1878–79 United States Senate elections

1878–79 United States Senate elections
26 of the 76 seats in the United States Senate (with special elections); 39 seats needed for a majority
	Results of the elections:; Democratic gain Democratic hold; Republican gain Republican hold; Legislature failed to elect
Majority Party before election; ; Republican	Elected Majority Party ; ; Democratic

The 1878–79 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 1878 and 1879, 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.

The Democratic Party recaptured control of the Senate for the first time since before the Civil War.

Results summary

Senate party division, 46th Congress (1879–1881)

Majority party: Democratic (42)
Minority party: Republican (31)
Other parties: Independent (1), Anti-Monopoly (1)
Total seats: 76

Change in composition

Before the elections

D₈	D₇	D₆	D₅	D₄	D₃	D₂	D₁
D₉	D₁₀	D₁₁	D₁₂	D₁₃	D₁₄	D₁₅	D₁₆	D₁₇	D₁₈
D₂₈	D₂₇	D₂₆	D₂₅	D₂₄	D₂₃	D₂₂	D₂₁	D₂₀	D₁₉
D₂₉ Ran	D₃₀ Ran	D₃₁ Ran	D₃₂ Ran	D₃₃ Unknown	D₃₄ Unknown	D₃₅ Retired	D₃₆ Retired	AM₁	I₁
Plurality →									R₃₈ Retired
R₂₉ Unknown	R₃₀ Unknown	R₃₁ Retired	R₃₂ Retired	R₃₃ Retired	R₃₄ Retired	R₃₅ Retired	R₃₆ Retired	R₃₇ Retired	R₃₈ Retired
R₂₈ Ran	R₂₇ Ran	R₂₆ Ran	R₂₅ Ran	R₂₄ Ran	R₂₃ Ran	R₂₂ Ran	R₂₁	R₂₀	R₁₉
R₉	R₁₀	R₁₁	R₁₂	R₁₃	R₁₄	R₁₅	R₁₆	R₁₇	R₁₈
R₈	R₇	R₆	R₅	R₄	R₃	R₂	R₁

After the elections

D₈	D₇	D₆	D₅	D₄	D₃	D₂	D₁
D₉	D₁₀	D₁₁	D₁₂	D₁₃	D₁₄	D₁₅	D₁₆	D₁₇	D₁₈
D₂₈	D₂₇	D₂₆	D₂₅	D₂₄	D₂₃	D₂₂	D₂₁	D₂₀	D₁₉
D₂₉ Re-elected	D₃₀ Re-elected	D₃₁ Hold	D₃₂ Hold	D₃₃ Hold	D₃₄ Hold	D₃₅ Hold	D₃₆ Gain	D₃₇ Gain	D₃₈ Gain
Majority →									D₃₉ Gain
R₂₉ Hold	R₃₀ Hold	R₃₁ Gain	V₁ R loss	AM₁	I₁	D₄₂ Gain	D₄₁ Gain	D₄₀ Gain	D₃₉ Gain
R₂₈ Hold	R₂₇ Re-elected	R₂₆ Re-elected	R₂₅ Re-elected	R₂₄ Re-elected	R₂₃ Re-elected	R₂₂ Re-elected	R₂₁	R₂₀	R₁₉
R₉	R₁₀	R₁₁	R₁₂	R₁₃	R₁₄	R₁₅	R₁₆	R₁₇	R₁₈
R₈	R₇	R₆	R₅	R₄	R₃	R₂	R₁

Key

AM_#	Anti-Monopoly Party
D_#	Democratic
I_#	Independent
R_#	Republican
V_#	Vacant

Race summaries

Special elections during the 45th Congress

In these elections, the winners were seated in 1879 before March 4; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
Missouri (Class 3)	David H. Armstrong	Democratic	1877 (appointed)	Interim appointee retired when successor elected. New senator elected January 27, 1879. Democratic hold. Winner did not run for the next term; see below.	▌ Y James Shields (Democratic) [data missing]
Indiana (Class 3)	Daniel W. Voorhees	Democratic	1877 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected January 31, 1879. Winner was also elected to the next term; see below.	▌ Y Daniel W. Voorhees (Democratic) [data missing]
Michigan (Class 1)	Isaac P. Christiancy	Republican	1874	Incumbent resigned February 10, 1879, due to ill health. New senator elected February 22, 1879. Republican hold.	▌ Y Zachariah Chandler (Republican) [data missing]

