1836–37 United States Senate elections

1837 United States Senate election in Maryland
	December 1837
80 members of the Maryland General Assembly

1836 United States Senate special election in Maryland
	December 1836
80 members of the Maryland General Assembly

1836–37 United States Senate elections
	Dates vary by state
17 of the 52 seats in the United States Senate (plus special elections); 27 seats needed for a majority
	Results:; Democratic gain Democratic hold ; Whig hold
Majority Party before election; ; Jacksonian	Elected Majority Party ; ; Democratic

The 1836–37 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 1836 and 1837, 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 3.

In this election cycle, the Jacksonian coalition emerged as the Democratic Party, and the Adams, or Anti-Jackson, coalition emerged as the Whig Party.

Results summary

Senate party division, 25th Congress (1837–1839)

Majority party: Democratic (35)
Minority party: Whig (17–16)
Other parties: (0–1)
Total seats: 52

Change in composition

Before the special elections

				AJ₁	AJ₂	AJ₃	AJ₄	AJ₅	AJ₆
AJ₁₆	AJ₁₅	AJ₁₄	AJ₁₃	AJ₁₂	AJ₁₁	AJ₁₀	AJ₉	AJ₈	AJ₇
AJ₁₇ Del. Resigned	AJ₁₈ Del. Resigned	AJ₁₉ Md. Died	AJ₂₀ N.C. Resigned	AJ₂₁ La. Resigned	AJ₂₂ Va. Resigned	AJ₂₃ Va. Resigned	Ark. New	Ark. New	N₂
									N₁
J₁₇	J₁₈	J₁₉	J₂₀	J₂₁	J₂₂ Mich.[lower-alpha 1]	J₂₃ Mich.[lower-alpha 1]	J₂₄ N.H. Resigned	V₁ La.	N₁
J₁₆	J₁₅	J₁₄	J₁₃	J₁₂	J₁₁	J₁₀	J₉	J₈	J₇
				J₁	J₂	J₃	J₄	J₅	J₆

As a result of the special elections

				AJ₁	AJ₂	AJ₃	AJ₄	AJ₅	AJ₆
AJ₁₆	AJ₁₅	AJ₁₄	AJ₁₃	AJ₁₂	AJ₁₁	AJ₁₀	AJ₉	AJ₈	AJ₇
AJ₁₇ Del. Hold	AJ₁₈ Del. Hold	AJ₁₉ Md. Hold	N₂	N₁	J₃₁ Va. Gain	J₃₀ Va. Gain	J₂₉ Ark. Gain	J₂₈ Ark. Gain	J₂₇ N.C. Gain
Majority →									J₂₇ N.C. Gain
J₁₇	J₁₈	J₁₉	J₂₀	J₂₁	J₂₂	J₂₃	J₂₄ N.H. Hold	J₂₅ La. Gain	J₂₆ La. Gain
J₁₆	J₁₅	J₁₄	J₁₃	J₁₂	J₁₁	J₁₀	J₉	J₈	J₇
				J₁	J₂	J₃	J₄	J₅	J₆

Before the regular elections

				AJ₁	AJ₂	AJ₃	AJ₄	AJ₅	AJ₆
AJ₁₆ Ohio Ran	AJ₁₅ Ky. Ran	AJ₁₄ Ind. Ran	AJ₁₃ Ala. Ran	AJ₁₂	AJ₁₁	AJ₁₀	AJ₉	AJ₈	AJ₇
AJ₁₇ La. Ran	AJ₁₈ Vt. Ran	AJ₁₉ Conn. Unknown	N₂ S.C. Ran	N₁	J₃₁ Pa. Ran	J₃₀ N.C. Ran	J₂₉ N.Y. Ran	J₂₈ N.H. Ran	J₂₇ Mo. Ran
Majority →									J₂₇ Mo. Ran
J₁₇	J₁₈	J₁₉	J₂₀	J₂₁	J₂₂	J₂₃ Ark. Ran	J₂₄ Ga. Ran	J₂₅ Ill. Ran	J₂₆ La. Ran
J₁₆	J₁₅	J₁₄	J₁₃	J₁₂	J₁₁	J₁₀	J₉	J₈	J₇
				J₁	J₂	J₃	J₄	J₅	J₆

As a result of the regular elections

"Hold" means the incumbent lost and the winner was from an affiliated new party, either Anti-Jacksonian to Whig or Jacksonian to Democratic.

