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1870–71 United States Senate elections

← 1868 & 1869 Dates vary by state (And other dates for special elections) 1872 & 1873 →
25 of the 70 (4 vacant)/74 seats in the United States Senate (with special elections) 36 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Henry B. Anthony Party Republican Democratic Leader since March 4, 1863 Leader's seat Rhode Island Last election 57 seats 9 seats Seats before 63 11 Seats won 17 7 Seats after 58 14 Seat change 4 3 Seats up 21 4
Results of the elections:      Democratic gain      Democratic hold      Republican hold      Legislature failed to elect
Majority Party before election Republican Elected Majority Party Republican

The 1870–71 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 1870 and 1871, and a seat may have been filled months late or remained vacant due to legislative deadlock. In these elections, terms were up for the senators in Class 2.

The Republican Party lost five seats, though it still retained an overwhelming majority. In advance of these elections, the last four seceded states were readmitted to the Senate.

Mississippian Hiram Rhodes Revels became the first African American to be elected as a U.S. Senator and become a member of Congress.

In Georgia, Foster Blodgett was elected and presented his credentials as Senator-elect, but the Senate declared him not elected.

In Virginia, Republican John F. Lewis and Democrat John W. Johnston were elected on January 26, 1870, to fill seats that had been vacant since 1864 and 1865.

Results summary

Senate party division, 42nd Congress (1871–1873)

• Majority party: Republican (55)
• Minority party: Democratic (14)
• Other parties: Liberal Republican (1)
• Vacant: (4)
• Total seats: 74

Change in Senate composition

By March 30, 1870

After the readmission of Virginia, Texas, and Mississippi, and the special elections in Iowa and Maine.

Before the elections

Including the February 1871 readmission of Georgia.

Result of the elections

Beginning of the next Congress

Race summaries

Special elections during the 41st Congress

In these elections, the winners were seated during 1870 or in 1871 before March 4; ordered by election date.

Races leading to the 42nd Congress

In these regular elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1871; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.

Elections during the 42nd Congress

In this election, the winner was elected in 1871 after March 4.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Virginia (Class 2)	Vacant			Legislature had failed to elect. Previous incumbent re-elected March 15, 1871. Democratic gain.	▌ Y John W. Johnston (Democratic) [data missing]
Georgia (Class 2)	Vacant			Foster Blodgett (R) had presented credentials as Senator-elect, but the Senate declared him not elected. New senator elected November 14, 1871. Democratic gain.	▌Y Thomas M. Norwood (Democratic) [data missing]

West Virginia

1871 United States Senate election in West Virginia

← 1865 January 31, 1871 1877 →
Needed to win: Majority of votes cast in each House of the Legislature 54 votes cast in the House; 28 votes needed 21 votes cast in the Senate; 11 votes needed
Candidate Henry G. Davis James H. Brown Party Democratic Republican House vote 39 votes 72.2% 15 votes 27.8% Senate vote 14 votes 66.7% 7 votes 33.3%
U.S. senator before election Waitman T. Willey Republican Elected U.S. Senator Henry G. Davis Democratic

Henry G. Davis, a Democratic state legislator, was elected to replace outgoing Republican incumbent Waitman T. Willey. Davis won the Democratic caucus vote over former legislators Daniel Lamb and Benjamin H. Smith. Davis' victory was attributed to widespread support throughout the state, as well as among party leaders. Nearly all of Lamb's votes, meanwhile, were localized to the Northern Panhandle.

See also

• 1870 United States elections
  • 1870–71 United States House of Representatives elections
• 41st United States Congress
• 42nd United States Congress

Notes

1. as Republican Conference Chair

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. "Facts & Milestones". United States Senate.
3. ^ Clark, Dan Elbert (1913). "History of Senatorial Elections in Iowa". Iowa. pp. 150–151.
4. Segar was not seated on the premise that the Union-friendly legislature was illegitimate despite having seated his predecessor based credentials from the same legislature. In reality, the Senate refused because it did not want to set a precedent for easing reentry of Confederate states. See "Musical Chairs (1861–1869)". United States Senate. Retrieved March 20, 2009.
5. "Musical Chairs (1861–1869)". United States Senate. Retrieved March 20, 2009.
6. "HAMILTON, Morgan Calvin - Biographical Information". bioguide.congress.gov. Retrieved October 31, 2019."HAMILTON, Morgan Calvin - Biographical Information". bioguide.congress.gov. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
7. "Our Campaigns - MO US Senate - Special Election Race - Jan 20, 1871". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
8. University of Minnesota Libraries, University of Minnesota. "1871 Minnesota U.S. Senate Special Election". Minnesota Historical Election Archive. Archived from the original on 2021-08-24. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
9. University of Minnesota Libraries, University of Minnesota. "1871 Minnesota U.S. Senate Election". Minnesota Historical Election Archive. Archived from the original on 2021-08-24. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
10. "Nomination of H.G. Davis to be U.S. Senator". Wheeling Register. January 28, 1871 – via NewspaperArchive.
11. Journal of the House of Delegates of the State of West Virginia. West Virginia Legislature. January 31, 1871. pp. 78, 90.

External links

• "Party Division in the Senate, 1789-Present". United States Senate.
• Byrd, Robert C. (October 1, 1993). Wolff, Wendy (ed.). The Senate, 1789-1989: Historical Statistics, 1789-1992. United States Senate Historical Office (volume 4 Bicentennial ed.). U.S. Government Printing Office. ISBN 978-0-16-063256-3.
• Taft, George S. (1885). Compilation of Senate Election Cases from 1789 to 1885. United States Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

• 1870 United States Senate elections
• 1871 United States Senate elections