1918 United States Senate special election in Wisconsin

none List of United States senators from Wisconsin 1918 United States House of Representatives elections in Wisconsin March 2026 September 2023 1918 United States Senate special election in Wisconsin Wisconsin 1913 presidential no 1914 United States Senate election in Wisconsin 1914 1920 United States Senate election in Wisconsin 1920 x136px April 2, 1918 LENROOT, IRWIN L. SENATOR LCCN2016857277 (cropped).jpg Irvine Lenroot Republican Party (US) 163,983 38.73% File:Joseph E. Davies (cropped).jpg Joseph Davies Democratic Party (US) 148,923 35.12% File:Victor L. Berger.jpg Victor Berger Socialist Party of America 110,487 26.09% U.S. senator Paul O. Husting Democratic Party (US) Irvine Lenroot Republican Party (US) 1918 Wisconsin Senate special election results map by county.svg 250px County resultsLenroot: #ffc8cd 30–40% #ffb2b2 40–50% #e27f7f 50–60% #d75d5d 60–70%Davies: #bdd3ff 30–40% #a5b0ff 40–50% #7996e2 50–60%Berger: #ffcca9 30–40% #ffb580 40–50% #ff9a50 50–60% The 1918 United States Senate special election in Wisconsin was held on April 2, 1918. Incumbent Democrat Senator Paul O. Husting was killed in a hunting accident the previous year. Republican U.S. Representative Irvine Lenroot defeated Democratic Federal Trade Commission Chairman Joseph E. Davies and Socialist former Congressman Victor L. Berger. Primary elections were held on March 19.The Wisconsin Blue Book. 1919 https://search.library.wisc.edu/digital/AHJ36XSBOIV4J28N wisc.edu 45 26 Sep 2023 Davies easily defeated progressive reformer Charles McCarthy for the Democratic nomination, while Lenroot narrowly defeated James Thompson, a progressive district attorney and ally of Senator Robert M. La Follette, for the Republican nomination by a margin of less than three thousand votes. Background Incumbent Senator Paul O. Husting was shot and killed by his brother Gustav in a hunting accident on October 21, 1917. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/10/22/102368909.pdf Husting is Killed by Brother in Hunt The New York Times 22 Oct 1917 26 Sep 2023 subscription Husting had been elected in 1914 and his term in office was set to expire in 1921. A special election to complete Husting's unexpired term was scheduled for April 2, 1918. Although Governor Emanuel L. Philipp had the power under Wisconsin law to appoint a temporary successor until one could be duly elected, the seat remained vacant until the election. The election held national importance because following Husting's death, the United States Senate was composed of 48 Republicans and 47 Democrats. Thus, whichever party won the Wisconsin special election would control the Senate for the remainder of the 65th United States Congress.Republicans would retain their majority with a victory, while Democrats would gain an effective majority by virtue of the tiebreaking vote of Vice President Thomas R. Marshall. The election was also held during wartime, as the United States had formally entered into World War I on April 6, 1917, and major U.S. operations in Europe were set to begin in the summer of 1918. Wisconsin, a state long defined by its progressive politics and home to a large ethnically German population, had been branded a "hotbed of sedition."https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS2639 Wisconsin Historical Society Victor Berger Campaign Banner Wisconsin Historical Museum Object – Feature Story 1 May 2008 26 Sep 2023 Democratic primary Candidates Joseph E. Davies, chair of the Federal Trade Commission Charles McCarthy, progressive author of the Wisconsin Idea and aide to Herbert Hoover Campaign Joseph E. Davies ran at the personal request of President Woodrow Wilson, who hoped to win the seat and thus control of the Senate for his party. Davies, who had run Wilson's campaign in the Midwest in 1916, resigned from the new Federal Trade Commission to join the race. MacLean Elizabeth Kimball Joseph E. Davies: Envoy to the Soviets Praeger Publishers Westport, CT 1992 0-275-93580-9 9–12 Results 1918 Democratic U.S. Senate special primary Democratic Party (US) Joseph E. Davies 57,282 80.60% Democratic Party (US) Charles McCarthy 13,784 19.40% 71,066 100.00% Republican primary Candidates Irvine Lenroot, U.S. Representative from Superior James Thompson (Wisconsin politician) James Thompson no James Thompson (politiker), former La Crosse County district attorney Results 1918 Republican U.S. Senate special primaryThe Wisconsin Blue Book. 1919 https://search.library.wisc.edu/digital/AHJ36XSBOIV4J28N wisc.edu 45 26 Sep 2023 Republican Party (US) Irvine Lenroot 73,186 50.84% Republican Party (US) James Thompson (Wisconsin politician) James Thompson no James Thompson (politiker) 70,772 49.16% 143,958 100.00% Socialist primary thumb|right|Campaign poster for Congressman Victor L. Berger Candidates Victor Berger, former U.S. Representative from Milwaukee Campaign Berger, a leader of the Socialist Party in Milwaukee and of its national pragmatic wing, faced no opposition from within his party for the nomination for Senator. For him, most of the primary campaign was focused on opposition from federal law enforcement. Berger dismissed the war as "a capitalist war caused chiefly by the struggle between Great Britain and Germany for the world market" and published several editorials opposing American entry in his newspaper, the Milwaukee Leader. In the fall of 1917, federal authorities revoked the Leader's second-class mailing privileges. Shortly before the primary in February, Berger and three other Socialists were indicted for alleged violations of the Espionage Act. Nevertheless, he remained in the race and advanced to the general election. Results 1918 Socialist U.S. Senate special primaryThe Wisconsin Blue Book. 1919 https://search.library.wisc.edu/digital/AHJ36XSBOIV4J28N wisc.edu 45 26 Sep 2023 Socialist Party (US) Victor Berger 38,564 100.00% 38,564 100.00% General election Candidates Irvine Lenroot, U.S. Representative from Superior (Republican) Joseph E. Davies, chair of the Federal Trade Commission (Democratic) Victor L. Berger, former U.S. Representative from Milwaukee (Socialist) Anthony J. Benjamin (Prohibition) Campaign Berger ran on the Socialist platform with his calls for protection of "freedom of speech, freedom of press and freedom of assemblage," which received increased attention in light of his indictment. His Socialist platform also called for "an early, general, lasting and democratic peace," "compelling the profiteers of the war to pay the cost of the war," and "national ownership of trusts and ... public ownership of public utilities." Results 1918 United States Senate special election in WisconsinThe Wisconsin Blue Book. 1919 https://search.library.wisc.edu/digital/AHJ36XSBOIV4J28N wisc.edu 26 Sep 2023 Republican Party (US) Irvine Lenroot 163,983 38.73 Democratic Party (US) Joseph E. Davies 148,923 35.12 Socialist Party of America Victor L. Berger 110,487 26.09 Prohibition Party Anthony J. Benjamin 233 0.06 Write-in Scattering 371 0.06 15,060 3.61 423,997 100.00 Republican Party (US) Democratic Party (US) References 1918 Wisconsin United States Senate Wisconsin 1918 Wisconsin 1918 United States Senate 1918