				AJ₁	AJ₂	AJ₃	AJ₄	AJ₅	AJ₆
W₁₆ Vt. Re-elected (was AJ)	W₁₅ Ind. Hold (was AJ)	W₁₄ La. Re-elected (was AJ)	W₁₃ Ky. Re-elected (was AJ)	AJ₁₂	AJ₁₁	AJ₁₀	AJ₉	AJ₈	AJ₇
W₁₇ S.C. Re-elected (was N)	N₁	D₃₄ Ohio Gain (was AJ)	D₃₃ Conn. Gain (was AJ)	D₃₂ Ala. Gain (was AJ)	D₃₁ N.H. Hold (was J)	D₃₀ Ill. Hold (was J)	D₂₉ Pa. Re-elected (was J)	D₂₈ N.C. Re-elected (was J)	D₂₇ N.Y. Re-elected (was J)
Majority →									D₂₇ N.Y. Re-elected (was J)
J₁₇	J₁₈	J₁₉	J₂₀	J₂₁	J₂₂	D₂₃ Ark. Re-elected (was J)	D₂₄ Ga. Re-elected (was J)	D₂₅ La. Re-elected (was J)	D₂₆ Mo. Re-elected (was J)
J₁₆	J₁₅	J₁₄	J₁₃	J₁₂	J₁₁	J₁₀	J₉	J₈	J₇
				J₁	J₂	J₃	J₄	J₅	J₆

Beginning of the next Congress

				W₁ New party	W₂ New party	W₃ New party	W₄ New party	W₅ New party	W₆ New party
W₁₆	W₁₅	W₁₄	W₁₃	W₁₂ New party	W₁₁ New party	W₁₀ New party	W₉ New party	W₈ New party	W₇ New party
W₁₇	D₃₅ New party	D₃₄	D₃₃	D₃₂	D₃₁	D₃₀	D₂₉	D₂₈	D₂₇
Majority →									D₂₇
D₁₇ New party	D₁₈ New party	D₁₉ New party	D₂₀ New party	D₂₁ New party	D₂₂ New party	D₂₃	D₂₄	D₂₅	D₂₆
D₁₆ New party	D₁₅ New party	D₁₄ New party	D₁₃ New party	D₁₂ New party	D₁₁ New party	D₁₀ New party	D₉ New party	D₈ New party	D₇ New party
				D₁ New party	D₂ New party	D₃ New party	D₄ New party	D₅ New party	D₆ New party

Key:

AJ_#	Anti-Jacksonian
J_#	Jacksonian
N_#	Nullfier

D_#	Democratic
W_#	Whig
V_#	Vacant

Race summaries

Bold states link to specific election articles.

