1876–77 United States Senate elections

The 1876–77 United States Senate elections were held on various dates in various states, coinciding with Rutherford B. Hayes's narrow election as president. 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 1876 and 1877, 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.

1876–77 United States Senate elections

← 1874 & 1875 Dates vary by state (And other dates for special elections) 1878 & 1879 →
26 of the 76 seats in the United States Senate (with special elections) 39 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Henry B. Anthony[a] John W. Stevenson[b] (retired) Party Republican Democratic Leader since March 4, 1863 March 4, 1873 Leader's seat Rhode Island Kentucky Seats before 45 30 Seats won 11 14 Seats after 39 35 Seat change 6 5 Seats up 17 9   Third party Fourth party   Party Anti-Monopoly Independent Seats before 1 0 Seats won 0 1 Seats after 1 1 Seat change 1 Seats up 0 0
Results of the elections:      Democratic gain      Democratic hold      Republican gain      Republican hold      Independent gain
Majority Party before election Republican Elected Majority Party Republican

Although the Republican Party maintained their Senate majority, the Democratic Party gained five seats.

Results summary

Senate party division, 45th Congress (1877–1879)

• Majority party: Republican (39)
• Minority party: Democratic (35)
• Other parties: Anti-Monopoly (1), Independent (1)
• Total seats: 76

Change in Senate composition

Before the elections

After the November 15, 1876 elections in the new state of Colorado.

D8	D7	D6	D5	D4	D3	D2	D1
D9	D10	D11	D12	D13	D14	D15	D16	D17	D18
D28 Retired	D27 Retired	D26 Ran	D25 Ran	D24 Ran	D23 Ran	D22 Ran	D21	D20	D19
D29 Retired	D30 Retired	AM1	R45 Retired	R44 Retired	R43 Retired	R42 Retired	R41 Unknown	R40 Unknown	R39 Unknown
Majority →
R29 Ran	R30 Ran	R31 Ran	R32 Ran	R33 Ran	R34 Ran	R35 Ran	R36 Ran	R37 Ran	R38 Ran
R28	R27	R26	R25	R24	R23	R22	R21	R20	R19
R9	R10	R11	R12	R13	R14	R15	R16	R17	R18
R8	R7	R6	R5	R4	R3	R2	R1

After the elections

D8	D7	D6	D5	D4	D3	D2	D1
D9	D10	D11	D12	D13	D14	D15	D16	D17	D18
D28 Hold	D27 Hold	D26 Hold	D25 Re-elected	D24 Re-elected	D23 Re-elected	D22 Re-elected	D21	D20	D19
D29 Hold	D30 Hold	D31 Gain	D32 Gain	D33 Gain	D34 Gain	D35 Gain	I1 Gain	AM1	R39 Hold
Majority →
R29 Re-elected	R30 Re-elected	R31 Re-elected	R32 Re-elected	R33 Re-elected	R34 Hold	R35 Hold	R36 Hold	R37 Hold	R38 Hold
R28	R27	R26	R25	R24	R23	R22	R21	R20	R19
R9	R10	R11	R12	R13	R14	R15	R16	R17	R18
R8	R7	R6	R5	R4	R3	R2	R1

