This table indicates how the district has voted in U.S. presidential elections; election results reflect voting in the district as it was configured at the time of the election, not as it is configured today.
This table indicates how the district has voted in recent statewide elections; election results reflect voting in the district as it is currently configured, not necessarily as it was at the time of these elections.
The 2nd congressional district has been associated with the north-central Lake Michigan shoreline region since the 1992 redistricting. There have been some changes, but it still covers in general the same area.
Prior to the 1992 redistricting the 2nd district covered the northern half to two thirds of Livonia, Northville Township, the Wayne County portion of the city of Northville, Plymouth and Plymouth Township all in Wayne County. It also covered most of Washtenaw County, Michigan but not Ann Arbor or Ypsilanti. The only county entirely in the district was Hillsdale County. Most of Jackson county was in the district, but the some of that county's northern tier townships were in Michigan's 6th congressional district. About half of Lenawee County was in the district, and the far north-east portion of Branch county was also in the district.
In 1992, this district essentially became the 7th district, while the 2nd was redrawn to take in much of the territory of the old 9th district.
^William Sprague was elected on a Free Soil Party ticket and was seated with the Whigs in Congress.
^Nathaniel B. Eldredge was elected on a Democratic and Union ticket in 1884 to the 49th Congress.
^In the election of November 7, 1916, official returns showed Mark R. Bacon had won by 49 votes. Although there was no provision in state law at that time for recounting ballots in the election of federal officials, a separate examination of votes in Jackson County revealed that Samuel W. Beakes was entitled to 87 more votes. However, the board of state canvassers and the Michigan Supreme Court refused to allow a recount. Finally, the U.S. House Committee on Elections decided to conduct a recount, which gave Beakes the victory by 132 votes. The committee unanimously reported resolutions to the full House stating that Bacon had not been elected to the seat and was not entitled to it, and that, in fact, Beakes was the elected representative of the district. The House seated Beakes on December 13, 1917.