Elections seated during the 24th Congress

In these elections, senators were elected to finish terms already in progress either as special elections or as elections to a new state. senators were seated during 1836 or before March 4, 1837; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
Louisiana (Class 2)	Vacant			Charles Gayarré had been elected but resigned due to ill health without having taken his seat. New senator elected January 13, 1836. Jacksonian gain. Winner would serve in the next Congress as a Democrat.	▌Y Robert C. Nicholas (Jacksonian) [data missing]
Virginia (Class 1)	John Tyler	National Republican	1827 1833	Incumbent resigned February 29, 1836. New senator elected March 4, 1836. Jacksonian gain. Winner would serve in the next Congress as a Democrat.	▌Y William C. Rives (Jacksonian) [data missing]
New Hampshire (Class 3)	Isaac Hill	Jacksonian	1831	Incumbent resigned May 30, 1836 to become Governor of New Hampshire. New senator elected June 8, 1836. Jacksonian hold. Winner also lost re-election to the next term, see below.	▌Y John Page (Jacksonian) [data missing]
Delaware (Class 1)	Arnold Naudain	National Republican	1830 (special) 1832	Incumbent resigned June 16, 1836. New senator elected June 17, 1836. National Republican hold. Winner would serve in the next Congress as a Whig.	▌Y Richard H. Bayard (National Republican) [data missing]
Arkansas (Class 2)	New seats			New state. New senator elected September 19, 1836. Jacksonian gain. Winner would serve in the next Congress as a Democrat.	▌Y William S. Fulton (Jacksonian) 60 votes[2]
Arkansas (Class 3)	New seats			New state. New senator elected September 19, 1836. Jacksonian gain. Winner was also re-elected to the next term, see below.	▌Y Ambrose H. Sevier (Jacksonian) 56 votes H. F. Walworth 4 votes[2]
North Carolina (Class 3)	Willie P. Mangum	National Republican	1830	Incumbent resigned November 26, 1836. New senator elected December 5, 1836. Jacksonian gain. Winner was also elected to the next term, see below.	▌Y Robert Strange (Jacksonian) [data missing]
Virginia (Class 2)	Benjamin W. Leigh	National Republican	1834 (special) 1835	Incumbent resigned July 4, 1836. New senator elected December 12, 1836. Jacksonian gain. Winner would resign at the end of this Congress, see below.	▌Y Richard E. Parker (Jacksonian) [data missing]
Maryland (Class 3)	Robert H. Goldsborough	National Republican	1813 1819 (Retired or lost) 1835 (special)	Incumbent died October 5, 1836. New senator elected December 31, 1836. National Republican hold. Winner was also re-elected to the next term, see below.	▌Y John S. Spence (National Republican) [data missing]
Delaware (Class 2)	John M. Clayton	National Republican	1829 1835	Incumbent resigned December 29, 1836. New senator elected January 9, 1837. National Republican hold. Winner would serve in the next Congress as a Whig.	▌Y Thomas Clayton (National Republican) [data missing]
Louisiana (Class 3)	Alexander Porter	National Republican	1833 (special)	Incumbent resigned January 5, 1837 due to ill health. New senator elected January 12, 1837. Jacksonian gain. Winner was also re-elected to the next term, see below.	▌Y Alexandre Mouton (Jacksonian) [data missing]

Races leading to the 25th Congress

In these regular elections, the winner was seated on March 4, 1837; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 3 seats.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
Alabama	Gabriel Moore	Whig (National Republican)	1831	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1837. Democratic gain.	▌Y John McKinley (Democratic) ▌Gabriel Moore (Democratic) [data missing]
Arkansas	Ambrose Sevier	Democratic (Jacksonian)	1836 (New seat)	Incumbent re-elected in 1837.	▌Y Ambrose Sevier (Democratic) [data missing]
Connecticut	Gideon Tomlinson	Whig (National Republican)	1831	Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election. New senator elected in 1836 or 1837. Democratic gain.	▌Y Perry Smith (Democratic) [data missing]
Georgia	Alfred Cuthbert	Democratic (Jacksonian)	1835 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1837.	▌Y Alfred Cuthbert (Democratic) [data missing]
Illinois	William Lee D. Ewing	Democratic (Jacksonian)	1835 (Appointed)	Interim appointee lost election. New senator elected in 1837. Democratic hold.	▌Y Richard M. Young (Democratic) ▌William Lee D. Ewing (Democratic) [data missing]
Indiana	William Hendricks	Whig (National Republican)	1824 1830	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1836. Whig hold.	▌Y Oliver H. Smith (Whig) ▌William Hendricks (Whig) [data missing]
Kentucky	Henry Clay	Whig (National Republican)	1806 (special) 1807 (retired) 1810 (Appointed) 1811 (retired) 1831 (Late)	Incumbent re-elected in 1836.	▌Y Henry Clay (Whig) [data missing]
Louisiana	Alexandre Mouton	Democratic (Jacksonian)	1837 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1837.	▌Y Alexandre Mouton (Democratic) [data missing]
Maryland	John S. Spence	Whig (National Republican)	1836 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1837.	▌Y John S. Spence (Whig) [data missing]
Missouri	Lewis F. Linn	Democratic (Jacksonian)	1833 (Appointed) ? (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1836.	▌Y Lewis F. Linn (Democratic) [data missing]
New Hampshire	John Page	Democratic (Jacksonian)	1836 (special)	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1837. Democratic hold.	▌Y Franklin Pierce (Democratic) [data missing]
New York	Silas Wright Jr.	Democratic (Jacksonian)	1826 (Late)	Incumbent re-elected February 7, 1837.	▌Y Silas Wright Jr. (Democratic) 26+85 ▌Ambrose L. Jordan (Whig) 3+27
North Carolina	Willie P. Mangum	Whig (National Republican)	1830	Incumbent resigned November 26, 1836. New senator elected in 1836. Democratic gain. Successor also elected to finish the current term, see above.	▌Y Robert Strange (Democratic) [data missing]
Ohio	Thomas Ewing	Whig (National Republican)	1830	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in January 1837. Democratic gain.	▌Y William Allen (Democratic) ▌Thomas Ewing (Whig) [data missing]
Pennsylvania	James Buchanan	Democratic (Jacksonian)	1834 (special)	Incumbent re-elected December 14, 1836.	▌Y James Buchanan (Democratic) 85 ▌Thomas M. T. McKennan (Whig) 24 ▌Charles B. Penrose (Whig) 21 ▌Thomas Cunningham (Democratic) 1 ▌Isaac Leet (Democratic) 1 ▌Not voting 1[3]
South Carolina	William C. Preston	Nullifier	1833 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1837 as a Whig.	▌Y William C. Preston (Whig) [data missing]
Vermont	Samuel Prentiss	Whig (National Republican)	1831	Incumbent re-elected in 1837.	▌Y Samuel Prentiss (Whig) [data missing]