Key:	AM# Anti-Monopoly Party D# Democratic I# Independent R# Republican

Race summaries

Special elections during the 44th Congress

In these elections, the winners were seated during 1876 or in 1877 before March 4; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Louisiana (Class 3)	Vacant			Senate had declined to seat rival claimants William L. McMillen and P. B. S. Pinchback.[2] Senator elected January 12, 1876. Democratic gain.	▌Y James B. Eustis (Democratic) [data missing]
Connecticut (Class 3)	James E. English	Democratic	1875 (appointed)	Interim appointee retired when successor elected. New senator elected May 17, 1876. Democratic hold.	▌Y William Barnum (Democratic) [data missing]
Colorado (Class 2)	None (new state)			Colorado admitted to the Union August 1, 1876. First senator elected November 15, 1876. Republican gain. Winner was also elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y Henry M. Teller (Republican) [data missing]
Colorado (Class 3)				Colorado admitted to the Union August 1, 1876. First senator elected November 15, 1876. Republican gain.	▌Y Jerome B. Chaffee (Republican) [data missing]
Tennessee (Class 1)	David M. Key	Democratic	1875 (appointed)	Interim appointee lost special election. New senator elected January 19, 1877 on the 74th ballot. Democratic hold.	▌Y James E. Bailey (Democratic) 55 ▌David M. Key (Democratic) 38 ▌W. B. Bates (Unknown) 7[3]
Maine (Class 2)	James G. Blaine	Republican	1876 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected January 17, 1877. Winner was also elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y James G. Blaine (Republican) 139 ▌William P. Haines (Unknown) 33[3]
West Virginia (Class 1)	Samuel Price	Democratic	1876 (appointed)	Interim appointee lost special election. New senator elected January 26, 1877 on the 5th ballot. Democratic hold.	▌Y Frank Hereford (Democratic) 70 ▌Samuel Price (Democratic) 10 ▌Henry S. Walker (Unknown) 4 ▌R. F. Dennis (Unknown) 1 Other 1 vote[3]

