United States House of Representatives elections, 1858 and 1859

United States House of Representatives elections, 1858
United States
August 2, 1858 - November 8, 1859[Note 1]

All 238[Note 2] seats to the United States House of Representatives
120 seats were needed for a majority

  First party Second party
 
Leader William Pennington Thomas Bocock
Party Republican Democratic
Leader's seat New Jersey-5th Virginia-5th
Last election 90 seats 133 seats
Seats won 116[Note 2] 98[Note 3]
Seat change Increase 26 Decrease 35

  Third party Fourth party
 
Leader John Adams Gilmer Henry Winter Davis
Party Opposition Know Nothing
Leader's seat North Carolina-5th Maryland-4th
Last election 0 seats 14 seats
Seats won 19 5
Seat change Increase 19 Decrease 9

Speaker before election

James Orr
Democratic

Elected Speaker

William Pennington
Republican

Elections to the United States House of Representatives for the 36th Congress were held in 1858–1859 during James Buchanan's term in office. Following these elections, the Republicans gained control of the House for the first time, benefiting from the continued breakdown in the anti-immigration and anti-Catholic American Party of the Know Nothing Movement, and from strife within the Democratic Party.

The Republicans were actually several seats short of a numerical majority and were forced to form a minority government, but were able to exercise authority with assistance from members of the two smaller parties also elected to the House. The deeply divided Democrats continued to fall apart due to the slavery issue, losing a number of seats. The American Party all but collapsed as immigration became a less prominent issue and because of the party's vague stance on slavery. Southern politicians opposed to secession, Whigs who had been dissatisfied with the Republican Party during their short membership, as well as some former Know-Nothings, came together and ran on the Opposition Party ticket (not to be confused with the Northern Opposition Party of 1854 which was opposed to the spread of slavery into the new territories),[1] which generally allied more with the Republicans than Democrats.

For several states, this was the last Congressional election until the Reconstruction Era, and 29 of the Representatives elected in this election resigned near the end of the Congress following their states' secession from the Union.

Election summaries

One seat was added for the new State of Kansas,[2] which was unrepresented for most of the 36th Congress. For several Southern states, these were the last congressional elections they took part in until Reconstruction.

116 19 5 98
Republican Opp. AKN Democratic
State Type Date Total
seats
Republican Democratic Opposition Know-Nothing
Seats Change Seats Change Seats Change Seats Change
Delaware At-large November 2, 1858
(Election Day)[Note 4]
1 0 Steady 1 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Illinois District 9 4 Steady 5 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Massachusetts District 11 11 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Michigan District 4 4 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
New Jersey District 5 3 Increase1 2[Note 5] Decrease1 0 Steady 0 Steady
New York District 33 26 Increase5 7[Note 6] Decrease5 0 Steady 0 Steady
Wisconsin District 3 2 Decrease1 1 Increase1 0 Steady 0 Steady
Arkansas District August 2, 1858 2 0 Steady 2 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Florida At-large October 4, 1858 1 0 Steady 1 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Indiana District October 12, 1858 11 7 Increase2 4[Note 7] Decrease2 0 Steady 0 Steady
Iowa District October 12, 1858 2 2 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Maine District September 13, 1858 6 6 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Missouri District August 2, 1858 7 1 Steady 5[Note 8] Increase1 0 Steady 1 Decrease1
Ohio District October 12, 1858 21 15 Increase2 6 Decrease2 0 Steady 0 Steady
Pennsylvania District October 12, 1858 25 20 Increase10 5[Note 9] Decrease10 0 Steady 0 Steady
South Carolina District October 10–11, 1858 6 0 Steady 6 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Vermont District September 7, 1858 3 3 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
1859 elections
Alabama[Note 10] District August 1, 1859 7 0 Steady 7 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
California At-large September 7, 1859 2 0 Steady 2 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Connecticut District April 4, 1859 4 4 Increase2 0 Decrease2 0 Steady 0 Steady
Georgia[Note 10] District October 3, 1859 8 0 Steady 6 Steady 2 Increase2 0 Steady
Kansas[Note 11] At-large December 1, 1859 1 1 Increase1 0 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Kentucky District August 1, 1859 10 0 Steady 5 Decrease3 5 Increase5 0 Decrease2
Louisiana[Note 10] District November 7, 1859 4 0 Steady 3 Steady 0 Steady 1 Steady
Maryland District November 8, 1859 6 0 Steady 3 Steady 0 Steady 3 Steady
Minnesota At-large October 4, 1859 2 2 Increase2 0 Decrease2 0 Steady 0 Steady
Mississippi[Note 10] District October 3, 1859 5 0 Steady 5 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
New Hampshire District March 8, 1859 3 3 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
North Carolina[Note 10] District August 4, 1859 8 0 Steady 4 Decrease3 4 Increase4 0 Decrease1
Oregon At-large June 27, 1859 1 0 Steady 1 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Rhode Island District April 7, 1859 2 2 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Tennessee District August 4, 1859 10 0 Steady 3 Decrease4 7 Increase7 0 Decrease3
Texas[Note 10] District August 1, 1859 2 0 Steady 2[Note 12] Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Virginia District May 26, 1859 13 0 Steady 12[Note 13] Decrease1 1 Increase1 0 Steady
Total[Note 2] 238 116
48.9%
Increase26 98[Note 3]
41.4%
Decrease35 19
8.0%
Increase19 5
2.1%
Decrease9
House seats
Republican
 
48.95%
Democratic
 
41.35%
Opposition
 
8.02%
Know-Nothing
 
2.11%

Complete returns

California

Note: From statehood to 1864, California's representatives were elected at-large, with the top two vote-getters winning election from 1849 to 1858; in 1860 when California gained a seat in the House the top three vote-getters were elected.

