United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, 1856

The 1856 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held on January 14, 1856. William Bigler was elected by the Pennsylvania General Assembly to the United States Senate.[1]

Background

The Pennsylvania General Assembly, consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate, convened on February 13, 1855, for the regularly scheduled Senate election for the term beginning on March 4, 1855. Two ballots were recorded on February 13, followed by three on February 27, 1855. On the fifth and final ballot during this convention, former Senator Simon Cameron had led with 55 votes to future Senator Charles R. Buckalew's 23. No candidate was elected, however, and the hung election convention adjourned by a vote of 66 to 65. Upon the expiration of incumbent James Cooper's term on March 4, 1855, the seat was vacated and would remain vacant until William Bigler's election in January 1856.[2]

Results

On January 14, 1856, the election convention of the General Assembly re-convened and elected Democratic former Governor of Pennsylvania William Bigler on the first ballot to serve the remainder of the term that began on March 4, 1855 and would expire on March 4, 1861. The results of the vote of both houses combined are as follows:

State Legislature Results[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic William Bigler 82 61.65
Republican Edward Joy Morris 43 32.33
Unknown John C. Flenniken 1 0.75
N/A Not voting 7 5.26
Totals 133 100.00%

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "U.S. Senate Election - 14 January 1856" (PDF). Wilkes University. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
  2. "U.S. Senate Election - February 1855" (PDF). Wilkes University. Retrieved 22 December 2013.

External links

Preceded by
1849
Pennsylvania U.S. Senate election (Class III)
1856
Succeeded by
1861
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