1850–51 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

none January 2025 September 2023 1850–51 Massachusetts gubernatorial election Massachusetts presidential No 1849 Massachusetts gubernatorial election 1849 1851 Massachusetts gubernatorial election 1851 1850 11 11 (popular)1851 1 11 (legislative) x150px Popular election Senate vote File:George S. Boutwell c1851 (cropped).png George S. Boutwell Democratic Party (United States) 32 36,023 29.68% File:Stephen Clarendon Phillips (1).png Stephen C. Phillips Free Soil Party 0 27,636 22.77% File:George Nixon Briggs (cropped) (1).jpg George N. Briggs Whig Party (United States) Did not qualify 56.778 46.78% 1850 Massachusetts gubernatorial election results map by county.svg Popular election results by countyBriggs: #d7c477 40–50% #c0a32f 50–60% #a88600 60–70%Phillips: #ddf0ca 30–40% Governor George N. Briggs Whig Party (United States) George S. Boutwell Democratic Party (United States) The 1850–51 Massachusetts gubernatorial election consisted of an initial popular held on November 11, 1850 November 11, 1850 Political Intelligence https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030313/1850-11-11/ed-1/seq-1/ The New York herald New York, N.Y. 1 31 October 2022 that was followed by a legislative vote that was conducted on January 11, 1851. It saw the election of Democratic Party nominee George S. Boutwell. The ultimate task of electing the governor had been placed before the Massachusetts General Court because no candidate received the majority of the vote required for a candidate to be elected through the popular election. Incumbent governor George N. Briggs, a member of the Whig Party, was running for an eighth term in office. Despite winning a plurality in the general election with a large lead over the other candidates, he did not win election because he failed to secure the outright majority required to be elected through the popular vote and ultimately did not advance to the subsequent legislative vote when the House did not select him as a candidate for consideration by the Senate. In the legislative vote, the state's Democratic Party-Free Soil Party coalition, who combined held a majority in the legislature, successfully partnered to elect the Democratic nominee, businessman George S. Boutwell. Background In 1848, the new abolitionist and pro-labor Free Soil Party, which drew support from both Whigs and Democrats and members of the Liberty Party, was founded. Whig George N. Briggs won the 1848 and 1849 elections with a plurality of the popular vote. As no candidate received a majority in either race, it was the majority-Whig legislature that returned Briggs to office each time. In their respective 1849 conventions, Democrats embraced anti-slavery resolutions and the Free Soilers adopting reformist planks on state issues, though a formal anti-Whig alliance was precluded by their differences on national issues.Mulkern 1990 29 In 1850, the United States Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act and Compromise of 1850, increasing anti-slavery agitation in Massachusetts and energizing opposition to the remaining Whigs, who tended to be conservatives who either reconciled with the institution of slavery or as textile manufacturers even directly profited from cheap cotton and in turn, slave labor.Mulkern 1990 30Hart 1927 473–76 During his failed campaign for governor in 1849, Democratic nominee George S. Boutwell became acquainted with Free Soil Party leaders Charles Sumner and Henry Wilson.Brown 1989 27–28 Despite opposition from hardline members of their parties, the leaders resolved to form an alliance to unseat the Whig establishment.Hart 1927 473–76 As part of this agreement, Free Soilers agreed to support Boutwell for governor and fellow Democrat Nathaniel Prentice Banks for Speaker of the Massachusetts House, while Sumner would be elected U.S. Senator and Wilson would become President of the Massachusetts Senate.Hart 1927 476–78 Both parties would run a unified legislative ticket but continue to run opposing tickets for federal and local office.Mulkern 1990 31 The coalition agreement met opposition from some more conservative ex-Whig Free Soilers, such as Charles Francis Adams, Samuel Hoar, Richard Henry Dana Jr., John Palfrey, and gubernatorial nominee Stephen Clarendon Phillips, all of whom preferred a narrow anti-slavery focus. These men either outright opposed the Democratic reform agenda or argued that it distracted from that mission.Mulkern 1990 32 General election Candidates George N. Briggs, incumbent governor since 1844 (Whig) George S. Boutwell, Groton businessman and nominee for governor in 1849 (Democratic) Francis Cogswell (independent) Stephen C. Phillips, former Whig U.S. representative and mayor of Salem (Free Soil) Campaign The coalition power-sharing agreement apportioning state offices was not made public knowledge during the campaign.Mulkern 1990 33–34 Though the battle lines were redrawn, the campaign was fought largely on familiar class issues. Whigs assailed the coalition triumvirate of Boutwell, Wilson, and Banks as radically plebeian, while the coalition pressed for labor reform and decried the textile magnates as oppressive. Though the Whigs fought a traditional campaign focused on securing a majority of the popular vote, the coalition worked behind the scenes to court country town voters in the Boston area.Mulkern 1990 33–34 Results 1850 Massachusetts gubernatorial electionDubin Michael J. United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1776-1860: The Official Results by State and County McFarland & Company 2003 9780786414390 Jefferson 116–117 Whig Party (United States) George N. Briggs (incumbent) 56,778 46.78% 2.45 Democratic Party (United States) George S. Boutwell 36,023 29.68% 2.24 Free Soil Party Stephen C. Phillips 27,636 22.77% 0.29 Independent (politician) Francis Cogswell 689 0.57% N/A 239 0.20% 0.02 121,365 100.00% The coalition swept to large majorities in both houses of the General Court.Mulkern 1990 33–34 Legislative vote The Massachusetts House of Representatives certified the popular returns on January 12. The House voted to nominate Boutwell and Phillips for consideration by the Senate. On the first House ballot, Boutwell defeated Briggs 218–171. On the second, Phillips defeated Briggs 216–170. In the Massachusetts State Senate, Boutwell was elected unanimously with 32 votes with three blanks.The Massachusetts Register for the Year 1851 https://archive.org/details/massachusettsreg1852bost/page/n43/ 1852 34 Aftermath Upon their entry to office and apportionment of state offices, the coalition faced heavy blowback. Future U.S. Supreme Court Justice Benjamin R. Curtis, then the president of the Massachusetts Bar Association, circulated a letter calling for criminal conspiracy charges against Sumner, Wilson, and Boutwell; most Whig legislators signed the letter, but the party declined to call for the election to be overturned.Mulkern 1990 33–34 1851 United States Senate election in Massachusetts Wilson and Banks were also elevated to Speaker and Senate President, but Sumner's election to the U.S. Senate was far more contentious due to opposition by conservative Democrats led by former Whig Caleb Cushing,Mulkern 1990 35 who joined with the Whig minority.Hart 1927 476–78 The election took several months to reach a conclusion, with Sumner prevailing by only one vote in the House. Sumner blamed Boutwell's failure to intercede for his difficulty and would continue to blame Boutwell for the coalition's eventual collapse.Brown 1989 36–37 See also 1850 Massachusetts legislature References Bibliography Brown Thomas H George Sewall Boutwell, Human Rights Advocate Groton, MA Groton Historical Society 1989 9780866100687 21376428 Hart Albert Bushnell Commonwealth History of Massachusetts The States History Company New York 1927 1543273 IV 473–76 The Know-Nothing Party in Massachusetts: The Rise and Fall of a People's Movement Mulkern John R. https://books.google.com/books?id=KyISxp0yfG0C 1990 1-55553-071-0 Northeastern University Press gubernatorial Category:Massachusetts gubernatorial elections Massachusetts Category:November 1850 Massachusetts gub gub