The 1854 New York state election was held on November 7, 1854, to elect the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, the

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

, a

Canal Commissioner The Commission to Explore a Route for a Canal to Lake Erie and Report, known as the Erie Canal Commission, was a body created by the New York State Legislature in 1810 to plan the Erie Canal. In 1817 a ''Canal Fund'' led by ''Commissioners of the C ...

and an Inspector of State Prisons, as well as all members of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

History

The National Democratic (in the press referred to as Hards) state convention met in July and nominated Greene Bronson for governor as well as candidates for the other down-ballot offices. They informed the nominees by letter on July 12 of their nominations. Their letters of acceptance were published on September 11 in the ''

New-York Daily Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. The Democratic (in the press referred to as Softs) state convention met on September 6 at

Wieting Hall The Wieting Opera House was a performance hall in Syracuse, New York, that hosted operas, films, and other performances from 1852 to 1930. Initially built by John Wieting in 1852 as Wieting Hall, the building burnt down in 1856. He rebuilt it t ...

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

. Lorenzo B. Shepard was Temporary Chairman until the choice of William H. Ludlow as President. The convention appointed a Democratic State Central Committee which included John Cochrane and

Horatio Ballard Horatio Ballard (August 1803 – October 8, 1879) was an American lawyer and politician who was New York Secretary of State from January 1, 1862, to December 31, 1863. Life He was born in Homer, New York in 1803 and educated in the Pompey and Cor ...

, and then adjourned. On September 7, the convention passed a resolution approving the

Kansas–Nebraska Act The Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 () was a territorial organic act that created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. It was drafted by Democratic Senator Stephen A. Douglas, passed by the 33rd United States Congress, and signed into law by ...

, which led to the eventual withdrawal of delegates

Preston King Preston King may refer to: * Preston King (politician) (1806–1865), American politician * Preston King (academic) (born 1936), American academic * Preston King (mayor) Dr Preston King (1862-1943) was the Mayor of Bath in 1913 and 1917–18. ...

Charles G. Myers Charles G. Myers (1810 – December 27, 1881) was an American lawyer and politician. Life Myers was born in 1810 in Madrid, St. Lawrence County, New York. He attended St. Lawrence Academy in Potsdam. In 1825, he began to study law in the office of ...

, Abijah Mann,

Philip Dorsheimer Philip Dorsheimer (April 15, 1797 – April 11, 1868) was a German born American politician. Early life Dorsheimer was born on April 15, 1797 in Wöllstein, then in the Mont-Tonnerre Department, which is now in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. C ...

and few more Barnburners, all of whom would be the next year among the founders of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

. Governor Horatio Seymour was re-nominated "by acclamation" with a few contrary votes. William H. Ludlow was nominated for Lieutenant Governor on the first ballot (vote: Ludlow 234, Philip H. Crook 28, Oakley 14,

Albert Lester Albert Lester (c. 1803 – March 14, 1867) was an American lawyer and politician. Life Lester removed from Litchfield, Connecticut, to Canandaigua. He was a Democratic member of the New York State Senate (7th D.) from 1844 to 1847, sitting in t ...

Isaiah Rynders Captain Isaiah Rynders (1804 – January 3, 1885) was an American businessman, sportsman, underworld figure and political organizer for Tammany Hall. Founder of the ''Empire Club'', a powerful political organization in New York during the mid ...

2, Preston King 2). Jason Clark was nominated for Canal Commissioner by acclamation. W. R. Andrews was nominated for Inspector of State Prisons on the first ballot (vote: Andrews 92, Amos Pilsbury 56, Henry Storms ncumbent27). The Free-Soil Democratic state convention met on September 25 in

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

. The Anti-Nebraska state convention met on September 26 in Auburn. Myron H. Clark was nominated for Governor by acclamation. Henry J. Raymond was nominated for Lieutenant Governor on the first ballot (Raymond 127, Bradford R. Wood 84). After this vote, a minority of about 20 seceded from the convention and re-assembled at the Court House and nominated their own ticket. The Temperance state convention met on September 27 in Auburn. Myron H. Clark was nominated for Governor by acclamation. Henry J. Raymond was nominated for Lieutenant Governor on the first ballot (Raymond 163, Bradford R. Wood 112). The Liberty state convention met on September 28 at the Market Hall in Syracuse. The Anti-Rent state convention met on October 26 at Beardsley's Hall in Albany.

Results

Due to the split of the Democratic Party, the whole Whig ticket was elected. The American Party (ridiculed and referred to as the Know Nothings in the press) showed surprising strength. Myron H. Clark won this election with the lowest percentage in any New York gubernatorial election. The incumbent Governor Seymour was defeated, the incumbent Fitzhugh was re-elected. 82 Whigs, 26 Softs, 16 Hards and 3 Temperance man were elected for the session of 1855 to the

. "Know Nothings are sprinkled miscellaneously among Whigs, Hards and Softs; and exactly how many there are of these gentry in the Assembly Nobody Knows."Result and comment i
''The Whig Almanac 1855''
compiled by

Horace Greeley Horace Greeley (February 3, 1811 – November 29, 1872) was an American newspaper editor and publisher who was the founder and newspaper editor, editor of the ''New-York Tribune''. Long active in politics, he served briefly as a congressm ...

of the ''

New-York Tribune The ''New-York Tribune'' was an American newspaper founded in 1841 by editor Horace Greeley. It bore the moniker ''New-York Daily Tribune'' from 1842 to 1866 before returning to its original name. From the 1840s through the 1860s it was the domi ...

Notes

Sources

*Result i
"Official Canvass 1854"
''

''. December 21, 1854. pp. 6–7. (The votes of Wood, Goodell, Ward, Harrington, Wheaton, Macomber and Shapcott were stated among the "scattering votes".) *Result i
''The Tribune Almanac 1855''

History

Results

Notes

Sources

See also