United States Senate elections, 1858 and 1859

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United States Senate elections, 1858 and 1859
Flag of the United States (1858-1859).svg
  1856/57 Various dates 1860/61  

22 of the 66 seats in the United States Senate (with special elections)
34 seats needed for a majority

 Majority partyMinority party
 
Party Democratic Republican
Last election34 seats15 seats
Seats before4220
Seats won138
Seats after3825
Seat changeDecrease2.svg 4Increase2.svg 5
Seats up173

 Third partyFourth party
 
Party Know Nothing Other
Last election2 seats4 seats
Seats before40
Seats won00
Seats after20
Seat changeDecrease2.svg 2Steady2.svg
Seats up20

Majority Party before election

Democratic Party

Elected Majority Party

Democratic Party

U.S. Postage, 1958 issue, commemorating the Lincoln and Douglas debates. Lincoln Douglas Debates 1958 issue-4c.jpg
U.S. Postage, 1958 issue, commemorating the Lincoln and Douglas debates.

The United States Senate elections of 1858 and 1859 were elections which had the Republican Party gain five additional seats in the United States Senate, but the Democrats retained their majority. That majority would erode in 1860 with the secession of the southern states leading up to the Civil War. In Illinois, incumbent Stephen A. Douglas (D) and challenger Abraham Lincoln (R) held a series of seven debates, known as the "Lincoln–Douglas debates."

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.

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.

American Civil War Civil war in the United States from 1861 to 1865

The American Civil War was a war fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865, between the North and the South. The Civil War is the most studied and written about episode in U.S. history. Primarily as a result of the long-standing controversy over the enslavement of black people, war broke out in April 1861 when secessionist forces attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina shortly after Abraham Lincoln had been inaugurated as the President of the United States. The loyalists of the Union in the North proclaimed support for the Constitution. They faced secessionists of the Confederate States in the South, who advocated for states' rights to uphold slavery.

Contents

As this election was prior to ratification of the seventeenth amendment, Senators were chosen by State legislatures.

Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution Part of the United States Constitution

The Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution established the popular election of United States Senators by the people of the states. The amendment supersedes Article I, §3, Clauses 1 and 2 of the Constitution, under which senators were elected by state legislatures. It also alters the procedure for filling vacancies in the Senate, allowing for state legislatures to permit their governors to make temporary appointments until a special election can be held.

State legislature (United States) legislature of a U.S. state

A state legislature in the United States is the legislative body of any of the 50 U.S. states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 25 states, the legislature is simply called the Legislature, or the State Legislature, while in 19 states, the legislature is called the General Assembly. In Massachusetts and New Hampshire, the legislature is called the General Court, while North Dakota and Oregon designate the legislature the Legislative Assembly.

Results summary

Senate Party Division, 36th Congress (1859-1861)

Know Nothing American political movement and party in the 19th century with anti-catholic tendency

The Native American Party, renamed the American Party in 1855 and commonly known as the Know Nothing movement, was an American nativist political party that operated nationally in the mid-1850s. It was primarily anti-Catholic, xenophobic, and hostile to immigration, starting originally as a secret society. The movement briefly emerged as a major political party in the form of the American Party. Adherents to the movement were to reply "I know nothing" when asked about its specifics by outsiders, thus providing the group with its common name.

Change in Senate composition

Before the elections

D3D2D1
D4D5D6D7D8D9D10D11D12D13
D23D22D21D20D19D18D17D16D15D14
D24D25D26
Ran
D27
Ran
D28
Ran
D29
Ran
D30
Ran
D31
Ran
D32
Ran
D33
Ran
Majority →D34
Ran
KN4
Unknown
D42
Retired
D41
Retired
D40
Retired
D39
Retired
D38
Retired
D37
Ran
D36
Ran
D35
Ran
KN3
Unknown
KN2KN1R20
Ran
R19
Ran
R18
Ran
R17R16R15R14
R4R5R6R7R8R9R10R11R12R13
R3R2R1

