1860 New York state election

The 1860 New York state election was held on November 6, 1860, to elect the governor, the lieutenant governor, a Canal Commissioner, and an Inspector of State Prisons, as well as all members of the New York State Assembly. Besides, the question of Negro suffrage was asked, and was answered in the negative with 197,503 votes for and 337,984 against it.

1860 New York gubernatorial election

← 1858 November 6, 1860 1862 →

Nominee Edwin D. Morgan William Kelly Party Republican Democratic Alliance Constitutional Union Popular vote 358,272 294,812 Percentage 53.2% 43.8%

County results Morgan:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Kelly:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election Edwin D. Morgan Republican Elected Governor Edwin D. Morgan Republican

History

William Kelly was the candidate of the majority faction of the Democratic Party which supported Stephen A. Douglas for President.^[1]

The "Breckinridge and Lane Democratic" state convention met on August 8 at Syracuse, New York, Henry S. Randall presided. James T. Brady (a Tammany man from New York City who had run for Attorney General on the Hard ticket in 1853) was nominated for Governor on the first ballot (vote:Brady 99, O'Connor 8, Greene C. Bronson 3, Brown 2, Lawrence 1, Kemble 1, Gideon J. Tucker 1). Henry K. Viele was nominated on the first ballot (vote: Viele 57, Edward Tompkins 56). The incumbent John M. Jaycox was re-nominated for Canal Commissioner by acclamation. Robert W. Allen was nominated for Prison Inspector on the first ballot. After the nominations, Daniel S. Dickinson made a speech.^[2] Brady accepted the nomination in a letter dated on August 14.^[3]

The Constitution Union state convention met on July 13 at Utica. They resolved that "a State Committee be appointed to consist of four persons from each Judicial District, to be appointed by the delegates thereof, where duty it shall be to form an electoral ticket, and to present the same to the people of this State, at a suitable time, precious to the coming election, and that they be authorized to form said ticket in such manner as they deem best calculated to unite National Union men of every name and designation."^[4] The committee ultimately resolved to fuse their ticket with the Democratic Party ticket.

Result

The whole Republican ticket was elected, an average of about 50,000 votes ahead of the combined Democratic vote. The incumbents Morgan and Campbell were re-elected. The incumbents Jaycox and Rhodes were defeated.

93 Republicans and 35 Democrats were elected for the session of 1861 to the New York State Assembly.

New York black suffrage referendum

Question of Negro Suffrage
Results
Choice Votes  % Yes 197,889 36.40% No 345,791 63.60% Valid votes 543,680 100.00% Invalid or blank votes 0 0.00% Total votes 543,680 100.00%
County Results Yes   50-60%   60-70% No   50-60%   60-70%   70-80%   80-90%   90-100% Unknown/No Vote

1860 state election results

Office	Republican ticket		Douglas Democratic ticket		Breckinridge Democratic ticket		Radical Abolitionist ticket
Governor	Edwin D. Morgan	358,272	William Kelly	294,812	James T. Brady[5]	19,841	William Goodell
Lieutenant Governor	Robert Campbell	361,914	William C. Crain	293,572	Henry K. Viele	18,425	Sidney A. Beers
Canal Commissioner	Samuel H. Barnes	361,958	William W. Wright	293,853	John M. Jaycox	18,547	Zenas Brockett
Inspector of State Prisons	James K. Bates	359,457	William C. Rhodes	294,066	Robert W. Allen	18,550	Ellis Clizbe

See also

• New York gubernatorial elections
• New York black suffrage referendum, 1860

Notes

1. Hon. William Kelly Accepts the Nomination for Governor. in NYT on September 11, 1860
2. POLITICAL MOVEMENTS - The Breckinridge and Lane Democratic State Convention in NYT on August 9, 1860
3. THE BRECKINRIDGE DEMOCRACY - James T. Brady's Acceptance of the Nomination for Governor in NYT on August 30, 1860
4. "GENERAL TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.; NEW-YORK POLITICS. The Constitutional Union Convention at Utica. Reports of the Delegates to Baltimore Speeches of Ex-Gov. Hunt, James Brooks, and Others. State Committee for the Selection of an Electoral Ticket". The New York Times. July 13, 1860. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
5. James Topham Brady (1815-1869), lawyer, of New York City, also ran for Attorney General in 1853, obit in NYT on February 10, 1869

Sources

• Result in The Tribune Almanac 1861
• Result in The Official State Canvass in NYT on December 10, 1860 (gives 367,958 for Barnes, which seems to be a typo)
• The tickets: THE ELECTION TO-MORROW in NYT on November 5, 1860