1860–61 United States Senate elections

The 1860–61 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 1860 and 1861, 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.

1860–61 United States Senate elections

← 1858 & 1859 Various dates 1862 & 1863 →
22 of the 66 seats in the United States Senate (with special elections) 34 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader John P. Hale[a] Party Democratic Republican Leader since March 4, 1859 Leader's seat New Hampshire Last election 38 seats 25 seats Seats before 38 26 Seats won 30 29 Seat change 8 3 Seats up 14 7   Third party   Party Know Nothing Last election 2 seats Seats before 2 Seats won 1 Seat change 1 Seats up 1
Results of the elections:      Democratic gain      Democratic hold      Republican gain      Republican hold      Senator left for the Confederacy
Majority party before election Democratic Elected Majority party Democratic

These elections corresponded with Abraham Lincoln's election to the presidency. The nascent Republican Party increased their Senate seats in the regular elections, and after southern Democrats withdrew to join the Confederacy, Republicans gained control of the Senate. To establish a quorum with fewer members, a lower total seat number was taken into account.

Results summary

Senate party division, 37th Congress (1861–1863)

• Majority party: Republican (29), later rose to 30
• Minority party: Democratic (30), later dropped to 14
• Other parties: Unionist (1), later rose to 4
• Vacant: (8), later rose to 20
• Total seats: 68

Change in Senate composition

Before the elections

After the October 2, 1860 special election in Oregon.

D3	D2	D1
D4	D5	D6	D7	D8	D9	D10	D11	D12	D13
D23	D22	D21	D20	D19	D18	D17	D16	D15	D14
D24	D25 Ran	D26 Ran	D27 Ran	D28 Unknown	D29 Unknown	D30 Retired	D31 Retired	D32 Retired	D33 Retired
Majority →									D34 Resigned
R24 Ran	R25 Unknown	R26 Retired	KN1	KN2 Ran	D38 Withdrew	D37 Withdrew	D36 Withdrew	D35 Withdrew
R23 Ran	R22 Ran	R21 Ran	R20 Ran	R19	R18	R17	R16	R15	R14
R4	R5	R6	R7	R8	R9	R10	R11	R12	R13
R3	R2	R1

As a result of the elections

V3 D Loss	V2 D Loss	V1 D Loss
D1	D2	D3	D4	D5	D6	D7	D8	D9	D10
D20	D19	D18	D17	D16	D15	D14	D13	D12	D11
D21	D23	D22	D24	D25 Re-elected	D26 Re-elected	D27 Hold	D28 Hold	D29 Hold	D30 Gain
Plurality ↑									KN1
R21 Re-elected	R22 Re-elected	R23 Re-elected	R24 Re-elected	R25 Hold	R26 Hold	R27 Gain	R28 Gain	R29 Gain
R20 Re-elected	R19	R18	R17	R16	R15	R14	R13	R12	R11
R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	R8	R9	R10
V4 D Loss	V5 D Loss	V6 D Loss

Beginning of the next Congress

V4 D Loss	V3 D Loss	V2 D Loss	V1 D Loss
V5 D Loss	V6 D Loss	V7 D Loss	V8 D Loss	D1	D2	D3	D4	D5	D6
D16	D15	D14	D13	D12	D11	D10	D9	D8	D7
D17	D18	D19	D20	D21	D22	U1 Changed	R29 Hold	R28	R27
Majority →									R26
R17	R18	R19	R20	R21	R22	R23	R24	R25
R16	R15	R14	R13	R12	R11	R10	R9	R8	R7
V12	V11	V10	V9	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6
V13	V14	V15 New state	V16 New state

End of 1861

V4	V3	V2	V1
V5	V6	V7	V8	V9 D Loss	V10 D Loss	D1	D2	D3	D4
D14 Gain	D13 Gain	D12	D11	D10	D9	D8	D7	D6	D5
U4 Gain	U3 Gain	U2 Gain	U1	R30 Gain	R29 Hold	R28 Hold	R27 Hold	R26	R25
Majority →									R24
R15	R16	R17	R18	R19	R20	R21	R22	R23
R14	R13	R12	R11	R10	R9	R8	R7	R6	R5
V16	V15	V14	V13	V12 R Loss	V11 R Loss	R1 Gain	R2 Gain	R3	R4
V17	V18 D Loss	V19 D Loss	V20 D Loss