As a result of the elections

D3D2D1
D4D5D6D7D8D9D10D11D12D13
D23D22D21D20D19D18D17D16D15D14
D24D25D26
Re-elected
D27
Re-elected
D28
Re-elected
D29
Re-elected
D30
Re-elected
D31
Re-elected
D32
Re-elected
D33
Hold
Majority →D34
Hold
R24
Gain
R25
Gain
KN1KN2V1
D Loss
D38
Gain
D37
Gain
D36
Hold
D35
Hold
R23
Gain
R22
Gain
R21
Gain
R20
Re-elected
R19
Re-elected
R18
Re-elected
R17R16R15R14
R4R5R6R7R8R9R10R11R12R13
R3R2R1
Key:
D# Democratic
KN# Know Nothing
R# Republican
V#Vacant

Race summaries

Special elections during the 35th Congress

In these elections, the winners were seated during 1858 or in 1859 before March 4; ordered by election date.

StateIncumbentResultsCandidates
SenatorPartyElectoral history
Minnesota
(Class 1)
New stateMinnesota's first Senators were elected May 11, 1858.
Democratic gain.
Henry M. Rice (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Minnesota
(Class 2)
New stateMinnesota's first Senators were elected May 11, 1858.
Democratic gain.
James Shields (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
North Carolina
(Class 3)
Thomas Clingman Democratic1858 (Appointed)Interim appointee elected November 23, 1858 to finish the term. [1] Thomas Clingman (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
South Carolina
(Class 2)
Arthur P. Hayne Democratic1858 (Appointed)Interim appointee retired when successor elected.
Winner elected December 3, 1858.
Democratic hold.
Winner was also elected to the next term, see below.
James Chesnut, Jr. (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Oregon
(Class 2)
New stateOregon's first Senators were elected February 14, 1859.
Democratic gain.
Delazon Smith (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Oregon
(Class 3)
New stateOregon's first Senators were elected February 14, 1859.
Democratic gain.
Joseph Lane (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]

Races leading to the 36th Congress

In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1859; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.

StateIncumbentResultsCandidates
SenatorPartyElectoral
history
Alabama Clement Claiborne Clay Democratic 1853 (Special) Incumbent re-elected in 1858.Clement Claiborne Clay (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Arkansas William K. Sebastian Democratic1848 (Appointed)
1848 (Special)
1853
Incumbent re-elected in 1859.William K. Sebastian (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Delaware Martin W. Bates Democratic 1857 (Special) Incumbent lost re-election.
Winner elected in 1858.
Democratic hold.
Willard Saulsbury, Sr. (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Georgia Robert Toombs Democratic 1852 Incumbent re-elected in 1858.Robert Toombs (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Illinois Stephen A. Douglas Democratic 1846
1852
Incumbent re-elected in 1858.Stephen A. Douglas (Democratic)
Abraham Lincoln (Republican)
Iowa George Wallace Jones Democratic 1848
1852
Incumbent lost renomination.
Winner elected January 26, 1858. [2]
Republican gain.
James W. Grimes (Republican)
Benjamin M. Samuels (Democratic)
Kentucky John B. Thompson Know Nothing1852 or 1853Unknown if incumbent retired or lost re-election.
Winner elected in January 1858.
Democratic gain.
Lazarus W. Powell (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Louisiana Judah P. Benjamin Democratic 1852 Incumbent re-elected in 1859.Judah P. Benjamin (Whig)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Maine William P. Fessenden Republican 1854 (Special) Incumbent re-elected in 1859.William P. Fessenden (Republican)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Massachusetts Henry Wilson Republican 1855 (Special) Incumbent re-elected in 1859.Henry Wilson (Republican)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Michigan Charles E. Stuart Democratic 1853 Incumbent retired.
Winner elected in 1858.
Republican gain.
Kinsley S. Bingham (Republican)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Minnesota James Shields Democratic1848 or 1849 (Illinois)
1849 (Illinois: Election voided)
1849 (Illinois: Special)
1855 (Illinois: Lost)
1858 (Minnesota)
Incumbent lost re-election.
Winner elected in 1858 or 1859.
Republican gain.
Morton S. Wilkinson (Republican)
James Shields (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Mississippi Albert G. Brown Democratic 1854 (Special) Incumbent re-elected in 1859.Albert G. Brown (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
New Hampshire John P. Hale Republican 1846
1853 (Retired)
1855
Incumbent re-elected in 1859.John P. Hale (Republican)
[Data unknown/missing.]
New Jersey William Wright Democratic1852 or 1853Incumbent lost re-election.
Winner elected in 1858.
Republican gain.
John C. Ten Eyck (Republican)
[Data unknown/missing.]
North Carolina David Reid Democratic 1854 Incumbent lost re-election.
Winner elected in 1858 or 1859.
Democratic hold.
Thomas Bragg (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Oregon Delazon Smith Democratic 1859 Incumbent lost re-election.
Legislature failed to elect.
Democratic loss.
Seat would remain vacant until 1860.
Delazon Smith (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Rhode Island Philip Allen Democratic 1853 Incumbent retired.
Winner elected in 1858.
Republican gain.
Henry B. Anthony (Republican)
[Data unknown/missing.]
South Carolina Arthur P. Hayne Democratic1858 (Appointed)Interim appointee retired.
Winner elected December 3, 1858.
Democratic hold.
Winner was also elected to finish the current term, see above.
James Chesnut, Jr. (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Tennessee John Bell Know Nothing 1847
1853
Unknown if incumbent retired or lost re-election.
Winner elected in 1858.
Democratic gain.
Alfred O. P. Nicholson (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Texas Sam Houston Democratic 1846
1847
1853
Incumbent retired.
Winner elected in 1859.
Democratic hold.
John Hemphill (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]
Virginia Robert M. T. Hunter Democratic 1846
1852
Incumbent re-elected in 1858.Robert M. T. Hunter (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]