District Incumbent Party First
elected
Status Candidates
California at-large
(Seat 1)
Charles L. Scott Democratic 1856 Incumbent re-elected.
California at-large
(Seat 2)
Joseph C. McKibbin Anti-Lecompton Democratic 1856 Incumbent lost re-election.
New member elected.
Democratic hold.

Ohio

District Incumbent Party First
elected
Result Candidates[3]
Ohio 1 George H. Pendleton Democratic 1856 Incumbent re-elected.
Ohio 2 William S. Groesbeck Democratic 1856 Incumbent lost re-election.
New member elected.
Republican gain.
Ohio 3 Clement L. Vallandigham Democratic 1856[Note 14] Incumbent re-elected.
Ohio 4 Matthias H. Nichols Republican 1852 Incumbent lost re-election.
New member elected.
Democratic gain.
Ohio 5 Richard Mott Republican 1854 Incumbent retired.
New member elected.
Republican hold.
Ohio 6 Joseph R. Cockerill Democratic 1856 Incumbent retired.
New member elected.
Democratic hold.
Ohio 7 Aaron Harlan Republican 1852 Incumbent lost renomination.
New member elected.
Republican hold.
  • Thomas Corwin (Republican) 63.8%
  • Charles W. Blair (Democratic) 36.2%
Ohio 8 Benjamin Stanton Republican 1854 Incumbent re-elected.
Ohio 9 Lawrence W. Hall Democratic 1856 Incumbent lost re-election.
New member elected.
Republican gain.
Ohio 10 Joseph Miller Democratic 1856 Incumbent lost re-election.
New member elected.
Republican gain.
Ohio 11 Albert C. Thompson Republican 1854 Incumbent retired.
New member elected.
Democratic gain.
Ohio 12 Samuel S. Cox Democratic 1856 Incumbent re-elected.
  • Samuel S. Cox (Republican) 51.8%
  • Lucius Case (Democratic) 48.2%
Ohio 13 John Sherman Republican 1854 Incumbent re-elected.
  • John Sherman (Republican) 57.1%
  • S. J. Patrick (Democratic) 42.9%
Ohio 14 Philemon Bliss Republican 1854 Incumbent retired.
New member elected.
Republican hold.
  • Cyrus Spink (Republican) 56.3%
  • J. P. Jeffries (Democratic) 43.7%
Ohio 15 Joseph Burns Democratic 1856 Incumbent lost re-election.
New member elected.
Republican gain.
Ohio 16 Cydnor B. Tompkins Republican 1856 Incumbent re-elected.
Ohio 17 William Lawrence Democratic 1856 Incumbent retired.
New member elected.
Republican gain.
Ohio 18 Benjamin F. Leiter Republican 1854 Incumbent retired.
New member elected.
Republican hold.
Ohio 19 Edward Wade Republican 1852 Incumbent re-elected.
  • Edward Wade (Republican) 65.1%
  • J. W. Gray (Democratic) 34.9%
Ohio 20 Joshua Reed Giddings Republican 1842 Incumbent lost renomination.
New member elected.
Republican hold.
Ohio 21 John Bingham Republican 1854 Incumbent re-elected.
  • John Bingham (Republican) 57.3%
  • Thomas Means (Democratic) 42.7%

See also

Notes

  1. Excludes states admitted during this Congress
  2. 1 2 3 Includes late elections
  3. 1 2 Includes 8 Anti-Lecompton Democrats and 7 Independent Democrats.
  4. In 1845, Congress passed a law providing for a uniform date for choosing presidential electors (see: Statutes at Large, 28th Congress, 2nd Session, p. 721). Congressional elections were unaffected by this law, but the date was gradually adopted by the states for Congressional elections as well.
  5. Both Anti-Lecompton Democrats
  6. Includes 1 Independent Democrat (NY-04) and 3 Anti-Lecompton Democrats (NY-08, NY-09, and NY-14) – see Martis, pp. 112–113.
  7. Includes 1 Anti-Lecompton Democrat (IN-07).
  8. Includes 1 Independent Democrat (MO-02).
  9. Includes 2 Anti-Lecompton Democrats (PA-06 and PA-08).
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Last election before Reconstruction
  11. New state. Representative seated January 29, 1861, and continued into the 37th Congress.
  12. Includes 1 Independent Democrat (TX-02).
  13. Includes 4 Independent Democrats (VA-03, VA-06, VA-09, and VA-13).
  14. Contested election

References

  1. See The Kansas-Nebraska act
  2. 11 Stat. 269
  3. Smith, Joseph P, ed. (1898). History of the Republican Party in Ohio. I. Chicago: the Lewis Publishing Company. pp. 84, 85.

Bibliography

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