1816–17 United States Senate elections

The 1816–17 United States Senate elections were held on various dates in various states. As these U.S. Senate elections were prior to the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913, senators were chosen by state legislatures. Senators were elected over a wide range of time throughout 1816 and 1817, and a seat may have been filled months late or remained vacant due to legislative deadlock.^[1] In these elections, terms were up for the senators in Class 2.

1816–17 United States Senate elections

← 1814 & 1815 Dates vary by state 1818 & 1819 →
12 of the 36 seats in the United States Senate (plus special elections) 19 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Party Democratic-Republican Federalist Last election 26 seats 11 seats Seats before 23 12 Seats won 9 3 Seats after 25 13 Seat change 2 1 Seats up 9 2
Results:      Federalist hold      Federalist gain      Dem-Republican hold      Dem-Republican gain      Legislature Failed To Elect
Majority Party before election Democratic-Republican Elected Majority Party Democratic-Republican

The Democratic-Republican Party gained a net of two seats from the admission of a new state.

Results summary

Senate party division, 15th Congress (1817–1819)

• Majority party: Democratic-Republican (25–28)
• Minority party: Federalist (13–12)
• Total seats: 38–42

Change in composition

Results of the January 1816 special elections

DR8	DR7	DR6	DR5	DR4	DR3	DR2	DR1
DR9	DR10	DR11	DR12	DR13	DR14	DR15	DR16	DR17	DR18
Majority →									DR19
F9 Md. Gain	F10	F11	F12	F13	DR23	DR22	DR21 Va. Gain	DR20
F8	F7	F6	F5	F4	F3	F2	F1

Before the general elections

DR9	DR8	DR7	DR6	DR5	DR4	DR3	DR2	DR1
DR10	DR11	DR12	DR13	DR14	DR15 Ga. Resigned	DR16 La. Ran	DR17 Mass. Unknown	DR18 N.J. Unknown	DR19 N.C. Resigned
Majority →									DR20 R.I. Retired
F10	F11 Del. Ran	F12 Ky. Retired	F13 N.H. Unknown	TBD1 Ind. New seat	TBD2 Ind. New seat	DR23 Va. Unknown	DR22 Tenn. Unknown	DR21 S.C. Resigned
F9	F8	F7	F6	F5	F4	F3	F2	F1

Results of the general elections

DR9	DR8	DR7	DR6	DR5	DR4	DR3	DR2	DR1
DR10	DR11	DR12	DR13	DR14	DR15 Ga. Hold	DR16 Ind. Gain	DR17 Ind. Gain	DR18 Ky. Gain	DR19 La. Hold
Majority →									DR20 N.H. Gain
F10	F11 Del. Hold	F12 Mass. Gain	F13 R.I. Gain	V1 Tenn. DR Loss	DR24 Va. Hold	DR23 S.C. Hold	DR22 N.C. Hold	DR21 N.J. Hold
F9
	F8	F7	F6	F5	F4	F3	F2	F1

Results of the 1817 special elections

DR10	DR9	DR8	DR7	DR6	DR5	DR4	DR3	DR2	DR1
DR11	DR12	DR13	DR14	DR15	DR16	DR17	DR18	DR19	DR20
Majority →									DR21
F11	F12	DR28 Tenn. Elected[a]	DR27 N.H. Gain	DR26 Miss. New seat	DR25 Miss. New seat	DR24 Vt. Hold	DR23	DR22
F10	F9	F8	F7	F6	F5	F4	F3	F2	F1