Key:	D# Democratic KN# Know Nothing R# Republican U# Unionist V# Vacant

Race summaries

Special elections during the 36th Congress

In these special elections, the winners were seated during 1860 or in 1861 before March 4; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
California (Class 1)	Henry P. Haun	Democratic	1859 (appointed)	Interim appointee lost election to finish the term. Winner elected March 5, 1860. Democratic hold.	▌Y Milton Latham (Democratic) ▌Henry P. Haun (Democratic) [data missing]
Oregon (Class 2)	Vacant			Legislature had failed to elect in 1858/1859. Winner elected October 2, 1860. Republican gain.	▌Y Edward D. Baker (Republican) [data missing]
Maine (Class 1)	Hannibal Hamlin	Republican	1848 (special) 1851 1857 (resigned) 1857	Incumbent resigned to become U.S. Vice President. Winner elected January 17, 1861. Republican hold.	▌Y Lot M. Morrill (Republican) [data missing]

Races leading to the 37th Congress

In these regular elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1861; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 3 seats.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Alabama	Benjamin Fitzpatrick	Democratic	1848 (appointed) 1849 (retired) 1853 (appointed) 1853 (special) 1855	Incumbent withdrew January 21, 1861. No replacement was elected. Democratic loss. Seat remained vacant until 1868.	None.
Arkansas	Robert W. Johnson	Democratic	1853 (appointed) 1854 (special)	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1860 or 1861. Democratic hold.	▌Y Charles B. Mitchel (Democratic) [data missing]
California	William M. Gwin	Democratic	1850 1855 (failure to elect) 1857 (special)	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected in 1860. Democratic hold.	▌Y James A. McDougall (Democratic)
Connecticut	Lafayette S. Foster	Republican	1854	Incumbent re-elected in 1860.	▌Y Lafayette S. Foster (Republican) [data missing]
Florida	David Levy Yulee	Democratic	1855	Incumbent withdrew January 21, 1861. No replacement was elected. Democratic loss. Seat remained vacant until 1868.	None.
Georgia	Alfred Iverson, Sr.	Democratic	1854–55	Incumbent withdrew January 28, 1861. No replacement was elected. Democratic loss. Seat remained vacant until 1871.	None.
Illinois	Lyman Trumbull	Republican	1855	Incumbent re-elected, January 9, 1861.	▌Y Lyman Trumbull (Republican) 54 ▌Samuel S. Marshall (Democratic) 46[2]
Iowa	James Harlan	Republican	1855 1857 (election voided) 1857 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1860.	▌Y James Harlan (Republican) [data missing]
Indiana	Graham N. Fitch	Democratic	1857 (special)	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1860. Republican gain.	▌Y Henry S. Lane (Republican) [data missing]
Kansas	None (new state)			Kansas became a state January 29, 1861, but did not elect its senators until the next Congress; see below.	None.
Kentucky	John J. Crittenden	Know Nothing	1816 1819 (resigned) 1835 1841 (retired) 1842 (appointed) 1842–43 (special) 1843 1848 (resigned) 1854	Incumbent retired. New senator elected December 12, 1859, far in advance of the term. Democratic gain. Winner was subsequently expelled; see below.	▌Y John C. Breckinridge (Democratic) [data missing]
Louisiana	John Slidell	Democratic	1853 (special) 1854–55	Incumbent resigned February 4, 1861. No replacement was elected. Democratic loss. Seat remained vacant until 1868.	None.
Maryland	James Pearce	Democratic	1843 1849 1855	Incumbent re-elected in 1861.	▌Y James Pearce (Democratic) [data missing]
Missouri	James S. Green	Democratic	1857	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. Legislature failed to elect. Democratic loss. Seat remained vacant until March 17, 1861; see below.	[data missing]
New Hampshire	Daniel Clark	Republican	1857	Incumbent re-elected in 1861.	▌Y Daniel Clark (Republican) [data missing]
New York	William H. Seward	Republican	1849 1855	Incumbent retired, expecting appointment to the Lincoln Administration. New senator elected February 5, 1861. Republican hold.	▌Y Ira Harris (Republican) ▌Horatio Seymour (Democratic)
North Carolina	Thomas Clingman	Democratic	1858 (appointed) 1858 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1861.	▌Y Thomas Clingman (Democratic) [data missing]
Ohio	George E. Pugh	Democratic	1854	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1860. Republican gain.	▌Y Salmon P. Chase (Republican) ▌George E. Pugh (Democratic) [data missing]
Oregon	Joseph Lane	Democratic	1859	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1860 or 1861. Democratic hold.	▌Y James Nesmith (Democratic) [data missing]
Pennsylvania	William Bigler	Democratic	1856	Incumbent retired. New senator elected January 8, 1861. Republican gain.	▌Y Edgar Cowan (Republican) 73.68% ▌Henry Foster (Democratic) 26.32%
South Carolina	James H. Hammond	Democratic	1857	Incumbent withdrew November 11, 1860. No replacement was elected. Democratic loss. Seat remained vacant until 1868.	None.
Vermont	Jacob Collamer	Republican	1855	Incumbent re-elected in 1861.	▌Y Jacob Collamer (Republican) [data missing]
Wisconsin	Charles Durkee	Republican	1855	Incumbent retired. New member elected January 23, 1861. Republican hold.	▌Y Timothy O. Howe (Republican) ▌ Henry L. Palmer (Democratic)

