1816–17 United States Senate elections

The 1816–17 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 1816 and 1817, 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.

1816–17 United States Senate elections
Dates vary by state
12 of the 36 seats in the United States Senate (plus special elections)
19 seats needed for a majority
  Majority party Minority party
 
Party Democratic-Republican Federalist
Last election 26 seats 11 seats
Seats before 23 12
Seats won 9 3
Seats after 25 13
Seat change Increase 2 Increase 1
Seats up 9 2
Results:
     Federalist hold      Federalist gain
     Dem-Republican hold      Dem-Republican gain
     Legislature Failed To Elect
Majority Party before election


Democratic-Republican

 Elected Majority Party


Democratic-Republican

The Democratic-Republican Party gained a net of two seats from the admission of a new state.

Results summary

Senate party division, 15th Congress (1817–1819)

  • Majority party: Democratic-Republican (25–28)
  • Minority party: Federalist (13–12)
  • Total seats: 38–42

Change in composition

Results of the January 1816 special elections
DR8 DR7 DR6 DR5 DR4 DR3 DR2 DR1
DR9 DR10 DR11 DR12 DR13 DR14 DR15 DR16 DR17 DR18
Majority → DR19
F9
Md.
Gain		 F10 F11 F12 F13 DR23 DR22 DR21
Va.
Gain		 DR20
F8 F7 F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1

Before the general elections
DR9 DR8 DR7 DR6 DR5 DR4 DR3 DR2 DR1
DR10 DR11 DR12 DR13 DR14 DR15
Ga.
Resigned		 DR16
La.
Ran		 DR17
Mass.
Unknown		 DR18
N.J.
Unknown		 DR19
N.C.
Resigned
Majority → DR20
R.I.
Retired
F10 F11
Del.
Ran		 F12
Ky.
Retired		 F13
N.H.
Unknown		 TBD1
Ind.
New seat		 TBD2
Ind.
New seat		 DR23
Va.
Unknown		 DR22
Tenn.
Unknown		 DR21
S.C.
Resigned
F9 F8 F7 F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1

Results of the general elections
DR9 DR8 DR7 DR6 DR5 DR4 DR3 DR2 DR1
DR10 DR11 DR12 DR13 DR14 DR15
Ga.
Hold		 DR16
Ind.
Gain		 DR17
Ind.
Gain		 DR18
Ky.
Gain		 DR19
La.
Hold
Majority → DR20
N.H.
Gain
F10 F11
Del.
Hold		 F12
Mass.
Gain		 F13
R.I.
Gain		 V1
Tenn.
DR Loss		 DR24
Va.
Hold		 DR23
S.C.
Hold		 DR22
N.C.
Hold		 DR21
N.J.
Hold
F9
F8 F7 F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1

Results of the 1817 special elections
DR10 DR9 DR8 DR7 DR6 DR5 DR4 DR3 DR2 DR1
DR11 DR12 DR13 DR14 DR15 DR16 DR17 DR18 DR19 DR20
Majority → DR21
F11 F12 DR28
Tenn.
Elected[lower-alpha 1]		 DR27
N.H.
Gain		 DR26
Miss.
New seat		 DR25
Miss.
New seat		 DR24
Vt.
Hold		 DR23 DR22
F10 F9 F8 F7 F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1
Key
DR# Democratic-Republican
F# Federalist
V# Vacant

Race summaries

Elections during the preceding Congress

In these special and general elections, the winners were seated during 1816 or before March 4, 1817; ordered by election date.

State Incumbent Results Candidates
Senator Party Electoral history
Virginia
(Class 2)		 Vacant William B. Giles (DR) had resigned March 3, 1815.
John Wayles Eppes (DR) was elected December 7, 1815, but declined to serve.
New senator elected January 3, 1816 on the fourth ballot despite being legally too young to serve.
Democratic-Republican gain.
Winner later lost re-election to the next term, see below.
Maryland
(Class 1)		 Vacant The Maryland General Assembly failed to elect in time for the March 4, 1815 beginning of the term.
New senator elected January 29, 1816.
Federalist gain.
Massachusetts
(Class 1)		 Christopher Gore Federalist 1813 (Appointed)
1815 (special)		 Incumbent resigned May 30, 1816, unhappy with the politics of Washington and suffering from poor health.
New senator elected June 12, 1816.
Federalist hold.
Indiana
(Class 1)		 New seat Indiana was admitted to the Union December 11, 1816.
New senator elected November 8, 1816.
Democratic-Republican gain.
Indiana
(Class 3)		 New seat Indiana was admitted to the Union December 11, 1816.
New senator elected November 8, 1816.
Democratic-Republican gain.
Georgia
(Class 2)		 William Wyatt Bibb Democratic-Republican 1813 (special) Incumbent resigned November 9, 1816.
New senator elected November 13, 1816.
Democratic-Republican hold.
Winner was also elected the same day to the next term, see below.
  • ▌Green tickY George M. Troup (Democratic-Republican) 62 votes
  • ▌Clark 49 votes
  • ▌Spalding 6 votes[6]
North Carolina
(Class 2)		 James Turner Democratic-Republican 1804
1810		 Incumbent resigned November 21, 1816 due to ill health.
New senator elected December 4, 1816 on the third ballot.
Democratic-Republican hold.
Winner was also elected the same day to the next term, see below.
South Carolina
(Class 2)		 John Taylor Democratic-Republican 1810 (special)
1810		 Incumbent resigned November 1816.
New senator elected December 4, 1816.
Democratic-Republican hold.
Winner was also elected the same day to the next term, see below.
Kentucky
(Class 2)		 Martin D. Hardin Federalist 1814 (Appointed) Incumbent appointee elected December 5, 1816.[9]
Winner was not later a candidate for the next term, see below.
Maryland
(Class 1)		 Robert Goodloe Harper Federalist 1816 (special) Incumbent resigned December 6, 1816.
New senator elected December 20, 1816.
Federalist hold.

