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1901 United States Senate special election in Pennsylvania
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March 2026
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The 1901 United States Senate special election in Pennsylvania was held on January 15, 1901, after the regularly scheduled legislative election in January—April 1899 failed to elect a Senator. Former Senator Matthew Quay, who had left the Senate for nearly two years because of the political stalemate, was again elected by the Pennsylvania General Assembly to the United States Senate.U.S. Senate Election - 1899 http://staffweb.wilkes.edu/harold.cox/sen/PaSen1899.pdf Wilkes University December 23, 2012U.S. Senate Election - 15 January 1901 http://staffweb.wilkes.edu/harold.cox/sen/PaSen1901.pdf Wilkes University December 23, 2012
Background
1899 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania
Republican Matthew Quay was re-elected by the Pennsylvania General Assembly, consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate, in the 1893 election. With Sen. Quay's term expiring on March 4, 1899, the General Assembly convened on January 18, 1899, to elect a Senator for the next term. Between January 18 and April 19, 1899, seventy-nine ballots were recorded in an attempt to elect a Senator. Instead, the legislature adjourned sine die without electing a Senator due to a dispute between Sen. Quay's political machine and an anti-Quay faction within the Republican Party, along with Democratic Party opposition.
Sen. Quay's term expired on March 4, 1899. Since a Senator had not been elected for the successive term, the seat was vacated. At the time, Quay was under indictment for misuse of funds. He was acquitted, after which Governor William Stone appointed Quay to the vacated Senate seat (a power the Governor did not legally have until the ratification of the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1913). The Senate refused to recognize Quay's appointment, and the seat remained vacant until a Senator could be officially elected (which would ultimately be Quay himself, after a nearly two-year hiatus). This incident, among others, would later be cited by supporters of the 17th Amendment, which mandated the direct election of U.S. Senators.
Results
The Pennsylvania General Assembly convened on January 15, 1901, for a special election to elect a senator to serve out the remainder of the term that began on March 4, 1899. The results of the vote of both houses combined are as follows:
State legislature resultsPA US Senate - Special Election http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=345429 OurCampaigns December 22, 2012
Republican Party (United States)
Matthew Quay
130
51.18
Democratic Party (United States)
James M. Guffey
56
22.05
Republican Party (United States)
John Dalzell
34
13.39
Republican Party (United States)
Charles E. Smith
12
4.72
Republican Party (United States)
George Franklin Huff
7
2.76
Republican Party (United States)
John Stewart
3
1.18
Socialist Party of America
John H. Harris
1
0.39
Republican Party (United States)
William McConway
1
0.39
Republican Party (United States)
Henry C. McCormick
1
0.39
Republican Party (United States)
Marlin Olmsted
1
0.39
Prohibition Party
Silas C. Swallow
1
0.39
Republican Party (United States)
Charles Tubbs
1
0.39
N/A
Not voting
6
2.36
|-
|-bgcolor="#EEEEEE"
| colspan="3" align="right" | Totals
| align="right" | 254
| align="right" | 100.00%
|}
See also
1900–01 United States Senate elections
References
External links
Pennsylvania Election Statistics: 1682-2006 from the Wilkes University Election Statistics Project
1899 Pennsylvania U.S. Senate election (Class I) 1901 1905
Pennsylvania special
1901 special
Pennsylvania 1901 special
United States Senate 1901 special
United States Senate special
Pennsylvania 1901