1810–11 United States Senate elections

The 1810–11 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 1810 and 1811, 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.

1810–11 United States Senate elections

← 1808 & 1809 Dates vary by state 1812 & 1813 →

11 of the 34 seats in the United States Senate (plus special elections)
18 seats needed for a majority
  Majority party Minority party
 
Party Democratic-Republican Federalist
Seats before 26 8
Seats after 26 7
Seat change Steady Decrease 1
Seats up 8 2
Races won 8 1

Results:
     Federalist hold      Dem-Republican hold
     Legislature Failed To Elect

Majority Party before election


Democratic-Republican

Elected Majority Party


Democratic-Republican

The Democratic-Republican Party maintained their Senate majority. The minority Federalists had gone into the elections with such a small share of Senate seats (8 out of 34, or 23.5%) that, had they won all of the elections, they would still not have reached a majority.

Change in composition

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Senate Composition in 1809

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Democratic-Republicans: 28 seats Federalists: 6 seats

Senate Composition in 1811

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Democratic-Republicans: 30 seats Federalists: 6 seats

Key Changes

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Democratic-Republicans: The Democratic-Republicans gained 2 seats, increasing their majority from 28 to 30 seats. Federalists: The number of Federalist seats remained unchanged at 6.

Context

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The Democratic-Republican Party continued to dominate the Senate, reflecting the broader political landscape of the era. The period was marked by the lead-up to the War of 1812, with growing tensions between the United States and Great Britain influencing political discourse and legislative priorities.[2]

DR7 DR6 DR5 DR4 DR3 DR2 DR1
DR8 DR9 DR10 DR11 DR12 DR13 DR14 DR15 DR16 DR17
Majority → DR18
Ga.
Ran
F8
Mass.
Ran
DR26
Va.
Ran
DR25
Tenn.
Ran
DR24
S.C.
Retired
DR23
R.I.
Unknown
DR22
N.C.
Ran
DR21
N.J.
Ran
DR20
N.H.
Ran
DR19
Ky.
Retired
F7
Del.
Ran
F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1

Result of the regular elections

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DR7 DR6 DR5 DR4 DR3 DR2 DR1
DR8 DR9 DR10 DR11 DR12 DR13 DR14 DR15 DR16 DR17
Majority → DR18
Ga.
Re-elected
V1
Mass.
F Loss
DR26
Va.
Re-elected
DR25
Tenn.
Re-elected
DR24
S.C.
Hold
DR23
R.I.
Hold
DR22
N.C.
Re-elected
DR21
N.J.
Re-elected
DR20
N.H.
Re-elected
DR19
Ky.
Hold
F7
Del.
Re-elected
F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1
Key
DR# Democratic-Republican
F# Federalist
V# Vacant

Race summaries

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Except if/when noted, number following candidates is whole number votes.

Special elections during the 11th Congress

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In these special elections, the winners were seated during 1810 or before March 4, 1811; ordered by election date.

State Incumbent Results Candidates
Senator Party Electoral history
Delaware
(Class 1)
Samuel White Federalist 1796 (special)
1801 (appointed)
1803
1809
Incumbent died November 4, 1809.
New senator elected January 12, 1810.
Federalist hold.
New Hampshire
(Class 3)
Nahum Parker Democratic-
Republican
1807 Incumbent resigned June 1, 1810.
New senator elected June 21, 1810.
Federalist gain.
Connecticut
(Class 1)
James Hillhouse Federalist 1796 (special)
1797
1803
1809
Incumbent resigned June 10, 1810.
New senator elected in June 1810.
Federalist hold.
Ohio
(Class 1)
Return J. Meigs Jr. Democratic-
Republican
1808 (special)
1808
Incumbent resigned December 8, 1810, to become Governor of Ohio.
New senator elected December 15, 1810 on the sixth ballot.
Democratic-Republican hold.
South Carolina
(Class 2)
Thomas Sumter Democratic-
Republican
1801 (special)
1809
Incumbent resigned December 16, 1810.
New senator elected December 18, 1810 on the third ballot.
Democratic-Republican hold.
Winner also elected to the next term; see below.

Races leading to the 12th Congress

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In these regular elections, the winner was seated on March 4, 1811 (except where noted due to late election); ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.

State Incumbent Results Candidates
Senator Party Electoral
history
Delaware James A. Bayard Federalist 1804 (special)
1805
Incumbent re-elected January 8, 1811.
Georgia William H. Crawford Democratic-
Republican
1807 (special) Incumbent re-elected in 1810 or 1811.
Kentucky Henry Clay Democratic-
Republican
1810 (appointed) Appointee retired to run for U.S. House of Representatives.
New senator elected January 8, 1811.
Democratic-Republican hold.
Massachusetts Timothy Pickering Federalist 1803 (special)
1805
Incumbent lost re-election.
Legislature failed to elect due to partisan deadlock in the Massachusetts Senate.
Federalist loss.
New Hampshire Nicholas Gilman Democratic-
Republican
1804 Incumbent re-elected June 21, 1810, on the fourth ballot.
New Jersey John Condit Democratic-
Republican
1803 (appointed)
1803 (special)
1809 (lost)
1809 (appointed)
1809 (special)
Incumbent re-elected November 5, 1810.
North Carolina James Turner Democratic-
Republican
1804 Incumbent re-elected November 28, 1810 on the third vote.
Rhode Island Elisha Mathewson Democratic-
Republican
1807 (special) Incumbent retired or lost re-election.
New senator elected November 2, 1810.
Democratic-Republican hold.
South Carolina Thomas Sumter Democratic-
Republican
1801 (special)
1809
Incumbent resigned December 16, 1810.
New senator elected December 18, 1810 on the third ballot.
Democratic-Republican hold.
Winner also elected to finish the current term; see above.
Tennessee Jenkin Whiteside Democratic-
Republican
1809 (special) Incumbent re-elected early October 28, 1809.
Virginia William B. Giles Democratic-
Republican
1804 (appointed)
1804 (special)
1804
Incumbent re-elected January 2, 1811.

