1813 United States Senate election in New York
Elections in New York State |
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The 1813 United States Senate election in New York was held on February 2, 1813, by the
Background
John Smith had been re-elected in 1807 to this seat, and his term would expire on March 3, 1813.
At the State election in April 1812, a Federalist majority was elected to the Assembly, but five of the eight State Senators up for renewal were Democratic-Republicans. Due to the public indignation after the prorogation of the State Legislature by Governor
Candidates
Ex-U.S. Senator Rufus King (in office 1789–1796) was the candidate of the Federalist Party.
State Senator James W. Wilkin, a Clintonian, was the candidate of the Democratic-Republican Party.
The incumbent U.S. Senator John Smith received three scattering votes.
Result
Rufus King was nominated by the Assembly, James W. Wilkin by the Senate. The houses of the State Legislature then proceeded to a joint ballot and King was elected with a small majority. In theory, the Democratic-Republicans had a majority of 7 votes on joint ballot, but the absence of 4 senators and 8 assemblymen became significant. In 1817, Wilkin stated, in a letter to DeWitt Clinton, his belief that his defeat in 1813 was due to a bargain which connected the Federalists vote for the incorporation of the Bank of America in June 1812 to the help by some interested Democratic-Republicans to elect the next U.S. Senator. (see Hammond, pg. 344)
Office | House | Federalist | Democratic-Republican | Democratic-Republican | |||
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U.S. Senator
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State Senate (32 members) | Rufus King | 8 | James W. Wilkin | 17 | John Smith
|
3 |
State Assembly (109 members) | Rufus King | 55 | James W. Wilkin | 44 | |||
Joint ballot (141 members) | Rufus King | 68 | James W. Wilkin | 61 |
Obs.: Three blank votes were cast in the joint ballot, and four Senators were absent. Besides, the numbers of the cast votes indicate that 10 assemblymen did not vote in the Assembly, and 5 in the joint ballot.
See also
Sources
- The New York Civil List compiled in 1858 (see: pg. 63 for U.S. Senators; pg. 121 for State Senators 1812–13; pg. 186f for Members of Assembly 1812–13)
- Members of the 13th United States Congress
- History of Political Parties in the State of New-York by Jabez Delano Hammond (pages 343f)
- Election result at Tufts University Library project "A New Nation Votes"