United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, 1897

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The 1897 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held on January 19, 1897. Boies Penrose was elected by the Pennsylvania General Assembly to the United States Senate. [1]

Boies Penrose United States Senator from Pennsylvania

Boies Penrose was an American lawyer and Republican politician from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He represented Pennsylvania in the United States Senate from 1897 until his death in 1921. Penrose was the fourth political boss of the Pennsylvania Republican political machine, following Simon Cameron, Donald Cameron, and Matthew Quay. Penrose was the longest-serving Pennsylvania Senator until Arlen Specter surpassed his record in 2005.

Pennsylvania General Assembly state legislature of the US state of Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times (1682–1776), the legislature was known as the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly and was unicameral. Since the Constitution of 1776, the legislature has been known as the General Assembly. The General Assembly became a bicameral legislature in 1791.

United States Senate Upper house of the United States Congress

The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, which along with the United States House of Representatives—the lower chamber—comprises the legislature of the United States. The Senate chamber is located in the north wing of the Capitol, in Washington, D.C.

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Results

Incumbent Republican J. Donald Cameron, who was elected in an 1877 special election and subsequently re-elected in 1879, 1885 and 1891, was not a candidate for re-election to another term. The Pennsylvania General Assembly, consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate, convened on January 19, 1897, to elect a new Senator to fill the term beginning on March 4, 1897. The results of the vote of both houses combined are as follows:

Republican Party (United States) Major political party in the United States

The Republican Party, also referred to as the GOP, is one of the two major political parties in the United States; the other is its historic rival, the Democratic Party.

J. Donald Cameron 19th century American politician

James Donald Cameron was an American politician from Pennsylvania who served as Secretary of War under President Ulysses S. Grant and in the United States Senate for nearly twenty years. In May, 1876 Cameron was part of a Cabinet realignment by President Grant, having been appointed after a brief tenure by Secretary Alphonso Taft, whom Grant appointed U.S. Attorney General. Former Secretary William W. Belknap had resigned from office, was impeached by the House for taking kickbacks from the Fort Sill tradership, put on trial in the Senate and acquitted. Secretary Cameron was one of two father-son combinations that served as Secretary of War. Secretary Simon Cameron was Cameron's father who served under President Abraham Lincoln. The other father-son combination was Secretary Alphonso Taft and his son Secretary William Howard Taft. During Cameron's tenure the U.S. Military was challenged by the Great Sioux War and by the threat of a second Southern secession after the controversial election of President Rutherford B. Hayes that ended Reconstruction. Cameron proved to be an energetic administrator and his appointment as Secretary of War launched his lengthy political career in the Senate.

State Legislature Results [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Boies Penrose 21083.00
Democratic Chauncey F. Black 39 15.42
Republican John Wanamaker 1 0.40
N/A Not voting 3 1.19
Totals253100.00%

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 "U.S. Senate Election - 19 January 1897" (PDF). Wilkes University. Retrieved 22 December 2013.

The Wilkes University Election Statistics Project is a free online resource documenting Pennsylvania political election results dating back to 1796.

Preceded by
1891
Pennsylvania U.S. Senate election (Class III)
1897
Succeeded by
1903