Races leading to the 46th Congress

In these regular elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1885; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 3 seats.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
Alabama	George E. Spencer	Republican	1868 (special) 1872	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in August 1878. Democratic gain.	▌ Y George S. Houston (Democratic) [data missing]
Arkansas	Stephen W. Dorsey	Republican	1872–73	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1878. Democratic gain.	▌ Y James D. Walker (Democratic) [data missing]
California	Aaron A. Sargent	Republican	1872–73	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1878. Democratic gain.	▌ Y James T. Farley (Democratic) 28 ▌Morris Estee (Republican) 12^[2]
Colorado	Jerome B. Chaffee	Republican	1876	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1879. Republican hold.	▌ Y Nathaniel P. Hill (Republican) [data missing]
Connecticut	William Barnum	Democratic	1876 (special)	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected in 1879. Republican gain.	▌ Y Orville H. Platt (Republican) [data missing]
Florida	Simon B. Conover	Republican	1872–73	Incumbent retired. New senator elected January 21, 1879.^[3] Democratic gain.	▌ Y Wilkinson Call (Democratic) [data missing]
Georgia	John B. Gordon	Democratic	1873	Incumbent re-elected in 1879.	▌ Y John B. Gordon (Democratic) [data missing]
Illinois	Richard J. Oglesby	Republican	1873	Incumbent retired. New senator elected Jan 22, 1879. Republican hold.	▌ Y John A. Logan (Republican) 51.46% ▌John C. Black (Democratic) 41.75% ▌Alexander Campbell (Greenback) 4.85% ▌John McAuliffe (Independent) 1.94%^[4]
Indiana	Daniel W. Voorhees	Democratic	1877 (appointed) 1879 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1879.	▌ Y Daniel W. Voorhees (Democratic) [data missing]
Iowa	William B. Allison	Republican	1872	Incumbent re-elected January 23, 1878.^[5]	▌ Y William B. Allison (Republican) 104 ▌Daniel F. Miller (Republican) 35 ▌E. N. Gates (Unknown) 3^[5]
Kansas	John J. Ingalls	Republican	1873	Incumbent re-elected in 1879.	▌ Y John J. Ingalls (Republican) [data missing]
Kentucky	Thomas C. McCreery	Democratic	1872	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1879. Democratic hold.	▌ Y John Stuart Williams (Democratic) [data missing]
Louisiana	James B. Eustis	Democratic	1876 (special)	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1879. Democratic hold.	▌ Y Benjamin F. Jonas (Democratic) [data missing]
Maryland	George R. Dennis	Democratic	1872–73	Incumbent retired. New senator elected January 19, 1878. Democratic hold.	▌ Y James Black Groome (Democratic) 78.5% ▌Lewis H. Steiner (Republican) 18.28% ▌John M. Robinson (Democratic) 2.15% ▌James A. Garey (Unknown) 1.08%^[6]
Missouri	James Shields	Democratic	1849 (Ill.) 1849 (Ill.–election voided) 1849 (Ill.–special) 1855 (Ill.–lost) 1858 (Minn.) 1859 (Minn.–lost) 1879 (Mo.–special)	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1879. Democratic hold.	▌ Y George G. Vest (Democratic) [data missing]
Nevada	John P. Jones	Republican	1873	Incumbent re-elected in 1879.	▌ Y John P. Jones (Republican) [data missing]
New Hampshire	Bainbridge Wadleigh	Republican	1872	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. Legislature failed to elect. Republican loss.	[data missing]
New York	Roscoe Conkling	Republican	1867 1873	Incumbent re-elected January 22, 1879.	▌ Y Roscoe Conkling (Republican) ▌William Dorsheimer (Democratic) ▌Peter Cooper (Greenback)
North Carolina	Augustus Merrimon	Democratic	1872	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1879. Democratic hold.	▌ Y Zebulon Vance (Democratic) ▌Augustus Merrimon (Democratic)
Ohio	Stanley Matthews	Republican	1877 (special)	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1878 or 1879. Democratic gain.	▌ Y George H. Pendleton (Democratic) [data missing]
Oregon	John H. Mitchell	Republican	1872	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1878 or 1879. Democratic gain.	▌ Y James H. Slater (Democratic) ▌John H. Mitchell (Republican) [data missing]
Pennsylvania	J. Donald Cameron	Republican	1877 (special)	Incumbent re-elected January 20, 1879.	▌ Y J. Donald Cameron (Republican) 53.78% ▌Hiester Clymer (Democratic) 36.65% ▌Daniel Agnew (Greenback) 6.37% ▌Edward McPherson (Republican) 1.20% ▌Russell Thayer (Republican) 0.40% ▌Galusha A. Grow (Republican) 0.40%
South Carolina	John J. Patterson	Republican	1872–73	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected in 1878. Democratic gain.	▌ Y Wade Hampton III (Democratic) [data missing]
Vermont	Justin S. Morrill	Republican	1866 1872	Incumbent re-elected in 1878.	▌ Y Justin S. Morrill (Republican) [data missing]
Wisconsin	Timothy O. Howe	Republican	1861 1866 1872	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected January 22, 1879.^[7] Republican hold.	▌ Y Matthew H. Carpenter (Republican) ▌Timothy O. Howe (Republican) ▌Elisha W. Keyes (Republican)

