1848–49 United States Senate elections

The 1848–49 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 1848 and 1849, 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 3.

1848–49 United States Senate elections

← 1846 & 1847 Various dates 1850 & 1851 →
19 of the 60 seats in the United States Senate (with special elections) 31 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Party Democratic Whig Last election 35 seats 19 seats Seats before 38 21 Seats won 9 9 Seats after 33 25 Seat change 5 4 Seats up 14 5   Third party Fourth party   Party Independent Democratic Free Soil Last election 1 seat Seats before 0 New party Seats won 0 1 Seats after 1 1 Seat change 1 Seats up 0
Results:      Democratic gain      Democratic hold      Whig gain      Whig hold      Free Soil gain
Majority party before election Democratic Elected Majority party Democratic

The Democratic Party lost seats but maintained control of the Senate.

Results

Senate party division, 31st Congress (1849–1851)

• Majority party: Democratic (33–36)
• Minority party: Whig Party (25–24)
• Other parties: Free Soil (2)
• Total seats: 60–62

Change in Senate composition

Before the elections

D1	D2	D3	D4	D5	D6	D7	D8	D9	D10
D20	D19	D18	D17	D16	D15	D14	D13	D12	D11
D21	D22	D23	D24	D25 Ran	D26 Ran	D27 Ran	D28 Ran	D29 Ran	D30 Ran
Majority →									D31 Ran
W21 Unknown	ID1	D38 Retired	D37 Retired	D36 Retired	D35 Retired	D34 Unknown	D33 Ran	D32 Ran
W20 Ran	W19 Ran	W18 Ran	W17 Ran	W16	W15	W14	W13	W12	W11
W1	W2	W3	W4	W5	W6	W7	W8	W9	W10

As a result of the elections

D1	D2	D3	D4	D5	D6	D7	D8	D9	D10
D20	D19	D18	D17	D16	D15	D14	D13	D12	D11
D21	D22	D23	D24	D25 Re-elected	D26 Re-elected	D27 Re-elected	D28 Re-elected	D29 Re-elected	D30 Hold
Majority →									D31 Hold
W21 Gain	W22 Gain	W23 Gain	W24 Gain	W25 Gain	ID1	FS1 Gain	D33 Gain	D32 Hold
W20 Hold	W19 Re-elected	W18 Re-elected	W17 Re-elected	W16	W15	W14	W13	W12	W11
W1	W2	W3	W4	W5	W6	W7	W8	W9	W10

Note: "Re-elected" includes incumbent appointee elected to the next term.

Beginning of the next Congress

D1	D2	D3	D4	D5	D6	D7	D8	D9	D10
D20	D19	D18	D17	D16	D15	D14	D13	D12	D11
D21	D22	D23	D24	D25	D26	D27	D28	D29	D30
Majority →									D31
W21	W22	W23	W24	W25	FS2	FS1	D33	D32
W20	W19	W18	W17	W16	W15	W14	W13	W12	W11
W1	W2	W3	W4	W5	W6	W7	W8	W9	W10