Races leading to the 45th Congress

In these regular elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1877; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Alabama	George Goldthwaite	Democratic	1870	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1876. Democratic hold.	▌Y John T. Morgan (Democratic) [data missing]
Arkansas	Powell Clayton	Republican	1870	Unknown if incumbent retired or ran for re-election. New senator elected January 16, 1877. Democratic gain.	▌Y Augustus Garland (Democratic) 113[c] ▌T. D. W. Youlee (Unknown) 8
Colorado	Henry M. Teller	Republican	1876 (new state)	Incumbent re-elected in 1876 or 1877.	▌Y Henry M. Teller (Republican) [data missing]
Delaware	Eli Saulsbury	Democratic	1870	Incumbent re-elected in 1876.	▌Y Eli Saulsbury (Democratic) [data missing]
Georgia	Thomas M. Norwood	Democratic	1871 (readmission)	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected January 26, 1877 on the fourth ballot. Democratic hold.	▌Y Benjamin Harvey Hill (Democratic) 114 ▌Thomas M. Norwood (Democratic) 85 ▌Herschel V. Johnson (Democratic) 6 ▌James M. Smith (Democratic) 5 ▌Charles J. Jenkins (Democratic) 1[3]
Illinois	John A. Logan	Republican	1870–71	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected January 25, 1877 on the fortieth ballot. Independent gain.	▌Y David Davis (Independent) 101 ▌Charles B. Lawrence (Unknown) 94 ▌John C. Haines (Republican) 3 ▌John A. Logan (Republican) 1 Other 1[3]
Iowa	George G. Wright	Republican	1870	Incumbent retired. New senator elected January 19, 1876. Republican hold.	▌Y Samuel J. Kirkwood (Republican) 108 ▌Shepard Leffler (Unknown) 37[4]
Kansas	James M. Harvey	Republican	1874 (special)	Incumbent lost re-election. New elected January 31, 1877 on the seventeenth ballot. Republican hold.	▌Y Preston B. Plumb (Republican) 89 ▌David P. Lowe (Republican) 63 ▌John Martin (Republican) 8 ▌Thomas A. Osborn (Republican) eliminated ▌James M. Harvey (Republican) eliminated Others 3[3]
Kentucky	John W. Stevenson	Democratic	1871	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1876. Democratic hold.	▌Y James B. Beck (Democratic) [data missing]
Louisiana	Joseph R. West	Republican	1870–71	Incumbent retired. New senator elected January 10, 1877.[3] Republican hold.	▌Y William P. Kellogg (Republican) [data missing]
Maine	James G. Blaine	Republican	1876 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected January 16, 1877.[3] Winner also elected to finish the term; see above.	▌Y James G. Blaine (Republican) 139 ▌William P. Haines (Unknown) 33
Massachusetts	George S. Boutwell	Republican	1873 (special)	Incumbent lost renomination. New senator elected in 1877. Republican hold.	▌Y George F. Hoar (Republican) 146 ▌Josiah G. Abbott (Democratic) 62 ▌George S. Boutwell (Republican) 47 ▌Alexander H. Rice (Republican) 19 ▌Alexander H. Bullock (Republican) 1 ▌Julius H. Seelye (Independent) 1 ▌Paul A. Chadbourne (Republican) 1[3]
Michigan	Thomas W. Ferry	Republican	1871	Incumbent re-elected in 1877.	▌Y Thomas W. Ferry (Republican) [data missing]
Minnesota	William Windom	Republican	1870 (appointed) 1871	Incumbent re-elected in 1877.	▌Y William Windom (Republican) [data missing]
Mississippi	James L. Alcorn	Republican	1870	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected in 1876. Democratic gain.	▌Y Lucius Q. C. Lamar (Democratic) [data missing]
Nebraska	Phineas Hitchcock	Republican	1870	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1877. Republican hold.	▌Y Alvin Saunders (Republican) ▌Phineas Hitchcock (Republican) [data missing]
New Hampshire	Aaron H. Cragin	Republican	1864 1870	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected in 1876. Republican hold.	▌Y Edward H. Rollins (Republican) [data missing]
New Jersey	Frederick T. Frelinghuysen	Republican	1870–71	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected January 24, 1877. Democratic gain.	▌Y John R. McPherson (Democratic) 41 ▌Cortland Parker (Unknown) 18 ▌George M. Robeson (Republican) 11 ▌Frederick T. Frelinghuysen (Republican) 10 ▌William Walter Phelps (Republican) 1[3]
North Carolina	Matt W. Ransom	Democratic	1872 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1876.	▌Y Matt W. Ransom (Democratic) [data missing]
Oregon	James K. Kelly	Democratic	1870	Incumbent retired. Democratic hold.	▌Y La Fayette Grover (Democratic) [data missing]
Rhode Island	Henry B. Anthony	Republican	1858 1864 1870	Incumbent re-elected in 1876.	▌Y Henry B. Anthony (Republican) [data missing]
South Carolina	Thomas J. Robertson	Republican	1868 (readmission) 1870	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1876. Democratic gain.	▌Y Matthew Butler (Democratic) [data missing]
Tennessee	Henry Cooper	Democratic	1870–71	Incumbent retired. New senator elected January 10, 1877.[3] Democratic hold.	▌Y Isham G. Harris (Democratic) 77 ▌L. L. Hawkins (Unknown) 19 ▌James D. Porter (Democratic) 1 ▌Horace Harrison (Republican) 1 ▌W. B. Bates (Unknown) 1[3]
Texas	Morgan C. Hamilton	Republican	1870 (readmission) 1871	Incumbent retired. New senator elected May 5, 1876 on third ballot. Democratic gain.	▌Y Richard Coke (Democratic) 68 ▌John Ireland (Democratic) 49
Virginia	John W. Johnston	Democratic	1870 (readmission) 1871	Incumbent re-elected in 1877.	▌Y John W. Johnston (Democratic) [data missing]
West Virginia	Henry G. Davis	Democratic	1871	Incumbent re-elected January 26, 1877 on the fourth ballot.	▌Y Henry G. Davis (Democratic) 60 ▌Charles J. Faulkner (Democratic) 19 ▌Gideon D. Camden (Democratic) 3 ▌John Brannon (Unknown) 2 ▌John J. Davis (Democratic) 1 Other 1[3]