Elections during the 25th Congress

In these special elections, the winners were seated in 1837 after March 4; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
Virginia (Class 2)	Richard E. Parker	Democratic	1836 (special)	Incumbent resigned March 4, 1837 to become judge of the Supreme Court of Virginia. New senator elected March 14, 1837. Democratic hold.	▌Y William H. Roane (Democratic) [data missing]
Alabama (Class 3)	John McKinley	Democratic	1833 (special)	Incumbent resigned April 22, 1837 to become Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. New senator elected June 19, 1837. Democratic hold.	▌Y Clement C. Clay (Democratic) [data missing]
Georgia (Class 2)	John Pendleton King	Democratic	1833 (special)	Incumbent resigned November 1, 1837. New senator elected November 22, 1837. Democratic hold.	▌Y Wilson Lumpkin (Democratic) 55.10% ▌John M. Berrien (Whig) 39.18% ▌Scattering 4.08% ▌Daniel M. Stewart (Democratic) 1.63%[4]

Alabama

There were two elections in Alabama in this cycle, both for the same seat.

Alabama (regular)

First-term senator Anti-Jacksonian Gabriel Moore lost re-election in November 1836 to Jacksonian John McKinley.

Alabama (special)

Shortly after the new term started, Jacksonian-now-Democrat John McKinley resigned to become Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He was replaced by fellow Democrat Clement C. Clay in a June 19, 1837 special election.

Clay would serve only until November 15, 1841, when he, too, resigned.

Arkansas

Arkansas became a new state and elected its two senators September 18, 1836.

Jacksonian former Governor of Arkansas Territory William Fulton was elected to the Class 2 seat, with the term ending March 3, 1841.

Jacksonian former delegate Ambrose Sevier was elected to the Class 3 seat, with the term ending March 3, 1837.

Sevier was also re-elected in 1837 to the next term that would end in 1843.

Connecticut

Delaware

Georgia

There were two elections in Georgia in this cycle.

Illinois

Indiana

Kentucky

Louisiana

There were two elections in Louisiana in this cycle, both for the same seat.

Anti-Jacksonian Alexander Porter resigned January 5, 1837 due to ill health.

Louisiana (special)

Jacksonian Alexandre Mouton was elected January 12, 1837 to finish Porter's term, ending March 3, 1837.

Louisiana (regular)

Jacksonian Alexandre Mouton was also elected as a Democrat in 1837 (possibly re-elected) to the next term, beginning March 4, 1837.

Maryland

Maryland (special)

Anti-Jacksonian Robert Henry Goldsborough died October 5, 1836. Anti-Jacksonian John S. Spence was elected in late 1836 to finish Goldsborough's term, ending March 3, 1837.[5]

Maryland (regular)

John S. Spence won election to a full term an unknown margin of votes, for the Class 3 seat.[6]

Missouri

New Hampshire

New York

Silas Wright Jr., had been elected in 1833 to this seat after the resignation of William L. Marcy who had been elected Governor of New York. Wright's term would expire on March 3, 1837.