Race leading to the 37th Congress

In this general election, the winner was elected for the term beginning March 4, 1861.

This election involved a Class 3 seat.

StateIncumbentResultsCandidates
SenatorPartyElectoral
history
Kentucky
(Class 3)
John J. Crittenden Know Nothing 1817
1819 (Resigned)
1835
1841 (Retired)
1842 (Appointed)
1842 or 1843 (Special)
1843
1848 (Resigned)
1853
Incumbent retired.
Winner elected December 12, 1859, far in advance of the term.
Winner wasn't seated until term began March 4, 1861.
Democratic gain.
John C. Breckinridge (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]

Elections during the 36th Congress

In this election, the winner was elected in 1859 on or after March 4; ordered by date.

StateIncumbentResultsCandidates
SenatorPartyElectoral history
Texas
(Class 1)
Matthias Ward Democratic1858 (Appointed)Interim appointee lost nomination to finish the term.
Winner was elected December 5, 1859.
Democratic hold.
Louis Wigfall (Democratic)
[Data unknown/missing.]

See also

35th United States Congress

The Thirty-fifth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1857, to March 4, 1859, during the first two years of James Buchanan's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the Seventh Census of the United States in 1850. Both chambers had a Democratic majority.

Related Research Articles

1860 and 1861 United States House of Representatives elections

Elections to the United States House of Representatives for the 37th Congress were held at various dates in different states from August 1860 to October 1861.

36th United States Congress

The Thirty-sixth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1859, to March 4, 1861, during the third and fourth years of James Buchanan's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the Seventh Census of the United States in 1850. The Senate had a Democratic majority, and the House had a Republican plurality.

1910 and 1911 United States Senate elections

Although the 17th Amendment was not passed until 1913, some states elected their Senators directly before its passage. Oregon pioneered direct election and experimented with different measures over several years until it succeeded in 1907. Soon after, Nebraska followed suit and laid the foundation for other states to adopt measures reflecting the people's will. By 1912, as many as 29 states elected senators either as nominees of their party's primary or in conjunction with a general election.

The United States Senate elections of 1852 and 1853 were elections which had the Democratic Party gain two seats in the United States Senate, and which coincided with the 1852 presidential election. Only six of the twenty Senators up for election were re-elected.