Elections during the 45th Congress

In these elections, the winners were elected in 1877 after March 4.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Pennsylvania (Class 3)	Simon Cameron	Republican	1857 1861 (resigned) 1867 1873	Incumbent resigned March 12, 1877. New senator elected March 20, 1877. Republican hold.	▌Y J. Donald Cameron (Republican) ▌Andrew H. Dill (Democratic) ▌Hiester Clymer (Democratic) ▌Andrew G. Curtin (Democratic) ▌John Jackson (Democratic)
Ohio (Class 3)	John Sherman	Republican	1861 (special) 1866 1872	Incumbent resigned March 8, 1877 to become U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. New senator elected March 21, 1877. Republican hold.	▌Y Stanley Matthews (Republican) 82 ▌Alfred Ginther (Unknown) 6 ▌Frank H. Hurd (Democratic) 1[5] Blank 34

Alabama

See also: List of United States senators from Alabama

Arkansas

See also: List of United States senators from Arkansas

Colorado

See also: List of United States senators from Colorado

Colorado (initial, class 2)

Colorado (initial, class 3)

Colorado (regular)

Connecticut (special)

See also: List of United States senators from Connecticut

Delaware

See also: List of United States senators from Delaware

Georgia

See also: List of United States senators from Georgia

Illinois

See also: List of United States senators from Illinois

Iowa

See also: List of United States senators from Iowa

Kansas

See also: List of United States senators from Kansas

Kentucky

See also: List of United States senators from Kentucky

Louisiana

See also: List of United States senators from Louisiana

Louisiana (special)

Louisiana (regular)

Maine

See also: List of United States senators from Maine

Maine (regular)

Maine (special)

Massachusetts

See also: List of United States senators from Massachusetts

Michigan

See also: List of United States senators from Michigan

Minnesota

See also: List of United States senators from Minnesota

Mississippi

See also: List of United States senators from Mississippi

Nebraska

See also: List of United States senators from Nebraska

New Hampshire

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

Ohio (special)

See also: List of United States senators from Ohio

Oregon

See also: List of United States senators from Oregon

Pennsylvania (special)

The special election in Pennsylvania was held March 20, 1877.

Republican Senator Simon Cameron had been elected to the United States Senate by the Pennsylvania General Assembly, consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate, in 1867 and was re-elected in 1873. Sen. Cameron resigned on March 12, 1877.^[6]

Following the resignation of Simon Cameron, the Pennsylvania General Assembly convened on March 20, 1877, to elect a new Senator to fill the vacancy. Former United States Secretary of War J. Donald Cameron, Simon Cameron's son, was elected to complete his father's term, set to expire on March 4, 1879.^[7] The results of the vote of both houses combined are as follows:

Pennsylvania Results^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	J. Donald Cameron	147	58.57
	Democratic	Andrew H. Dill	92	36.65
	Democratic	Hiester Clymer	1	0.40
	Democratic	Andrew G. Curtin	1	0.40
	Democratic	John Jackson	1	0.40
	N/A	Not voting	9	3.59
Totals			251	100.00%

Rhode Island

See also: List of United States senators from Rhode Island

South Carolina

See also: List of United States senators from South Carolina

Tennessee

See also: List of United States senators from Tennessee

Tennessee (regular)

Tennessee (special)

Texas

See also: List of United States senators from Texas

1876 United States Senate election in Texas

← 1870 May 3–5, 1876 1882 →
Needed to win: Majority of votes cast jointly by the Legislature
Candidate Richard Coke John Ireland Party Democratic Democratic First ballot 49 votes 40.2% 39 votes 32.0% Third ballot 68 votes 58.1% 49 votes 41.9%
U.S. senator before election Morgan C. Hamilton Republican Elected U.S. Senator Richard Coke Democratic

Incumbent Republican Morgan C. Hamilton did not run for re-election. Since his initial election in 1870, the Democratic Party had taken control of the Texas Legislature, ensuring that a Democrat would replace him. Incumbent governor Richard Coke defeated former Texas Supreme Court justice John Ireland on the third ballot. U.S. Representative John Hancock and former governor Fletcher Stockdale also ran, but they dropped out after the second round of balloting.^[9]