Key:	D# Democratic ID# Independent Democratic FS# Free Soil W# Whig V# Vacant

Race summaries

Special elections during the 30th Congress

In these special elections, the winners were seated during 1848 or in 1849 before March 4; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Mississippi (Class 1)	Jefferson Davis	Democratic	1847 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected January 11, 1848.[2]	▌Y Jefferson Davis (Democratic) [data missing]
Connecticut (Class 1)	Roger S. Baldwin	Whig	1847 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected in May 1848.	▌Y Roger S. Baldwin (Whig) [data missing]
Maine (Class 1)	Wyman B. S. Moor	Democratic	1848 (appointed)	Interim appointee retired when successor elected June 7, 1848. Democratic hold.	▌Y Hannibal Hamlin (Democratic) [data missing]
Wisconsin (Class 1)	None (new state)			Wisconsin admitted to the Union May 29, 1848. Senator elected June 8, 1848. Democratic gain.	▌Y Henry Dodge (Democratic) [data missing]
Wisconsin (Class 3)				Wisconsin admitted to the Union May 29, 1848. Senator elected June 8, 1848. Democratic gain.	▌Y Isaac P. Walker (Democratic) [data missing]
Alabama (Class 3)	Arthur P. Bagby	Democratic	1841 (special) 1842	Incumbent resigned June 16, 1848 to become U.S. Minister to Russia. New senator elected July 1, 1848. Democratic hold.	▌Y William R. King (Democratic) [data missing]
Arkansas (Class 2)	William K. Sebastian	Democratic	1848 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected November 17, 1848.[3]	▌Y William K. Sebastian (Democratic) [data missing]
Iowa (Class 2)	None (new state)			Iowa was admitted to the Union December 28, 1846. Legislature had failed to elect due to a three-way split that prevented any candidate from earning the required 30 votes.[4] Senator elected December 7, 1848. Democratic gain.	▌Y George Wallace Jones (Democratic) [data missing]
Iowa (Class 3)				Iowa was admitted to the Union December 28, 1846. Legislature had failed to elect due to a three-way split that prevented any candidate from earning the required 30 votes.[4] Senator elected December 7, 1848. Democratic gain.	▌Y Augustus C. Dodge (Democratic) [data missing]
Kentucky (Class 3)	Thomas Metcalfe	Whig	1848 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected January 3, 1849.[5]	▌Y Thomas Metcalfe (Whig) 88 votes ▌ Lazarus W. Powell (Democratic) 38 votes[6]
Michigan (Class 1)	Thomas Fitzgerald	Democratic	1848 (appointed)	Interim appointee retired. New senator elected January 20, 1849, but did not take his seat until March 4, 1849. Democratic hold.	▌Y Lewis Cass (Democratic) [data missing]
Delaware (Class 1)	John M. Clayton	Whig	1829 1835	Incumbent resigned February 23, 1849 to become U.S. Secretary of State. New senator elected February 23, 1849. Whig hold.	▌Y John Wales (Whig) [data missing]

Races leading to the 31st Congress

In these regular elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1849; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 3 seats.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Alabama	William R. King	Democratic	1848 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1848 or 1849.	▌Y William R. King (Democratic) [data missing]
Arkansas	Solon Borland	Democratic	1848 (appointed)	Incumbent appointee elected to a full term in November 1848.[7]	▌Y Solon Borland (Democratic) ▌Ambrose Sevier (Democratic)[7] [data missing]
Connecticut	John M. Niles	Democratic	1842	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1848 or 1849. Whig gain.	▌Y Truman Smith (Whig) [data missing]
Florida	James Westcott	Democratic	1845	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1848. Whig gain.	▌Y Jackson Morton (Whig) [data missing]
Georgia	Herschel V. Johnson	Democratic	1848 (appointed)	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1847.[8] Whig gain.	▌Y William C. Dawson (Whig) [data missing]
Illinois	Sidney Breese	Democratic	1843	Incumbent lost renomination. New senator elected January 13, 1849. Democratic hold.	▌Y James Shields (Democratic) [data missing]
Indiana	Edward A. Hannegan	Democratic	1842	Incumbent lost renomination. New senator elected in 1848. Democratic hold.	▌Y James Whitcomb (Democratic) [data missing]
Kentucky	Thomas Metcalfe	Whig	1848 (appointed) ? (special)	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected February 1, 1849. Whig hold.	▌Y Henry Clay (Whig) 93 votes ▌Richard Mentor Johnson (Democratic) 45 votes[9]
Louisiana	Henry Johnson	Whig	1844 (special)	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1848. Democratic gain.	▌Y Pierre Soulé (Democratic) ▌Henry Johnson (Whig) [data missing]
Maryland	James Pearce	Whig	1843	Incumbent re-elected in 1849.	▌Y James Pearce (Whig) [data missing]
Missouri	David Rice Atchison	Democratic	1843 (appointed) 1843 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1849.	▌Y David Rice Atchison (Democratic) [data missing]
New Hampshire	Charles G. Atherton	Democratic	1843 (special)	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected in 1848 or 1849. Democratic hold.	▌Y Moses Norris Jr. (Democratic) [data missing]
New York	John Adams Dix	Democratic	1845 (special)	Incumbent lost re-election as a Free Soiler. New senator elected February 6, 1849. Whig gain.	▌Y William H. Seward (Whig) ▌John Adams Dix (Free Soil) ▌Reuben H. Walworth (Democratic) ▌Daniel D. Barnard (Whig)
North Carolina	George Badger	Whig	1846 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1849.	▌Y George Badger (Whig) [data missing]
Ohio	William Allen	Democratic	1837 1842	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1849. Free Soil gain.	▌Y Salmon P. Chase (Free Soil) ▌Thomas Ewing (Whig) ▌William Allen (Democratic) ▌Joshua Reed Giddings (Free Soil) ▌Reuben Hitchcock (Unknown) ▌Emery D. Potter (Democratic) ▌David T. Disney (Democratic) ▌John C. Vaughn (Unknown)
Pennsylvania	Simon Cameron	Democratic	1845 (special)	Incumbent retired. New senator elected January 10, 1849. Whig gain.	▌Y James Cooper (Whig) 49.62% ▌Richard Brodhead (Democratic) 46.62% ▌Thaddeus Stevens (Free Soil) 2.26%
South Carolina	Andrew Butler	Democratic	1846 (appointed) ? (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1848.	▌Y Andrew Butler (Democratic) [data missing]
Vermont	William Upham	Whig	1843	Incumbent re-elected October 31, 1848.[10]	▌Y William Upham (Whig) ▌ Levi Baker Vilas (Democratic) ▌ Jacob Collamer (Whig)
Wisconsin	Isaac P. Walker	Democratic	1848	Incumbent re-elected in 1849.	▌Y Isaac P. Walker (Democratic) [data missing]