Special elections during the 12th Congress

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In these special elections, the winners were seated in 1811 after March 4; ordered by election date.

State Incumbent Results Candidates
Senator Party Electoral history
Massachusetts
(Class 2)
Vacant Legislature had failed to elect; see above.
New senator elected late June 6, 1811 on the second ballot.
Democratic-Republican gain.
Tennessee
(Class 2)
Jenkin Whiteside Democratic-
Republican
1809 (special) Incumbent resigned October 8, 1811.
New senator elected October 1, 1811.
Democratic-Republican hold.
Rhode Island
(Class 1)
Christopher G. Champlin Federalist 1809 (special) Incumbent resigned October 12, 1811.
New senator elected October 28, 1811.
Federalist hold.

Connecticut (special)

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Delaware

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Delaware (regular)

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Delaware (special)

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Georgia

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Kentucky

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Massachusetts

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Massachusetts (regular)

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Massachusetts (special)

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New Hampshire

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New Hampshire (regular)

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New Hampshire (special)

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New Jersey

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North Carolina

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Ohio (special)

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Rhode Island

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Rhode Island (regular)

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Rhode Island (special)

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South Carolina

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South Carolina (regular)

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South Carolina (special)

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Tennessee

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Tennessee (regular)

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Tennessee (special)

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Virginia

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b Charles Cutts (NH) has conflicting accounts of whether he was a Democratic-Republican or a Federalist.

References

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  1. ^ "17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Direct Election of U.S. Senators (1913)". National Archives and Records Administration. February 8, 2022.
  2. ^ "U.S. Senate: Party Division". www.senate.gov. Retrieved 2024-07-29.
  3. ^ "Delaware 1810 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 25, 2018., citing Journal of the Delaware House of Representatives, 1810. 26.
  4. ^ "New Hampshire 1810 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Archived from the original on March 14, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2018., citing Concord Gazette (Concord, NH). June 26, 1810.
  5. ^ "Connecticut 1810 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 26, 2018., citing Connecticut Mirror (Hartford, CT). June 4, 1810.
  6. ^ "Connecticut". The enquirer. Richmond, Va. June 12, 1810. p. 3. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  7. ^ Taylor, William A. (1900). Ohio in Congress from 1803 to 1901 with Notes nad Sketches of Senators and Representatives and Other Historical Data and Incidents. Columbus, Ohio: The XX. Century Publishing Co. – via Google Books.
  8. ^ "Ohio 1810 U.S. Senate, Special, Ballot 6". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 26, 2018., citing Muskingum Messenger (Zanesville, OH). December 8, 1810. Liberty Hall (Cincinnati, OH). December 24, 1810. The Western Spy (Cincinnati, OH). December 29, 1810, Taylor, William A. (1899). Ohio Statesmen and Annals of Progress: From the year 1788 to the year 1900. Columbus, Ohio: Press of the Westbote. p. 68.
  9. ^ a b "South Carolina 1810 U.S. Senate, Special, Ballot 3". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 29, 2018., citing The Spirit of 'Seventy-Six (Washington, DC). January 1, 1811.
  10. ^ "Delaware 1811 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 25, 2018., citing American Watchman; and Delaware Republican (Wilmington, DE). January 12, 1811.
  11. ^ "Kentucky 1811 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 29, 2018., citing The Reporter (Lexington, KY). January 12, 1811.
  12. ^ "Massachusetts 1810 U.S. Senate, House of Representatives Vote". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 29, 2018., citing Columbian Centinel. Massachusetts Federalist (Boston, MA). June 9, 1810.
  13. ^ "Massachusetts 1810 U.S. Senate, State Senate Vote, Ballot 4". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 29, 2018., citing Columbian Centinel. Massachusetts Federalist (Boston, MA). June 16, 1810.
  14. ^ "New Hampshire 1810 U.S. Senate, Ballot 4". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 25, 2018., citing Concord Gazette (Concord, NH). June 26, 1810. Farmer's Museum (Walpole, NH). July 2, 1810.
  15. ^ "New Jersey 1810 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved February 22, 2018., citing The True American and Commercial Advertiser (Philadelphia, PA). November 9, 1810.
  16. ^ "North Carolina 1810 U.S. Senate, Ballot 3". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Archived from the original on March 15, 2020. Retrieved February 22, 2018., citing The True Republican, and Newbern Weekly Advertiser (New Bern, NC). December 5, 1810.
  17. ^ "Rhode Island 1810 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved February 19, 2018., citing The Columbian Phenix (Providence, RI). November 3, 1810.
  18. ^ "Tennessee 1809 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 29, 2018., citing Journal of the Tennessee House of Representatives, 1809. 115.
  19. ^ "Virginia 1811 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved February 22, 2018., citing Independent American (Georgetown, DC). January 8, 1811.
  20. ^ "Massachusetts 1811 U.S. Senate, State Senate Vote, Ballot 2". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 29, 2018., citing American Watchman; and Delaware Republican (Wilmington, DE). June 15, 1811. Norfolk Gazette and Publick Ledger (Norfolk, VA). June 17, 1811. Republican Star or Eastern Shore General Advertiser (Easton, MD). June 18, 1811.
  21. ^ "Tennessee 1811 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2018., citing Wilson's Knoxville Gazette (Knoxville, TN). October 7, 1811.
  22. ^ "Rhode Island 1811 U.S. Senate, Special". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved February 19, 2018., citing The True American and Commercial Advertiser (Philadelphia, PA). November 8, 1811.
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