1876 United States Senate election in Texas first ballot

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Richard Coke	49	40.2%
	Democratic	John Ireland	39	32.0%
	Democratic	John Hancock	29	23.8%
	Democratic	Fletcher Stockdale	5	4.1%
Total votes			122	100.0%

1876 United States Senate election in Texas third ballot

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Richard Coke	68	58.1%
	Democratic	John Ireland	49	41.9%
Total votes			117	100.0%
	Democratic gain from Republican

Virginia

See also: List of United States senators from Virginia

West Virginia

See also: List of United States senators from West Virginia

West Virginia (special)

1877 United States Senate special election in West Virginia

← 1875 January 23–26, 1877 1881 →
Needed to win: Majority of votes cast jointly by the Legislature
Candidate Frank Hereford Samuel Price Henry S. Walker Party Democratic Democratic Democratic First ballot 21 votes 24.1% 24 votes 27.6% 16 votes 18.4% Fourth ballot 70 votes 81.4% 10 votes 11.6% 4 votes 4.7%
U.S. senator before election Samuel Price Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Frank Hereford Democratic

First-term Democrat Allen T. Caperton died July 26, 1876, in his second year in office. Fellow-Democrat Samuel Price was appointed August 26, 1876 to continue the term, pending a special election in which he was a candidate. Price lost the election to Democratic congressman Frank Hereford January 26, 1877 on the fourth ballot.^[3]

Appointed incumbent Samuel Price and challengers Frank Hereford and Henry S. Walker, three prominent state Democrats, fought for the party's nomination over seven ballots and three sessions, without much movement in any direction. On January 26, with the Democrats unable to make a nomination, legislative Republicans broke the deadlock by throwing their support to Hereford on the floor.^[10]

Democratic nomination^[11][12][13]

Candidate	Ballots
	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th
Frank Hereford	21	19	18	18	21	18	18
Samuel Price	20	20	21	19	20	13	16
Henry S. Walker	17	19	16	19	18	23	17
Scattered	7	8	9	6	4	6	13
Total	65	66	64	62	63	60	64
Needed to win	35

House and Senate balloting

Party		Candidate	House		Senate
			Votes	%	Votes	%
	Democratic	Frank Hereford	18	28.6	3	13.0
	Democratic	Samuel Price	15	23.8	7	30.4
	Democratic	Henry S. Walker	9	14.3	6	26.1
	Republican	John S. Carlile	15	23.8	4	17.4
	Democratic	Robert F. Dennis	2	3.2	3	13.0
	Democratic	Ira J. McGinnis	1	1.6	0	0.0
	Democratic	Thomas J. Farnsworth	1	1.6	0	0.0
	Democratic	John B. Hoge	1	1.6	0	0.0
	Democratic	William E. Arnold	1	1.6	0	0.0
Total			63	100	23	100
Needed to win			32	>50	12	>50

Joint Session balloting

Party		Candidate	Ballots
			1st	2nd	3rd	4th
	Democratic	Frank Hereford	21	28	25	70
	Democratic	Samuel Price	24	23	26	10
	Democratic	Henry S. Walker	16	12	19	4
	Democratic	James H. Ferguson	3	15	3	0
	Democratic	Robert F. Dennis	6	6	7	1
	Other candidates		17	3	7	1
Total			87	87	87	86
Needed to win			44	44	44	44

Hereford resigned from the House January 31, 1877, thereby qualifying for the Senate. He only finished the term and left office in 1881.

West Virginia (regular)

1877 United States Senate election in West Virginia

← 1871 January 23–26, 1877 1883 →
Needed to win: Majority of votes cast jointly by the Legislature
Candidate Henry G. Davis Charles J. Faulkner Party Democratic Democratic First ballot 24 votes 27.6% 24 votes 27.6% Third ballot 60 votes 69.0% 19 votes 21.8%
U.S. senator before election Henry G. Davis Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Henry G. Davis Democratic

First-term Democrat Henry G. Davis was re-elected January 26, 1877 on the third ballot.

