United States House of Representatives elections, 1864

United States House of Representatives elections, 1864
United States
June 5, 1864 - November 7, 1865[Note 1]

All 193[Note 2] seats to the United States House of Representatives
97 seats were needed for a majority
  Majority party Minority party Third party
 
Leader Schuyler Colfax James Brooks Francis Thomas
Party Republican Democratic Constitutional Union
Leader's seat Indiana-9th New York-8th Maryland-4th
Last election 87 seats 72 seats 25 seats
Seats won 137[Note 3] 38 18
Seat change Increase 50 Decrease 34 Decrease 7

Speaker before election

Schuyler Colfax
Republican

Elected Speaker

Schuyler Colfax
Republican

Elections to the United States House of Representatives were held in 1864 to elect Representatives to the 39th United States Congress. The election coincided with the presidential election of 1864, in which President Abraham Lincoln was re-elected.

In the midst of the American Civil War, the opposition Democrats were divided between the Copperheads, a group that demanded an immediate negotiated settlement with the Confederate States of America, and the War Democrats, who supported the war. The Democrats lacked a coherent message, and Lincoln's Republican Party gained 50 seats, increasing their majority over the Democrats. The National Union Party (formerly known as the Unionists) lost seven seats, retaining control of 18 seats (some classify the Representatives as including 13 Unconditional Unionists and five Unionists), all from the border states of Maryland, Tennessee, and Kentucky, as well as West Virginia.

Election summaries

One new seat was added for the new State of Nebraska[1] and 8 vacancies were filled by the readmission of Tennessee, the first secessionist state to be readmitted. Three former Confederate States held elections in 1865 that were rejected by Congress.

137 18 38
Republican Unionist Democratic
State Type Date Total
seats
Republican Democratic Unionist[Note 4]
Seats Change Seats Change Seats Change
California District[Note 5] November 8, 1864
(Election Day)[Note 6]
3 3 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Delaware At-large 1 0 Steady 1 Steady 0 Steady
Illinois District +
1 at-large
14 11 Increase 6 3 Decrease 6 0 Steady
Iowa District 6 6 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Kansas At-large 1 1 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Maryland District 5 0 Steady 2 Increase 1 3 Decrease 1
Massachusetts District 10 10 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Michigan District 6 6 Increase 1 0 Decrease 1 0 Steady
Minnesota District 2 2 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Missouri District 9 8[Note 3] Increase 7 1 Increase 1 0 Decrease 8
New Jersey District 5 2 Increase 1 3 Decrease 1 0 Steady
New York District 31 21 Increase 7 10 Decrease 7 0 Steady
Wisconsin District 6 5 Increase 2 1 Decrease 2 0 Steady
Indiana District October 10, 1864 11 9 Increase 5 2 Decrease 5 0 Steady
Maine District September 11, 1864 5 5 Increase 1 0 Decrease 1 0 Steady
Ohio District October 10, 1864 19 17 Increase 12 2 Decrease 12 0 Steady
Oregon At-large June 5, 1864 1 1 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Pennsylvania District October 10, 1864 24 16 Increase 4 8 Decrease 4 0 Steady
Vermont District September 6, 1864 3 3 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
West Virginia District October 22, 1864 3 0 Steady 0 Steady 3 Steady
1865 elections
Connecticut District April 3, 1865 4 4 Increase 1 0 Decrease 1 0 Steady
Kentucky District August 7, 1865 9 0 Steady 5 Increase 5 4 Decrease 5
Nevada At-large November 7, 1865 1 1 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
New Hampshire District March 14, 1865 3 3 Increase 1 0 Decrease 1 0 Steady
Rhode Island District April 5, 1865 2 2 Steady 0 Steady 0 Steady
Tennessee[Note 7] District August 3, 1865[Note 8] 8 0 Steady 0 Steady 8 Increase 8
1866 election
Nebraska[Note 9] At-large June 2, 1866 1 1 Increase 1 0 Steady 0 Steady
Secessionist States not yet readmitted
Alabama District 6
Arkansas District 3
Florida At-large November 29, 1865[Note 10] 1
Georgia District 7
Louisiana District 5
Mississippi District October 2, 1865[Note 10] 5
North Carolina District November 9, 1865[Note 10] 7
South Carolina District 4
Texas District 4
Virginia District 8
Total[Note 2] 193
50 vacancies[Note 11]
137[Note 3]
71.0%
Increase46 38
19.7%
Decrease31 18
9.3%
Decrease 6
House seats
Republican
 
70.98%
Democratic
 
19.69%
Unionist
 
9.33%

Of the rejected elections, Florida's and Mississippi's claimants' parties are unknown, while North Carolina elected 4 Union and 3 Conservative Representatives.

All Races

California

Note: This was the first election in which California elected representatives from congressional districts.

District Candidates
California 1 Donald C. McRuer (R) 58.2%
Joseph B. Crockett (D) 41.8%
California 2 William Higby (R) 61.3%
James W. Coffroth (D) 38.7%
California 3 John Bidwell (R) 55.8%
Jackson Temple (D) 44.2%

Ohio

District Incumbent Party First
elected
Result Candidates[2]
Ohio 1 George H. Pendleton Democratic 1856 Retired[Note 12]
Republican gain
Ohio 2 Alexander Long Democratic 1862 Lost re-nomination
Republican gain
Ohio 3 Robert C. Schenck Republican 1862 Re-elected
Ohio 4 John F. McKinney Democratic 1862 Lost re-election
Republican gain
Ohio 5 Francis C. Le Blond Democratic 1862 Re-elected
Ohio 6 Chilton A. White Democratic 1860 Lost re-election
Republican gain
Ohio 7 Samuel S. Cox Democratic 1862 Lost re-election
Republican gain
Ohio 8 William Johnston Democratic 1862 Lost re-election
Republican gain
Ohio 9 Warren P. Noble Democratic 1860 Lost re-election
Republican gain
Ohio 10 James M. Ashley Republican 1862 Re-elected
Ohio 11 Wells A. Hutchins Democratic 1862 Lost re-election
Republican gain
Ohio 12 William E. Finck Democratic 1862 Re-elected
Ohio 13 John O'Neill Democratic 1862 Retired
Republican gain
Ohio 14 George Bliss Democratic 1862 Lost re-election
Republican gain
Ohio 15 James R. Morris Democratic 1862 Lost re-election
Republican gain
Ohio 16 Joseph W. White Democratic 1882 Lost re-election
Republican gain
Ohio 17 Ephraim R. Eckley Republican 1862 Re-elected
Ohio 18 Rufus P. Spalding Republican 1862 Re-elected
Ohio 19 James A. Garfield Republican 1862 Re-elected

See also

Notes

  1. Excludes states admitted after the start of Congress.
  2. 1 2 Including late elections.
  3. 1 2 3 Includes 1 Independent Republican, John R. Kelso, elected to MO-04.
  4. Including Unconditional Unionists.
  5. Changed from at-large.
  6. In 1845, Congress passed a law providing for a uniform date for choosing presidential electors (see: Statutes at Large, 28th Congress, 2nd Session, p. 721). Congressional elections were unaffected by this law, but the date was gradually adopted by the states for Congressional elections as well.
  7. Readmitted state.
  8. Not admitted until July 24, 1866.
  9. New state.
  10. 1 2 3 Rejected election.
  11. There were a total of 50 vacancies remaining, after the readmission of Tennessee.
  12. Ran for Vice President.

References

  1. 14 Stat. 391
  2. Smith, Joseph P, ed. (1898). History of the Republican Party in Ohio I. Chicago: the Lewis Publishing Company. pp. 195, 196.

Bibliography

External links

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