Key	DR# Democratic-Republican F# Federalist V# Vacant

Race summaries

Elections during the preceding Congress

In these special and general elections, the winners were seated during 1816 or before March 4, 1817; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Virginia (Class 2)	Vacant			William B. Giles (DR) resigned March 3, 1815. John Wayles Eppes (DR) was elected December 7, 1815, but declined to serve. New senator elected January 3, 1816 on the fourth ballot despite being too young to serve. Democratic-Republican gain. Winner later lost re-election to the next term; see below.	▌Y Armistead T. Mason (Democratic-Republican) 128 Scattering 33[2]
Maryland (Class 1)	Vacant			The Maryland General Assembly failed to elect in time for the March 4, 1815 beginning of the term. New senator elected January 29, 1816. Federalist gain.	▌Y Robert Harper (Federalist) 45 ▌John T. Mason (Democratic-Republican) 44[3]
Massachusetts (Class 1)	Christopher Gore	Federalist	1813 (appointed) 1815 (special)	Incumbent resigned May 30, 1816, unhappy with the politics of Washington and suffering from poor health. New senator elected June 12, 1816. Federalist hold.	▌Y Eli P. Ashmun (Federalist) 158 Scattering 137[4]
Indiana (Class 1)	None (new state)			Indiana was admitted to the Union December 11, 1816. New senator elected November 8, 1816. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y James Noble (Democratic-Republican) 26 ▌Y Waller Taylor (Democratic-Republican) 20 ▌James Scott (Unknown) 16 ▌Jesse L. Holman (Unknown) 3 ▌Ezra Ferris (Unknown) 2 ▌Davis Floyd (Democratic-Republican) 2 ▌Walter Wilson (Unknown) 2 ▌Elias MacNamee (Unknown) 1[5]
Indiana (Class 3)	None (new state)			Indiana was admitted to the Union December 11, 1816. New senator elected November 8, 1816. Democratic-Republican gain.
Georgia (Class 2)	William W. Bibb	Democratic- Republican	1813 (special)	Incumbent resigned November 9, 1816. New senator elected November 13, 1816. Democratic-Republican hold. Winner was also elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y George M. Troup (Democratic-Republican) 62 ▌[FNU] Clark (Unknown) 49 ▌[FNU] Spalding (Unknown) 6[6]
North Carolina (Class 2)	James Turner	Democratic- Republican	1804 1810	Incumbent resigned November 21, 1816 due to ill health. New senator elected December 4, 1816 on the third ballot. Democratic-Republican hold. Winner was also elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y Montfort Stokes (Democratic-Republican) 98 ▌John Branch (Democratic-Republican) 87[7]
South Carolina (Class 2)	John Taylor	Democratic- Republican	1810 (special) 1810	Incumbent resigned November 1816. New senator elected December 4, 1816. Democratic-Republican hold. Winner was also elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y William Smith (Democratic-Republican) 101 ▌James R. Pringle (Unknown) 51[8]
Kentucky (Class 2)	Martin D. Hardin	Federalist	1814 (appointed)	Incumbent appointee elected December 5, 1816.[9] Winner was not later a candidate for the next term; see below.	▌Y Martin D. Hardin (Democratic-Republican) 74 ▌Samuel H. Woodson (Democratic-Republican) 31 ▌Norborn B. Beall (Democratic-Republican) 12 ▌Matthew Lyon (Democratic-Republican) 2[10]
Maryland (Class 1)	Robert Goodloe Harper	Federalist	1816 (special)	Incumbent resigned December 6, 1816. New senator elected December 20, 1816. Federalist hold.	▌Y Alexander C. Hanson (Federalist) 46 ▌William H. Winder (Federalist) 39 ▌Scattering (Federalist) 3[11]

Races leading to the next Congress

In these general elections, the winners were seated March 4, 1817; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Delaware	William H. Wells	Federalist	1799 (special) 1799 1804 (resigned) 1813 (special)	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected January 31, 1817 on the third ballot. Federalist hold.	▌Y Nicholas Van Dyke (Federalist) 14 ▌William Hill Wells (Federalist) 11 ▌James Tilton (Democratic-Republican) 1[12]
Georgia	William W. Bibb	Democratic- Republican	1813 (special)	Resigned November 9, 1816. New senator elected November 13, 1816 on the second ballot. Winner was also elected to finish the previous term; see above. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y George M. Troup (Democratic-Republican) 62 ▌[FNU] Clark (Unknown) 49 ▌[FNU] Spalding (Unknown) 6[6]
Kentucky	Martin D. Hardin	Federalist	1816 (appointed) 1816 (special)	Incumbent retired. New senator elected December 10, 1816 on the second ballot. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y John J. Crittenden (Democratic-Republican) 72 ▌John Adair (Federalist) 47[13]
Louisiana	James Brown	Democratic- Republican	1813 (special)	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1817. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y William C. C. Claiborne (Democratic-Republican) 27 ▌James Brown (Democratic-Republican) 22 Blank 1[14]
Massachusetts	Joseph Bradley Varnum	Democratic-Republican	1811	Incumbent ran for re-election. New senator elected June 12, 1816. Federalist gain.	▌Y Harrison Gray Otis (Federalist) 183 ▌John Holmes (Democratic-Republican) 130 ▌Levi Lincoln Jr. (Democratic-Republican) 6 Scattering 5[15]
New Hampshire	Thomas W. Thompson	Federalist	1814 (special)	Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election. New senator elected in 1816 on the third ballot. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y David L. Morrill (Democratic-Republican) 92 ▌John F. Parrott (Democratic-Republican) 86 Scattering 5[16]
New Jersey	John Condit	Democratic- Republican	1809 (special) 1810	Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election. New senator elected January 23, 1817. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Mahlon Dickerson (Democratic-Republican) Unopposed[17]
North Carolina	James Turner	Democratic- Republican	1804 1810	Resigned November 21, 1816 due to ill health. New senator elected December 4, 1816 on the second ballot. Winner was also elected to finish the previous term; see above. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Montfort Stokes (Democratic-Republican) 96 ▌Bartlett Yancey (Democratic-Republican) 91 [data missing][18]
Rhode Island	Jeremiah Howell	Democratic- Republican	1810	Incumbent retired. New senator elected June 21, 1816.[19] Federalist gain.	▌Y James Burrill Jr. (Federalist) Unanimous[19]
South Carolina	John Taylor	Democratic- Republican	1810 (special) 1810	Incumbent resigned November 1816. New senator elected December 4, 1816. Winner was also elected to the previous term, see above. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y William Smith (Democratic-Republican) 101 ▌James R. Pringle (Unknown) 51[8]
Tennessee	John Williams	Democratic- Republican	1815 (special)	Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election. Legislature failed to elect. Incumbent was appointed to start the term. Democratic-Republican loss.	None.
Virginia	Armistead T. Mason	Democratic-Republican	1816 (special)	Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election, but he was an unsuccessful candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives. New senator elected December 9, 1816. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y John W. Eppes (Democratic-Republican) 103 ▌John Mercer (Democratic-Republican) 93[20][21]