Elections during the 37th Congress

In these elections, the winners were elected in 1861 after March 4.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Pennsylvania (Class 1)	Vacant			Incumbent had resigned in the previous Congress. New senator elected March 14, 1861. Republican gain.	▌Y David Wilmot (Republican) 72.18% ▌William H. Welsh (Democratic) 25.56% ▌Winthrop W. Ketcham (Republican) 0.75% ▌William Wilkins (Democratic) 0.75%
Missouri (Class 3)	Vacant			Legislature had failed to elect. New senator elected March 17, 1861. Democratic gain.	▌Y Waldo P. Johnson (Democratic) [data missing]
Ohio (Class 3)	Salmon P. Chase	Republican	1849 1855 (retired) 1860	Incumbent resigned December 4, 1860, to become U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. New senator elected March 21, 1861. Republican hold.	▌Y John Sherman (Republican) [data missing]
Kansas (Class 2)	None (new state)			Kansas became a state January 29, 1861. Senator was elected late April 4, 1861. Republican gain.	▌Y Jim Lane (Republican) [data missing]
Kansas (Class 3)				Kansas became a state January 29, 1861. Senator was elected late April 4, 1861. Republican gain.	▌Y Samuel C. Pomeroy (Republican) [data missing]
Virginia (Class 1)	James M. Mason	Democratic	1847 (special) 1850 1856	Incumbent expelled July 11, 1861 for supporting the Confederacy. New senator elected July 13, 1861. Unionist gain.	▌Y Waitman T. Willey (Unionist) [data missing]
Virginia (Class 2)	Robert M. T. Hunter	Democratic	1846 1852 1858	Incumbent expelled July 11, 1861 for supporting the Confederacy. New senator elected July 13, 1861. Unionist gain.	▌Y John S. Carlile (Unionist) [data missing]
Kentucky (Class 3)	John C. Breckinridge	Democratic	1859	Incumbent expelled December 4, 1861 for supporting the Confederacy. New senator elected December 10, 1861. Unionist gain.	▌Y Garrett Davis (Unionist) [data missing]

Maryland

See also: List of United States senators from Maryland

1861 United States Senate election in Maryland

← 1855 January 1861 1864 →
80 members of the Maryland General Assembly
Candidate James Pearce Party Democratic Legislative vote - Percentage -%

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

New York

Main article: 1861 United States Senate election in New York

See also: List of United States senators from New York

The New York election was held February 5, 1861.

Whig William H. Seward had been re-elected in February 1855 to this seat, had become a Republican upon the foundation of that party in September 1855, and his term would expire on March 3, 1861. Seward did not seek re-election, instead being certain to be appointed to an office in the incoming Lincoln administration (Lincoln subsequently appointed Seward Secretary of State).

At the state election in November 1859, 23 Republicans and 9 Democrats were elected for a two-year term (1860–1861) in the State Senate. At the state election in November 1860, 93 Republicans and 35 Democrats were elected to the Assembly for the session of 1861. The 84th New York State Legislature met from January 1 to April 16, 1861, at Albany, New York.

Ira Harris was the candidate of the Republican Party. Harris had been a Whig assemblyman in 1845 and 1846, and a justice of the New York Supreme Court from 1847 to 1859.