The United States Senate elections of 1856 and 1857 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.

In the United States Senate elections of 1870 and 1871, the Republican Party lost five seats in the United States Senate, though it still retained an overwhelming majority. In advance of these elections, the last four seceded states were readmitted to the Senate.

The United States Senate elections of 1872 and 1873 were elections which had the Republican Party, while still retaining a commanding majority, lose two seats in the United States Senate. By the beginning of the Congress, however, they'd lost three more: two as defections to the Liberal Republican Party, and one a resignation of Henry Wilson to become U.S. Vice President. These elections also coincided with President Ulysses S. Grant's easy re-election.

The United States Senate elections of 1868 and 1869 were elections which had the Republican Party maintain their majority in the United States Senate. However, six former Confederate states were also readmitted separately from the general election, each electing two Republicans. This increased the Republicans' already overwhelming majority to the largest number of seats ever controlled by the party.

The United States Senate elections of 1876 and 1877 had the Democratic Party gain five seats in the United States Senate, and coincided with Rutherford B. Hayes's narrow election as President. Republicans remained in the majority, however.

The United States Senate elections of 1886 and 1887 were elections that had the Republican Party lose two seats in the United States Senate. At the beginning of the 50th Congress, therefore, Republicans had the slimmest possible majority due to a vacant Democratic seat: 38 out of 75 seats. Once that vacancy was filled, Republicans maintained control as the single Readjuster Senator caucused with them.

The United States Senate elections of 1888 and 1889 were elections that coincided with Benjamin Harrison's victory over incumbent President Grover Cleveland. Both parties were unchanged in the general elections, but later special elections would give Republicans an eight-seat majority, mostly from newly admitted states.

1906 and 1907 United States Senate elections

The United States Senate elections of 1906 and 1907 were elections which had the Republican Party gain three seats in the United States Senate, expanding their majority to more twice that of the opposing Democratic Party.

The United States Senate elections of 1820 and 1821 were elections for the United States Senate that, corresponding with James Monroe's landslide re-election, had the Democratic-Republican Party gain seven seats, assuming almost complete control of the Senate.

In the United States Senate elections of 1828 and 1829, the Jacksonian coalition, despite its leader's victory in the presidential election, lost a seat in the Senate to the opposing Anti-Jacksonian coalition.

The United States Senate elections of 1864 and 1865 were elections corresponding with Abraham Lincoln's re-election, with the Republican Party gaining two seats in the United States Senate. As these elections occurred during the Civil War, most of the Southern States were absent.

The United States Senate elections of 1860 and 1861 were elections corresponding with Abraham Lincoln's election to the presidency. The nascent Republican Party increased their Senate seats in the general 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 United States Senate elections of 1862 and 1863 were elections during the American Civil War in which Republicans increased their control of the U.S. Senate. The Republican Party gained three seats, bringing their majority to 66% of the body. Also caucusing with them were Unionists and Unconditional Unionists. As many Southern states seceded in 1860 and 1861, and members left the Senate to join the Confederacy, or were expelled for supporting the rebellion, seats were declared vacant. To establish a quorum with fewer members, a lower total seat number was taken into account.

The United States Senate elections of 1822 and 1823 were elections for the United States Senate that had the Democratic-Republican Party continue almost complete control of the Senate.

1858 United States elections Election in the United States on 1858

The 1858 United States elections occurred in the middle of Democratic President James Buchanan's term, during the opening stages of the Third Party System. Members of the 36th United States Congress were chosen in this election. In the first election since the Supreme Court decided Dred Scott v. Sandford, the Republican Party won a plurality in the House, taking control of a chamber of Congress for the first time in the party's history. Although Democrats lost control of the House, they retained their majority in the Senate.

References

  1. Byrd, Robert C.; Wolff, Wendy (October 1, 1993). "The Senate, 1789-1989: Historical Statistics, 1789-1992" (volume 4 Bicentennial ed.). U.S. Government Printing Office., page 150
  2. Clark, Dan Elbert. History of Senatorial Elections in Iowa: A Study in American Politics. p. 119.