Races leading to the next Congress

In these general elections, the winners were seated March 4, 1817; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.

State Incumbent Results Candidates
Senator Party Electoral
history
Delaware William H. Wells Federalist 1799 (special)
1799
1804 (Resigned)
1813 (special)		 Incumbent lost re-election.
New senator elected January 31, 1817 on the third ballot.
Federalist hold.
Georgia William Wyatt Bibb Democratic-Republican 1813 (special) Resigned November 9, 1816.
New senator elected November 13, 1816 on the second ballot.
Winner was also elected to finish the previous term, see above.
Democratic-Republican hold.
  • ▌Green tickY George M. Troup (Democratic-Republican) 62 votes
  • ▌Clark 49 votes
  • ▌Spalding 6 votes[6]
Kentucky Martin D. Hardin Federalist 1816 (Appointed)
1816 (special)		 Incumbent retired.
New senator elected December 10, 1816 on the second ballot.
Democratic-Republican gain.
Louisiana James Brown Democratic-Republican 1813 (special) Incumbent lost re-election.
New senator elected in 1817.
Democratic-Republican hold.
Massachusetts Joseph Bradley Varnum Democratic-Republican 1811 Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election.
New senator elected June 12, 1816.
Federalist gain.
New Hampshire Thomas W. Thompson Federalist 1814 (special) Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election.
New senator elected in 1816 on the third ballot.
Democratic-Republican gain.
New Jersey John Condit Democratic-Republican 1809 (special)
1810		 Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election.
New senator elected January 23, 1817.
Democratic-Republican hold.
North Carolina James Turner Democratic-Republican 1804
1810		 Resigned November 21, 1816 due to ill health.
New senator elected December 4, 1816 on the second ballot.
Winner was also elected to finish the previous term, see above.
Democratic-Republican hold.
Rhode Island Jeremiah Howell Democratic-Republican 1810 Incumbent retired.
New senator elected June 21, 1816.[19]
Federalist gain.
South Carolina John Taylor Democratic-Republican 1810 (special)
1810		 Incumbent resigned November 1816.
New senator elected December 4, 1816.
Winner was also elected to the previous term, see above.
Democratic-Republican hold.
Tennessee John Williams Democratic-Republican 1815 (special) Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election.
Legislature failed to elect.
Incumbent was then appointed to start the term.
Democratic-Republican loss.		 None.
Virginia Armistead T. Mason Democratic-Republican 1816 (special) Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election, but he was an unsuccessful candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives.
New senator elected December 9, 1816.
Democratic-Republican hold.
  • ▌Green tickY John W. Eppes (Democratic-Republican) 103 votes
  • ▌John Mercer (Democratic-Republican) 93 votes[20][21]

Elections during the next Congress

In three special elections and two general elections, the winners were elected in 1817 after March 4; ordered by election date.

State Incumbent Results Candidates
Senator Party Electoral history
New Hampshire
(Class 3)		 Jeremiah Mason Federalist 1813 (special) Incumbent resigned June 16, 1817.
New senator elected June 27, 1817 on the thirteenth ballot.
Democratic-Republican gain.
Tennessee
(Class 2)		 John Williams Democratic-Republican 1815 (special) Legislature had failed to elect and the incumbent was then appointed to start the term.
Interim appointee was re-elected October 2, 1817 to finish the term.
Vermont
(Class 3)		 Dudley Chase Democratic-Republican 1812 Resgined November 3, 1817.
New senator elected November 4, 1817.
Democratic-Republican hold.
  • ▌Green tickY James Fisk (Democratic-Republican)
  • [data missing]
Mississippi
(Class 1)		 New state Mississippi was admitted as a new state.
New senator elected December 10, 1817 on the fifth ballot.
Democratic-Republican gain.
Mississippi
(Class 2)		 New state Mississippi was admitted as a new state.
New senator elected December 10, 1817 on the fourth ballot.
Democratic-Republican gain.

