Arthur Byron Jenks (October 15, 1866 – December 14, 1947) was a

U.S. Representative 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 c ...

from

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 ...

. Born in

West Dennis, Massachusetts West Dennis is a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Dennis in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 2,242 at the 2010 census. Geography West Dennis is located in the southwest corner of the town of Dennis a ...

, Jenks attended public schools. He was employed as a shoe worker in 1881. He engaged in the shoe manufacturing business at

Manchester, New Hampshire Manchester is a city in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. It is the most populous city in New Hampshire. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 115,644. Manchester is, along with Nashua, one of two seats of New Hamp ...

from 1902 to 1930. He also became engaged in the banking business in 1917 in Manchester. He was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1934 to the

Seventy-fourth Congress The 74th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1935, ...

and in 1936 to the next Congress. In the 1936 election, Jenks first received a plurality of 550 votes, seemingly winning the contest, but after a recount the race was tied. Both Jenks and his opponent Democrat

Alphonse Roy Alphonse Roy (October 26, 1897 – October 5, 1967) was a U.S. Representative from New Hampshire. Born in Saint-Simon, Quebec, Canada, Roy moved to Manchester, New Hampshire, in 1901. He attended the parochial schools, then engaged in the re ...

appealed to the state ballot-law commission which considered more than 100 disputed ballots before declaring Roy the winner by 17 votes. Jenks brought forward 34 more ballots, which the commission included, making Jenks the winner. Jenks was certified the winner, but Roy contested the election at the United States House of Representatives. When the new House was sworn in, Jenks was told to "stand aside", but then he was sworn in immediately afterward, after the House passed a resolution allowing for it. Following two investigations by the House Committee on Elections it was decided that Roy had won the race by 20 votes. On June 9, 1938, more than a year after the election, the House voted that Jenks was not entitled to the seat and that Roy was. He served as delegate to the

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...

s in 1936 and 1940. He was served as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

in the

Seventy-fifth Congress The 75th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1937 ...

from January 3, 1937, until June 9, 1938, when he was succeeded by

, who contested his election. Jenks was elected as a Republican to the Seventy-sixth and Seventy-seventh Congresses (January 3, 1939 – January 3, 1943). He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1942. He resumed the banking business in Manchester until his death there on December 14, 1947. He was interred in Pine Grove Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jenks, Arthur Byron 1866 births 1947 deaths People from Dennis, Massachusetts Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Hampshire Members of the United States House of Representatives removed by contest