The 1792–93 United States Senate elections were held on various dates in various states, coinciding with President

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

's unanimous re-election. As these

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

elections were prior to the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913, senators were chosen by

state legislatures A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Stat ...

. Senators were elected over a wide range of time throughout 1792 and 1793, and a seat may have been filled months late or remained vacant due to legislative deadlock. In these elections, terms were up for the ten senators in Class 2. Formal organized political parties had yet to form in the United States, but two political factions were present: The coalition of Senators who supported George Washington's administration were known as the Pro-Administration Party, and the Senators against him as the

Anti-Administration Party The Anti-Administration Party was an informal political faction in the United States led by James Madison and Thomas Jefferson that opposed policies of then Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton in the first term of US President George Wa ...

Results summary

Senate party division, 3rd Congress (1793–1795) * Majority party: Pro-Administration Party (16) * Minority party: Anti-Administration Party (13) * Other parties: 0 * Total seats: 30 * Vacant: 1 (later filled by Pro-Administration)

Change in composition

Note: There were no political parties in this Congress. Members are informally grouped into factions of similar interest, based on an analysis of their voting record. Virginia's elections are considered a single race here.

Before the elections

After the June 1792 admission of Kentucky.

Results of the election

Beginning of the next Congress

Two Pro-Administration senators (

Benjamin Hawkins Benjamin Hawkins (August 15, 1754June 6, 1816) was an American planter, statesman and a U.S. Indian agent He was a delegate to the Continental Congress and a United States Senator from North Carolina, having grown up among the planter elite. ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

and

John Langdon John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

) changed to Anti-Administration. The vacant seat in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

was filled February 28, 1793 by an Anti-Administration senator.

Race summaries

Except if/when noted, the number following candidates is the whole number vote(s), not a percentage.

Elections during the 2nd Congress

In these elections, the winner was seated before March 4, 1793; ordered by election date.

Races leading to the 3rd Congress

In these regular elections, the winner was seated on March 4, 1793; ordered by state. All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.

Election in 1793 during the 3rd Congress

In this special election, the winner was seated after March 4, 1793, the beginning of the next Congress.

Connecticut (special)

Delaware

Georgia

One-term

Anti-Federalist Anti-Federalism was a late-18th century political movement that opposed the creation of a stronger U.S. federal government and which later opposed History of the United States Constitution#1788 ratification, the ratification of the 1787 United St ...

William Few was defeated by fellow Anti-Federalist, James Jackson. Jackson won 24 votes in the

Georgia House of Representatives The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) of the U.S. state of Georgia. There are currently 180 elected members. Republicans have had a majority in the chamber since 2005. T ...

and 11 in the State Senate for a combined total of 35. Few won 3 in the House and 2 in the Senate for a combined total of 5. Jackson took office as a member of the

3rd United States Congress The 3rd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met at Congress Hall in Philadelphia, Penn ...

on March 4, 1793. He would later resign in 1795 to run for his state's legislature.

Kentucky

Incumbent

John Brown John Brown most often refers to: *John Brown (abolitionist) (1800–1859), American who led an anti-slavery raid in Harpers Ferry, Virginia in 1859 John Brown or Johnny Brown may also refer to: Academia * John Brown (educator) (1763–1842), Ir ...

, who had previously been elected in a special election was easily reelected with no opposition and 100% of votes from the legislators.

Maryland (special)

Richard Potts Richard Potts (July 19, 1753November 26, 1808) was an American politician and jurist. Early life and career Potts was born in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, and lived there until he moved with his family to the Barbados Islands in 1757. He returne ...

won election to fill the seat vacated by Charles Carroll over Josh Hoskins Stone by a margin of 21.84%, or 19 votes, for the Class 1 seat.

Massachusetts

New Hampshire

Incumbent U.S. Senator

Paine Wingate Paine Wingate (May 14, 1739March 7, 1838) was an American preacher, farmer, and statesman from Stratham, New Hampshire. He served New Hampshire in the Continental Congress and both the United States Senate and House of Representatives. Early ...

was not reelected. The

New Hampshire General Court The General Court of New Hampshire is the bicameral state legislature of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The lower house is the New Hampshire House of Representatives with 400 members. The upper house is the New Hampshire Senate with 24 membe ...

instead elected

Federalist The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters called themselves ''Federalists''. History Europe federation In Europe, proponents of de ...

Samuel Livermore Samuel Livermore (May 14, 1732May 18, 1803) was a U.S. politician. He was a U.S. Senator from New Hampshire from 1793 to 1801 and served as President pro tempore of the United States Senate in 1796 and again in 1799. Life and career Livermore ...

, a U.S. Representative, to the seat. Livermore, like his fellow senator,

, would go on to serve as President Pro-Tempore during this term.

New Jersey

North Carolina

Pro-Administration Samuel Johnston lost re-election to Anti-Administration

Alexander Martin Alexander Martin (October 17, 1740November 2, 1807) was the fourth and seventh Governor of North Carolina from 1782 to 1784 and from 1789 to 1792. As a delegate to the Constitutional Convention in 1787, Martin is considered a Founding Father ...

for the class 2 seat. The other senator,

, switched his support from Pro- to Anti-Administration.

Pennsylvania (special)

There was a special election on February 28, 1793, for the Class 1 seat from Pennsylvania. Incumbent William Maclay's term had ended on March 3, 1791, but the legislature failed to elect a successor due to a disagreement on the procedure to be followed in the election. The seat remained vacant until Albert Gallatin was elected by the

Pennsylvania General Assembly The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times (1682–1776), the legislature was known as the Pennsylvania ...

to the seat during this election. Upon agreement between the two houses of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the House of Representatives and the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, regarding the procedure to elect a new Senator, an election was finally held on February 28, 1793. The results of the vote of both houses combined are as follows: On February 28, 1794, the Senate determined that Gallatin did not satisfy the citizenship requirement for service and he was removed from office. He later went on to serve in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

. Gallatin was replaced in the Senate by a special election in 1794.

Rhode Island

South Carolina

Virginia

Anti-Administration senator Richard Henry Lee resigned October 8, 1792, just before the March 3, 1793 end of term. Anti-administration John Taylor of Caroline was elected October 18, 1792 to finish Lee's term and then re-elected in 1793 to the next term.

Special

Regular

References

External links

Party Division in the Senate, 1789–present
via Senate.gov {{DEFAULTSORT:1792-93 United States Senate elections