Elections during the next Congress

In three special elections and two general elections, the winners were elected in 1817 after March 4; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
New Hampshire (Class 3)	Jeremiah Mason	Federalist	1813 (special)	Incumbent resigned June 16, 1817. New senator elected June 27, 1817 on the thirteenth ballot. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y Clement Storer (Democratic-Republican) ▌Jeremiah Smith (Federalist)[22][b][c]
Tennessee (Class 2)	John Williams	Democratic- Republican	1815 (special)	Legislature had failed to elect and the incumbent was then appointed to start the term. Interim appointee was re-elected October 2, 1817 to finish the term.	▌Y John Williams (Democratic-Republican) 51 Unopposed[23]
Vermont (Class 3)	Dudley Chase	Democratic- Republican	1812	Resgined November 3, 1817. New senator elected November 4, 1817. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y James Fisk (Democratic-Republican) [data missing]
Mississippi (Class 1)	None (new state)			Mississippi was admitted as a new state. New senator elected December 10, 1817 on the fifth ballot. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y Walter Leake (Democratic-Republican) 15 ▌Christopher Rankin (Democratic-Republican) 8 ▌Cowles Mead (Democratic-Republican) 5 ▌Thomas H. Williams (Democratic-Republican) 1[24]
Mississippi (Class 2)	None (new state)			Mississippi was admitted as a new state. New senator elected December 10, 1817 on the fourth ballot. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y Thomas H. Williams (Democratic-Republican) 16 ▌Cowles Mead (Democratic-Republican) 12 ▌Christopher Rankin (Democratic-Republican) 1[25]

Delaware

See also: List of United States senators from Delaware

Georgia

See also: List of United States senators from Georgia

Georgia (regular)

Georgia (special)

Indiana

Indiana's senators

James Noble (DR)
(Class 1)

Waller Taylor (DR)
(Class 3)

See also: List of United States senators from Indiana

The new state of Indiana elected its first two senators, both Democratic-Republicans, James Noble and Waller Taylor. The election was held November 8, 1816 in advance of Indiana's December 11, 1816 admission as a state. In the election legislators cast a single ballot and the first and second place candidates were deemed elected.

• Y James Noble (Democratic-Republican) 265 votes
• Y Waller Taylor (Democratic-Republican) 20 votes
• James Scott 16 votes
• Jesse L. Holman 3 votes
• Ezra Ferris 2 votes
• Davis Floyd 2 votes
• Walter Wilson 2 votes
• Elias MacNamee 1 vote^[5]

Kentucky

See also: List of United States senators from Kentucky

Kentucky (regular)

Kentucky (special)

See also: List of United States senators from Kentucky

Louisiana

See also: List of United States senators from Louisiana

Maryland (special)

Maryland (special, January 1816)

See also: List of United States senators from Maryland

1816 United States Senate special election in Maryland

← 1808 January 27, 1816 1816 →
80 members of the Maryland General Assembly
Candidate Robert Goodloe Harper John Thomson Mason Party Federalist Legislative vote 45 44 Percentage 50.56% 49.44%

Robert Goodloe Harper won election over John Thomson Mason by a margin of 1.12%, or 1 vote, for the Class 1 seat.^[26]

Maryland (special, December 1816)

See also: List of United States senators from Maryland

1816 United States Senate special election in Maryland

← 1816 January 27, 1816 1819 →
80 members of the Maryland General Assembly
Candidate Alexander Contee Hanson William Winder Party Federalist Democratic-Republican Legislative vote 46 39 Percentage 54.12% 45.88%

Alexander Contee Hanson won election over William Winder by a margin of 8.24%, or 7 votes, for the Class 1 seat.^[27]

Massachusetts

See also: List of United States senators from Massachusetts

Massachusetts (regular)

Massachusetts (special)

See also: List of United States senators from Massachusetts

Mississippi

Mississippi's senators

Walter Leake (DR)
(Class 1)

Thomas H. Williams (DR)
(Class 2)

See also: List of United States senators from Mississippi

The new state of Mississippi elected its first two senators, both Democratic-Republicans, Walter Leake and Thomas H. Williams. Two separate elections were held in which each senator was elected.