Elections during the 31st Congress

In these elections, the winners were elected in 1849 after March 4.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Illinois (Class 3)	James Shields	Democratic	1848 or 1849	Senate voided election March 15, 1849, as incumbent had not been a U.S. citizen long enough as required by the U.S. Constitution. Incumbent was re-elected October 27, 1849, having by then qualified. Democratic hold.	▌Y James Shields (Democratic) [data missing]
Alabama (Class 2)	Benjamin Fitzpatrick	Democratic	1848 (appointed)	Interim appointee retired when successor elected or lost election to finish the term. New senator elected November 30, 1849. Democratic hold.	▌Y Jeremiah Clemens (Democratic) [data missing]
California (Class 1)	None (new state)			California admitted as a state on September 9, 1850. Senator elected December 20, 1849 and seated upon statehood. Democratic gain.	▌Y John C. Frémont (Democratic) [data missing]
California (Class 3)				California admitted as a state on September 9, 1850. Senator elected December 20, 1849 and seated upon statehood. Democratic gain.	▌Y William M. Gwin (Democratic) [data missing]

Individual elections

Maryland

See also: List of United States senators from Maryland

1849 United States Senate election in Maryland

← 1844 December 1849 1850 →
80 members of the Maryland General Assembly
Candidate David Stewart Party Democratic Legislative vote - Percentage -%

1849 United States Senate election in Maryland

← 1843 January 1849 1855 →
80 members of the Maryland General Assembly
Candidate James Pearce Party Whig Legislative vote - Percentage -%

Reverdy Johnson won election in 1844 but retired to become the United States Attorney General. In order to fill his seat, David Stewart was elected by an unknown margin of votes, for the Class 1 seat.^[11]

James Pearce won re-election by an unknown margin of votes, for the Class 3 seat.^[12]

New York

Main article: United States Senate election in New York, 1849

The New York election was held February 6, 1849. Barnburner John Adams Dix had been elected in 1845 to this seat after the resignation of Silas Wright, and Dix's term would expire on March 3, 1849. In November 1848, Dix was the Barnburners/Free-Soilers candidate for Governor of New York, but was defeated by Whig Hamilton Fish.

At this time New York Democratic Party was split in two fiercely opposing factions: the Barnburners" and the "Hunkers". The Barnburners organized the Free Soil Party in 1848 and nominated Martin Van Buren for U.S. President. Due to the split, the Whig Party won most of the elective offices by pluralities.

At the State election in November 1847, 24 Whigs and 8 Democrats were elected for a two-year term (1848–1849) in the State Senate. At the State election in November 1848, 106 Whigs, 15 Free Soilers and 7 Hunkers were elected to the Assembly for the session of 1849. The 72nd New York State Legislature met from January 2 to April 11, 1849, at Albany, New York.

Ex-Governor of New York William H. Seward was nominated by a caucus of Whig State legislators on February 1, 1849. The vote was 88 for Seward, 12 for John A. Collier, 18 scattering and 4 blanks. The incumbent U.S. Senator John Adams Dix ran for re-election supported by the Free Soilers. Ex-Chancellor Reuben H. Walworth was the candidate of the Hunkers. Walworth had been third place in the last gubernatorial election, behind Fish and Dix. Ex-Congressman Daniel D. Barnard (Whig) received 2 scattering votes in the Senate. William H. Seward was the choice of both the Assembly and the Senate, and was declared elected.