Delaware
See also: List of United States senators from Delaware

Georgia
See also: List of United States senators from Georgia

Indiana
Indiana's senators
James Noble (DR)
(Class 1)
Waller Taylor (DR)
(Class 3)
See also: List of United States senators from Indiana

The new state of Indiana elected its first two senators, both Democratic-Republicans, James Noble and Waller Taylor. The election was held November 8, 1816 in advance of Indiana's December 11, 1816 admission as a state. In the election legislators cast a single ballot and the first and second place candidates were deemed elected.

Kentucky
See also: List of United States senators from Kentucky

Kentucky (special)
See also: List of United States senators from Kentucky

Louisiana
See also: List of United States senators from Louisiana

Maryland (special)

Maryland (special, January 1816)
See also: List of United States senators from Maryland
1816 United States Senate special election in Maryland
January 27, 1816
80 members of the Maryland General Assembly
 
Candidate Robert Goodloe Harper John Thomson Mason
Party Federalist
Legislative vote 45 44
Percentage 50.56% 49.44%

Robert Goodloe Harper won election over John Thomson Mason by a margin of 1.12%, or 1 votes, for the Class 1 seat.[26]

Maryland (special, December 1816)
See also: List of United States senators from Maryland
1816 United States Senate special election in Maryland
January 27, 1816
80 members of the Maryland General Assembly
 
Candidate Alexander Contee Hanson William Winder
Party Federalist Democratic-Republican
Legislative vote 46 39
Percentage 54.12% 45.88%

Robert Goodloe Harper won election over John Thomson Mason by a margin of 1.12%, or 1 votes, for the Class 1 seat.[27]

Massachusetts
See also: List of United States senators from Massachusetts

Massachusetts (special)
See also: List of United States senators from Massachusetts

Mississippi
Mississippi's senators
Walter Leake (DR)
(Class 1)
Thomas H. Williams (DR)
(Class 2)
See also: List of United States senators from Mississippi

The new state of Mississippi elected its first two senators, both Democratic-Republicans, Walter Leake and Thomas H. Williams. Two separate elections were held in which each senator was elected.

First Senator (Class 1)
(5th ballot, date and previous ballots unknown)

Second Senator (Class 2)
(4th ballot, date and previous ballots unknown)

New Hampshire
See also: List of United States senators from New Hampshire

New Hampshire (special)
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

North Carolina (special)
See also: List of United States senators from North Carolina

Rhode Island
See also: List of United States senators from Rhode Island

South Carolina
See also: List of United States senators from South Carolina

South Carolina (special)
See also: List of United States senators from South Carolina

Tennessee
See also: List of United States senators from Tennessee

Tennessee (special)
See also: List of United States senators from Tennessee

Vermont (special)
See also: List of United States senators from Vermont

Virginia
See also: List of United States senators from Virginia

Virginia (special)
See also: List of United States senators from Virginia

See also

Notes
  1. Appointee elected
  2. "An unfortunate disagreement among some of the members of the House, with regard to a candidate for Senator to Congress, was the occasion of several ballotings before a choice could be made. The Hon. CLEMENT STORER, was however, elected by the unanimous voice of the Republican members of the Senate, which vote was concurred by the House, on Thursday, by a plurality of eleven votes."[22]
  3. "The ballotings for a Senator to Congress, (after 13 trials, in which 33 persons were voted for) resulted in the choice of the Hon. CLEMENT STORER, by a majority of 8 or 10." Farmer's Cabinet (Amherst, NH). July 5, 1817.[22]

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. "Virginia 1816 U.S. Senate, Special, Ballot 4". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  3. "Maryland 1816 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  4. "Massachusetts 1816 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
  5. "Indiana 1816 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
  6. "Georgia 1816 U.S. Senate, Ballot 2". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  7. "North Carolina 1816 U.S. Senate, Special, Ballot 3". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  8. "South Carolina 1816 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  9. Byrd, page 110.
  10. "Kentucky 1816 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  11. "Maryland 1816 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  12. "Delaware 1817 U.S. Senate, Ballot 3". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  13. "Kentucky 1816 U.S. Senate, Ballot 2". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  14. "Louisiana 1817 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
  15. "Massachusetts 1816 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
  16. "New Hampshire 1816 U.S. Senate, Ballot 3". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  17. "New Jersey 1817 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  18. "North Carolina 1816 U.S. Senate, Ballot 2". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  19. "A New Nation Votes".
  20. "VA US Senate". Our Campaigns. January 11, 2008. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  21. "Virginia 1816 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  22. "New Hampshire 1817 U.S. Senate, Ballot 13". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  23. "Tennessee 1817 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
  24. "Mississippi 1817 U.S. Senate, First Senator, Ballot 5". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
  25. "Mississippi 1817 U.S. Senate, Second Senator, Ballot 4". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
  26. "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Jan 27, 1816". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 2022-11-05.
  27. "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Jan 27, 1816". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 2022-11-05.
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