First Senator (Class 1)
(5th ballot, date and previous ballots unknown)

• Y Walter Leake (Democratic-Republican) 15 votes
• Christopher Rankin 8 votes
• Cowles Mead 5 votes
• Thomas H. Williams 1 vote^[24]

Second Senator (Class 2)
(4th ballot, date and previous ballots unknown)

• Y Thomas H. Williams (Democratic-Republican) 16 votes
• Cowles Mead 12 votes
• Christopher Rankin 1 vote^[25]

New Hampshire

See also: List of United States senators from New Hampshire

New Hampshire (regular)

New Hampshire (special)

See also: List of United States senators from New Hampshire

New Jersey

See also: List of United States senators from New Jersey

North Carolina

See also: List of United States senators from North Carolina

North Carolina (regular)

North Carolina (special)

See also: List of United States senators from North Carolina

Rhode Island

See also: List of United States senators from Rhode Island

South Carolina

See also: List of United States senators from South Carolina

South Carolina (regular)

South Carolina (special)

See also: List of United States senators from South Carolina

Tennessee

See also: List of United States senators from Tennessee

Tennessee (regular)

Tennessee (special)

See also: List of United States senators from Tennessee

Vermont (special)

See also: List of United States senators from Vermont

Virginia

See also: List of United States senators from Virginia

Virginia (regular)

Virginia (special)

See also: List of United States senators from Virginia

See also

• 1816 United States elections
  • 1816 United States presidential election
  • 1816–17 United States House of Representatives elections
• 14th United States Congress
• 15th United States Congress

Notes

1. Appointee elected
2. "An unfortunate disagreement among some of the members of the House, with regard to a candidate for Senator to Congress, was the occasion of several ballotings before a choice could be made. The Hon. CLEMENT STORER, was however, elected by the unanimous voice of the Republican members of the Senate, which vote was concurred by the House, on Thursday, by a plurality of eleven votes."^[22]
3. "The ballotings for a Senator to Congress, (after 13 trials, in which 33 persons were voted for) resulted in the choice of the Hon. CLEMENT STORER, by a majority of 8 or 10." Farmer's Cabinet (Amherst, NH). July 5, 1817.^[22]

References

1. "17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Direct Election of U.S. Senators (1913)". National Archives and Records Administration. February 8, 2022.
2. "Virginia 1816 U.S. Senate, Special, Ballot 4". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
3. "Maryland 1816 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
4. "Massachusetts 1816 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
5. "Indiana 1816 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Archived from the original on October 29, 2019. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
6. "Georgia 1816 U.S. Senate, Ballot 2". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
7. "North Carolina 1816 U.S. Senate, Special, Ballot 3". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
8. "South Carolina 1816 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
9. Byrd, page 110.
10. "Kentucky 1816 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
11. "Maryland 1816 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Archived from the original on March 6, 2020. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
12. "Delaware 1817 U.S. Senate, Ballot 3". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
13. "Kentucky 1816 U.S. Senate, Ballot 2". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
14. "Louisiana 1817 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
15. "Massachusetts 1816 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
16. "New Hampshire 1816 U.S. Senate, Ballot 3". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
17. "New Jersey 1817 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
18. "North Carolina 1816 U.S. Senate, Ballot 2". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
19. "A New Nation Votes".
20. "VA US Senate". Our Campaigns. January 11, 2008. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
21. "Virginia 1816 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
22. "New Hampshire 1817 U.S. Senate, Ballot 13". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
23. "Tennessee 1817 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
24. "Mississippi 1817 U.S. Senate, First Senator, Ballot 5". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
25. "Mississippi 1817 U.S. Senate, Second Senator, Ballot 4". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
26. "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Jan 27, 1816". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 2022-11-05.
27. "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Jan 27, 1816". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 2022-11-05.

• Party Division in the Senate, 1789-Present, via Senate.gov
• Byrd, Robert C. (October 1, 1993). Wolff, Wendy (ed.). The Senate, 1789-1989: Historical Statistics, 1789-1992. United States Senate Historical Office (volume 4 Bicentennial ed.). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. ISBN 9780160632563.