House	Whig		Free Soil		Dem./Hunker		Also ran
State Senate (32 members)	William H. Seward	19	John Adams Dix	6	Reuben H. Walworth	2	Daniel D. Barnard	2
State Assembly (128 members)	William H. Seward	102	John Adams Dix	15	Reuben H. Walworth	7

Ohio

Main article: United States Senate election in Ohio, 1849

The two houses of the Ohio General Assembly met in joint session February 22, 1849, with 72 representatives and 35 senators present to elect a Senator (Class 3) to succeed incumbent William Allen. On the fourth ballot, Salmon P. Chase was elected with a majority of the votes cast, as follows:^[13]

Ballot	William Allen	Thomas Ewing	Joshua Reed Giddings	Salmon P. Chase	Reuben Hitchcock	Emery D. Potter	David T. Disney	John C. Vaughn	Blank ballots	Total votes cast
1	27	41	9	14	1	2	1	0	11	106
2	1	41	8	52	0	0	0	0	4	108
3	0	39	9	53	0	0	0	2	2	105
4	0	39	11	55	0	0	0	1	0	106

The second ballot was declared a nullity by Speaker of the Senate Brewster Randall, because there were one more ballots cast than members present.

Pennsylvania

Main article: United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, 1849

The Pennsylvania election was held January 10, 1849. James Cooper was elected by the Pennsylvania General Assembly.^[14]

Incumbent Democrat Simon Cameron, who was elected in 1845, 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 10, 1849, to elect a new Senator to fill the term beginning on March 4, 1849. Three ballots were recorded. The results of the third and final ballot of both houses combined are as follows:

State Legislature results^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	James Cooper	66	49.62
	Democratic	Richard Brodhead	62	46.62
	Free Soil	Thaddeus Stevens	3	2.26
	N/A	Not voting	2	1.50
Totals			133	100.00%

See also

• 1848 United States elections
  • 1848 United States presidential election
  • 1848–49 United States House of Representatives elections
• 30th United States Congress
• 31st United States Congress

Notes

1. "17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Direct Election of U.S. Senators (1913)". National Archives and Records Administration. 8 February 2022.
2. Byrd, p. 129.
3. Byrd, p. 164.
4. Clark, pp. 17–46, 72–79.
5. Byrd, p. 112.
6. Journal of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, begun and held in the Town of Frankfort, on Saturday 30th December 1848. Frankfort, KY: A. G. Hodges & Co, State Printers. 1848. p. 26.
7. "Encyclopedia of Arkansas".
8. "Stryker's American Register and Magazine". 1849.
9. Journal of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, begun and held in the Town of Frankfort, on Saturday 30th December 1848. Frankfort, KY: A. G. Hodges & Co, State Printers. 1848. p. 170.
10. "Election of U.S. Senator". Vermont Patriot. 2 November 1848. p. 2. Retrieved 25 January 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Dec 00, 1849". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
12. "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Jan 00, 1849". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
13. Taylor, William Alexander; Taylor, Aubrey Clarence (1899). Ohio statesmen and annals of progress: from the year 1788 to the year 1900 ... State of Ohio. p. 232.
14. "U.S. Senate Election - 10 January 1849" (PDF). Wilkes University. Retrieved 22 December 2013.

References

• "Party Division in the Senate, 1789-Present". via Senate.gov.
• Clark, Dan Elbert (1913). History of Senatorial Elections in Iowa. Iowa City, Iowa.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Byrd, Robert C. (1 October 1993). Wolff, Wendy (ed.). The Senate, 1789-1989: Historical Statistics, 1789–1992. United States Senate Historical Office (volume 4 Bicentennial ed.). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. ISBN 9780160632563.
• The New York Civil List compiled in 1858 (see: pg. 63 for U.S. Senators; pg. 136 for State Senators 1849; pg. 236ff for Members of Assembly 1849)
• Members of the 31st United States Congress
• Result State election, 1847: The Whig Almanac and United States Register for 1848
• Result Whig caucus: The American Whig Review, Vol. 11 by George Hooker Colton & James Davenport Whelpley (page 638)
• Result U.S. Senate election, State Senate: Journal of the Senate (72nd Session) (1849; pg. 167)
• Result U.S. Senate election, State Assembly: Journal of the Assembly (72nd Session) (1849; pg. 355f)
• Pennsylvania Election Statistics: 1682-2006 from the Wilkes University Election Statistics Project