former acting Governor and nominee since 1828 (Democratic)

Campaign

After John Quincy Adams declined their nomination, the Anti-Masons announced their support for Samuel Lathrop, an Adams supporter and former Federalist nominee for Governor. Their campaign was largely conducted by Benjamin F. Hallett through his journal the Boston Free Press and Advocate.^[1]

On the Democratic side, Marcus Morton made no active opposition to Lathrop's candidacy, and the leading Jacksonian journal, the Statesman, folded in August. Charles G. Greene of the Statesman started a new small paper, the Morning Post, to replace it. Statesman owner and collector of the Port of Boston David Henshaw remained in control of the Massachusetts Jacksonians, and the Morning Post continued to advocate against the Bank of the United States and in favor of anti-masonry, temperance, and the abolition of slavery.^[1] The change in name may have been necessitated by the Statesman's association with John C. Calhoun, who broke fully with the Jackson administration.^[1]

The National Republicans primarily campaigned on Lincoln's record as governor.^[1]

Results

Lincoln again won a safe majority, albeit his smallest by far.^[1]

Turnout increased, likely due to the Anti-Masonic fervor, which made large gains among the rural eastern towns and carried Franklin and Hampshire counties. The result was a transition of rural National Republicans and old Federalists to Anti-Masonry.^[1]

The new Democrats, failing to make Masonry a political issue, lost support to the Anti-Masons.^[1]

April 1831 Massachusetts gubernatorial election^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National Republican	Levi Lincoln Jr. (incumbent)	28,804	53.93%	11.26
	Anti-Masonic	Samuel Lathrop	13,357	25.01%	22.74
	Democratic	Marcus Morton	10,975	20.55%	5.41
	Write-in		279	0.52%	3.82
Total votes			53,415	100.00%

Related Research Articles

The Anti-Masonic Party was the earliest third party in the United States. Formally a single-issue party, it strongly opposed Freemasonry in the United States. It was active from the late 1820s, especially in the Northeast, and later attempted to become a major party by expanding its platform to take positions on other issues. It declined quickly after 1832 as most members joined the new Whig Party; it disappeared after 1838.

The 1832 United States presidential election was the 12th quadrennial presidential election, held from Friday, November 2 to Wednesday, December 5, 1832. Incumbent president Andrew Jackson, candidate of the Democratic Party, defeated Henry Clay, candidate of the National Republican Party.

The National Republican Party, also known as the Anti-Jacksonian Party or simply Republicans, was a short-lived political party in the United States that evolved from a conservative-leaning faction of the Democratic-Republican Party that supported John Quincy Adams in the 1824 presidential election.

Marcus Morton was an American lawyer, jurist, and politician from Taunton, Massachusetts. He served two terms as the governor of Massachusetts and several months as Acting Governor following the death in 1825 of William Eustis. He served for 15 years as an associate justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, all the while running unsuccessfully as a Democrat for governor. He finally won the 1839 election, acquiring exactly the number of votes required for a majority win over Edward Everett. After losing the 1840 and 1841 elections, he was elected in a narrow victory in 1842.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Levi Lincoln Jr.</span> Massachusetts Governor and Congressman (1782–1868)

Levi Lincoln Jr. was an American lawyer and politician from Worcester, Massachusetts. He was the 13th governor of Massachusetts (1825–1834) and represented the state in the U.S. Congress (1834–1841). Lincoln's nine-year tenure as governor is the longest consecutive service in state history; only Michael Dukakis, John Hancock and Caleb Strong served more years, but they were not consecutive.

Samuel Lathrop was a U.S. Representative from Massachusetts.

The 1832 Connecticut gubernatorial election was held on April 13, 1832. Incumbent governor and National Republican nominee John S. Peters was re-elected, defeating former senator and Democratic nominee Calvin Willey with 71.44% of the vote.

The 1831 Vermont gubernatorial election took place in September and October, and resulted in the election of William A. Palmer to a one-year term as governor.

The 1838 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on November 12.

The 1836 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on November 14.

The 1835 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on November 9.

The 1834 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on November 10.

The 1832 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on November 12.

The 1830 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on April 5.

The first 1831 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on April 14.

The 1829 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on April 6.

The 1828 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on April 7.

The 1826 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on April 3.

The 1825 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on April 4.

The 1833–34 Massachusetts gubernatorial election consisted of a popular election held on November 11, 1833 and a legislative vote held in January 1834. The task of electing the governor fell to the Massachusetts General Court because no candidate received the constitutionally required majority of the popular vote.

References

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Darling, Arthur B. (1925). Political Changes in Massachusetts, 1824–1848. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press. pp. 94–96.
↑ "MA Governor". OurCampaigns. Retrieved May 19, 2021.

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[Darling-1] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Darling, Arthur B. (1925). Political Changes in Massachusetts, 1824–1848. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press. pp. 94–96.

[2] "MA Governor". OurCampaigns. Retrieved May 19, 2021.

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