Elections during the 46th Congress

In this election, the winner was elected in 1879 after March 4.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
New Hampshire (Class 3)	Charles H. Bell	Republican	1879 (appointed)	Legislature had failed to elect; see above. Interim appointee retired when successor elected. New senator elected June 17, 1879. Republican hold.	▌ Y Henry W. Blair (Republican) [data missing]

Maryland

James Black Groome was elected by a margin of 60.22%, or 56 votes, for the Class 3 seat.^[8]

New York

Senator Roscoe Conkling

In New York, the election was held on January 21, 1879, by the New York State Legislature. Republican Roscoe Conkling had been re-elected in January 1873 to this seat, and his term would expire on March 3, 1879. At the State election in November 1877, 19 Republicans and 13 Democrats were elected for a two-year term (1878–1879) in the State Senate. At the State election in November 1878, 97 Republicans, 28 Democrats and 3 Greenbackers were elected for the session of 1879 to the Assembly, and Republican Thomas Murphy was elected to fill the vacancy in the State Senate caused by the death of Democrat John Morrissey. The 102nd New York State Legislature met from January 7 to May 22, 1879, at Albany, New York.

The caucus of Republican State legislators met on January 20, Temporary President of the State Senate William H. Robertson presided. Present were all Republican legislators except State Senator Louis S. Goebel^[9] (6th D.) and Assemblyman James W. Wadsworth. They re-nominated the incumbent U.S. Senator Conkling unanimously. The caucus of the Democratic State legislators met also on January 20. State Senator Thomas C. E. Ecclesine (8th D.) offered to adopt a prostest against the senatorial election proceedings, claiming that the senatorial and assembly districts were incorrectly apportioned and thus the State Legislature did not represent the wish of the people of the State. The protest was substituted by a resolution to appoint a committee which would elaborate an address on the apportionment at a later date. Ecclesine then marched out, and the remaining legislators nominated Lieutenant Governor William Dorsheimer for the U.S. Senate.

**1879 Democratic caucus for United States Senator result**
Candidate	First ballot	Second ballot
William Dorsheimer	11	18
James F. Starbuck	8	8
DeWitt C. West^[10]	8	6
Elijah Ward	2

The two Greenback assemblymen John Banfield (Chemung Co.) and George E. Williams (Oswego Co.) voted for 87-year-old Peter Cooper, a New York City inventor, industrialist and philanthropist who had run for U.S. president in 1876 on the Greenback ticket.

Roscoe Conkling was the choice of both the Assembly and the State Senate, and was declared elected.

**1879 United States Senator election result**
	Republican		Democrat		Greenback
State Senate (32 members)	Roscoe Conkling	20	William Dorsheimer	12
State Assembly (128 members)	Roscoe Conkling	95	William Dorsheimer	23	Peter Cooper	2

Note: The votes were cast on January 21, but both Houses met in a joint session on January 22 to compare nominations, and declare the result.

Pennsylvania

Senator J. Donald Cameron

In Pennsylvania, the election was held January 20, 1879. J. Donald Cameron was re-elected by the Pennsylvania General Assembly to the United States Senate.^[11]

After Sen. Simon Cameron resigned from office, his son J. Donald Cameron was elected by the General Assembly, consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate, in 1877 to serve the remainder of the unexpired term, which was to expire on March 4, 1879. The Pennsylvania General Assembly convened on January 20, 1879, to elect a Senator to serve the term beginning on March 4, 1879. The results of the vote of both houses combined are as follows:

State Legislature Results^[11]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	J. Donald Cameron (Inc.)	135	53.78
	Democratic	Hiester Clymer	92	36.65
	Greenback	Daniel Agnew	16	6.37
	Republican	Edward McPherson	3	1.20
	Republican	Russell Thayer	1	0.40
	Republican	Galusha A. Grow	1	0.40
	N/A	Not voting	3	1.20
Totals			251	100.00%

Notes

^ as Democratic Caucus Chair
^ as Republican Conference Chair

References

^ "17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Direct Election of U.S. Senators (1913)". National Archives and Records Administration. February 8, 2022.
^ "The Vote in the Senate". Santa Barbara Daily Press. Santa Barbara. December 18, 1877. Retrieved October 6, 2024.
^ "THE FLORIDA SENATORSHIP". The New York Times. January 22, 1879. p. 1.
^ "IL US Senate". OurCampaigns.com. December 4, 2009. Retrieved October 31, 2019., citing Chicago Tribune.
^ ^a ^b Clark, p. 185.
^ "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Jan 19, 1878". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
^ Thompson, p. 262.
^ "Our Campaigns - MD US Senate Race - Jan 19, 1878". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
^ State Senator Goebel refused to caucus with any of the parties, but voted for Conkling at the election.
^ DeWitt Clinton West (1824-1880), of Lowville, assemblyman 1853
^ ^a ^b "U.S. Senate Election - 20 January 1879" (PDF). Wilkes University. Retrieved December 22, 2013.