Ex-Governor Horatio Seymour (in office 1853–1854) was the candidate of the Democratic Party.

Both in the Assembly and the Senate a strict party vote confirmed the caucus selections.

In the Assembly 119 votes were given: Republicans Smith Anthony (Cayuga Co.), Martin Finch (Essex Co.), Henry A. Prendergast (Chautauqua Co.), Victor M. Rice (Erie Co.) and Perez H. Field (Ontario Co.), along with Democrats Luke F. Cozans (NYC), Benjamin H. Long (Erie Co.), N. Holmes Odell (Westchester Co.) and Christian B. Woodruff (NYC) did not vote.

In the State Senate, 31 votes were given as William H. Ferry (Rep., 19th D.) was absent.

Ira Harris was the choice of both the Assembly and the Senate, and was declared elected.

House	Republican		Democratic
State Senate (31 members voting)	Ira Harris	22	Horatio Seymour	9
State Assembly (119 members voting)	Ira Harris	88	Horatio Seymour	31

Pennsylvania

See also: List of United States senators from New York

There were two elections in Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania (regular)

Main article: 1861 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania

The regular election in Pennsylvania was held January 8, 1861. Edgar Cowan was elected by the Pennsylvania General Assembly to the United States Senate.^[4]

Incumbent Democrat William Bigler, who was elected in 1856, 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 8, 1861, to elect a new Senator to fill the term beginning on March 4, 1861. The results of the vote of both houses combined are as follows:

General election results^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Edgar Cowan	98	73.68
	Democratic	Henry Foster	35	26.32%
Total votes			133	100%

Pennsylvania (special)

Main article: 1861 United States Senate special election in Pennsylvania

A special election was held in Pennsylvania on March 14, 1861. David Wilmot was elected by the Pennsylvania General Assembly to the United States Senate.^[5]

Republican Simon Cameron had been elected to the United States Senate by the General Assembly, consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate, in January 1857. After Senator Cameron resigned his seat on March 4, 1861, to become United States Secretary of War in Abraham Lincoln's administration,^[6] the Pennsylvania General Assembly convened on March 14, 1861, to elect a new Senator to fill the vacancy.

The results of the vote of both houses combined are as follows:

Special election results^[5][7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	David Wilmot	96	72.18
	Democratic	William H. Welsh	34	25.56%
	Republican	Winthrop W. Ketcham	1	0.75%
	Democratic	William Wilkins	1	0.75%
	N/A	Not voting	1	0.75%
Total votes			133	100%

See also

• 1860 United States elections
  • 1860 United States presidential election
  • 1860–61 United States House of Representatives elections
• 36th United States Congress
• 37th United States Congress

Notes

1. as Republican Conference Chair

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. Journal of the House of Representatives of the General Assembly of the State of Illinois, 1861. Springfield, IL: Bailache & Baker, Printers. 1861.
3. "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Jan 00, 1861". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 2022-11-05.
4. "U.S. Senate Election - 8 January 1861" (PDF). Wilkes University. Retrieved December 22, 2013.
5. "U.S. Senate Election - 14 March 1861" (PDF). Wilkes University. Retrieved December 23, 2012.
6. "CAMERON, Simon, (1799 - 1889)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved December 23, 2012.
7. "PA US Senate - Special Election". OurCampaigns. Retrieved December 22, 2012.

• Party Division in the Senate, 1789-Present, via Senate.gov
• The New York Civil List compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough, Stephen C. Hutchins and Edgar Albert Werner, 1867 (see pg. 568 for U. S. Senators; pg. 442 for State Senators 1861; pg. 492ff for Members of Assembly 1861)
• Result NY state election 1859 in The Tribune Almanac for 1860 compiled by Horace Greeley of the New York Tribune
• Result NY state election 1860 in The Tribune Almanac for 1861 compiled by Horace Greeley of the New York Tribune
• FROM THE STATE CAPITAL.; Election of United States Senator in NYT on February 6, 1861
• Result, NY State Senate: Journal of the Senate (84th Session) (1861; pg. 137)
• Result, NY Assembly: Journal of the Assembly (84th Session) (1861; pg. 247f)
• Pennsylvania Election Statistics: 1682-2006 from the Wilkes University Election Statistics Project.