Democratic nomination^[11][12][13]

Candidate	Ballots
	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th
Charles J. Faulkner	22	24	26	23	25	22	22
Henry G. Davis	22	21	19	18	21	20	22
John Brannon	2	4	5	4	4	7	4
Gideon D. Camden	7	3	4	3	1	4	2
John J. Davis	4	5	4	10	8	6	6
Scattered	8	6	5	3	2	5	8
Total	65	63	63	61	61	64	64
Needed to win	35

House and Senate balloting

Party		Candidate	House		Senate
			Votes	%	Votes	%
	Democratic	Henry G. Davis	21	33.3	6	26.1
	Democratic	Charles J. Faulkner	18	28.6	7	30.4
	Democratic	Gideon D. Camden	3	4.8	4	17.4
	Democratic	John Brannon	5	7.9	2	8.7
	Democratic	John J. Davis	10	15.9	2	8.7
	Democratic	Johnson N. Camden	1	1.6	2	8.7
	Republican	Archibald Campbell	1	1.6	0	0.0
	Democratic	Alpheus F. Haymond	1	1.6	0	0.0
	Democratic	Daniel D. Johnson	1	1.6	0	0.0
	Democratic	Daniel Lamb	1	1.6	0	0.0
	Republican	George Loomis	1	1.6	0	0.0
Total			63	100	23	100
Needed to win			32	>50	12	>50

Joint Session balloting

Party		Candidate	Ballots
			1st	2nd	3rd
	Democratic	Henry G. Davis	24	26	60
	Democratic	Charles J. Faulkner	24	23	19
	Democratic	John Brannon	11	15	2
	Democratic	Gideon D. Camden	5	6	3
	Democratic	John J. Davis	15	12	1
	Other candidates		8	5	2
Total			87	87	87
Needed to win			44	44	44

Davis would retire after this second term, in 1883.

See also

• 1876 United States elections
  • 1876 United States presidential election
  • 1876–77 United States House of Representatives elections
• 44th United States Congress
• 45th United States Congress

Notes

1. as Republican Conference Chair
2. as Democratic Caucus Chair
3. "Eighteen Republicans voted for Garland, of whom five were colored."^[3]

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. Taft, George S. (1885). Compilation of Senate Election Cases from 1789 to 1885 - Pages 483 - 512. U.S. Government Publishing Office.
3. J. F. Cleveland, etc. (ed.). The Tribune almanac and political register. 1874-78. The Tribune Association. pp. 31–33.
4. Journal of the House of Representatives of the Sixteenth General Assembly of the State of Iowa. 1876. pp. 36–37 – via Google books.
5. Taylor & Taylor, p. 76, vol. II.
6. "CAMERON, Simon, (1799 - 1889)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved December 22, 2013.
7. "CAMERON, James Donald, (1833 - 1918)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved December 22, 2013.
8. "U.S. Senate Election - 20 March 1877" (PDF). Wilkes University. Retrieved December 22, 2013.
9. Barr, Chester Alwyn Jr. (1971). Reconstruction to Reform. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press. pp. 27–31. ISBN 0-292-70135-7. LCCN 73-165911.
10. "No more caucus. Elected two senators". Wheeling Daily Register. January 27, 1877 – via NewspaperArchive.
11. "Caucus". Wheeling Daily Register. January 23, 1877 – via NewspaperArchive.
12. "Caucus Proceedings". Wheeling Daily Register. January 25, 1877 – via NewspaperArchive.
13. "Caucus Proceedings". Wheeling Daily Register. January 26, 1877 – via NewspaperArchive.

Further reading

• Party Division in the Senate, 1789-Present, via Senate.gov
• Pennsylvania Election Statistics: 1682-2006 from the Wilkes University Election Statistics Project
• Taylor, William Alexander; Taylor, Aubrey Clarence (1899). Ohio statesmen and annals of progress: from the year 1788 to the year 1900. State of Ohio.