At the State election in November 1836, 94 Democrats and 34 Whigs were elected to the Assembly, and seven of the eight State senators elected were Democrats. The 60th New York State Legislature met from January 3 to May 16, 1837, at Albany. The party strength in the Assembly as shown by the election for Speaker was: 80 for Democrat Edward Livingston and 27 for Whig Luther Bradish.

Wright was re-nominated in a Democratic caucus by a large majority. Silas Wright Jr., was the choice of both the Assembly and the Senate, and was declared elected.

House	Democratic		Whig
State Senate (32 members)	Silas Wright Jr.	26	Ambrose L. Jordan	3
State Assembly (128 members)	Silas Wright Jr.	85	Ambrose L. Jordan	27

North Carolina

There were two elections in North Carolina in this cycle, both for the same seat.

Anti-Jacksonian Willie P. Mangum resigned November 26, 1836.

North Carolina (special)

Jacksonian Robert Strange was elected in late 1836 to finish Mangum's term, ending March 3, 1837.

North Carolina (regular)

Jacksonian Robert Strange was also elected as a Democrat in 1836, to the next term, beginning March 4, 1837.

Ohio

Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania General Assembly convened on December 14, 1836, to elect a Senator to serve the term beginning on March 4, 1837. The results of the vote of both houses combined are as follows:

Pennsylvania General Assembly Results[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	James Buchanan (Incumbent)	85	63.91
	Whig	Thomas M. T. McKennan	24	18.05
	Whig	Charles B. Penrose	21	15.79
	Democratic	Thomas Cunningham	1	0.75
	Democratic	Isaac Leet	1	0.75
	N/A	Not voting	1	0.75
Totals			133	100.00%

South Carolina

Vermont

Virginia (special)

There were three special elections in Virginia in this cycle.

Virginia (special, class 1)

Two-term Anti-Jacksonian (and future President) John Tyler resigned February 29, 1836 due to policial differences and conflict with the Virginia House of Delegates, which had come under control of the rival Jacksonians.

Former Jacksonian senator William C. Rives (who had served in the class 2 seat from December 10, 1832 to February 22, 1834) was elected March 4, 1836 to finish Tyler's term that would end March 3, 1839.

Virginia (special, class 2 1836)

Anti-Jacksonian Benjamin W. Leigh, who had served in the seat since an 1834 special election and re-elected in 1835, resigned July 4, 1836 to return to his private legal practice.

Jacksonian Richard E. Parker was elected December 12, 1836, but he would only remain in the seat for four months.

Virginia (special, class 2 1837)

Parker, now a Democrat, was elected to the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals and so he resigned from the Senate March 13, 1837.

Fellow Democrat William H. Roane was elected March 14, 1837 to finish the term that would end March 3, 1841.

Notes

Michigan's senators were elected in 1835, but not seated until early 1837

References

"17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Direct Election of U.S. Senators (1913)". National Archives and Records Administration. February 8, 2022.
"Senate". The Arkansas advocate. Little Rock, Ark. September 23, 1836. pp. 2–3. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
"U.S. Senate Election - 14 December 1836" (PDF). Wilkes University. Retrieved December 22, 2013.
"Our Campaigns - GA US Senate - Appointment Race - Nov 01, 1837".
"Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Feb 00, 1837". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
"Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Feb 00, 1837". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved November 5, 2022.

Party Division in the Senate, 1789-Present, via Senate.gov

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[Michigan-2] Michigan's senators were elected in 1835, but not seated until early 1837

[1] "17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Direct Election of U.S. Senators (1913)". National Archives and Records Administration. February 8, 2022.

[Advocate-3] "Senate". The Arkansas advocate. Little Rock, Ark. September 23, 1836. pp. 2–3. Retrieved September 19, 2021.

[Pennsylvania-4] "U.S. Senate Election - 14 December 1836" (PDF). Wilkes University. Retrieved December 22, 2013.

[5] "Our Campaigns - GA US Senate - Appointment Race - Nov 01, 1837".

[6] "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Feb 00, 1837". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved November 5, 2022.

[7] "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Feb 00, 1837". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved November 5, 2022.