1863 Chicago mayoral election

none January 2025 September 2023 1863 Chicago mayoral election presidential no April 21, 1863 1862 1865 File:Francis-sherman (1).jpg Francis Cornwall Sherman Democratic Party (United States) 10,252 50.39% 1868LeadingMenBryan (1).jpg Thomas Barbour Bryan National Union Party (United States) 10,095 49.62% Mayor Francis Cornwall Sherman Democratic Party (United States) Francis Cornwall Sherman Democratic Party (United States) In the Chicago mayoral election of 1863, Democrat Francis Cornwall Sherman won reelection, defeating National Union nominee Thomas Barbour Bryan by an extremely narrow quarter percent margin. Background In 1862, Sherman had appointed a committee which recommended that Chicago pass a new city charter which would annex Bridgeport and Holstein, lengthen the terms for mayor, treasurer, collector, city attorney, and clerk of police each from one to two years. Ultimately, such a charter and measures came to pass before the 1863 mayoral election. This made 1863 the first mayoral election held to a two-year term. Since his 1862 mayoral victory, Sherman had, in October 1862, lost a congressional election to Isaac N. Arnold.Rogues, Rebels, And Rubber Stamps: The Politics Of The Chicago City Council, 1863 To The Present by Dick Simpson, Routledge, Mar 8, 2018 (page 30) The election was held on April 21.https://www.chipublib.org/mayor-francis-cornwall-sherman-biography/ Mayor Francis Cornwall Sherman Biography It was the third of four Chicago mayoral elections which took place during the course of the American Civil War. Local tensions between the two major parties were strong in the spring of 1863.Goodspeed Weston A. The History of Cook County, Illinois Feb 6, 2017 Jazzybee Verlag Alderman Charles C. P. Holden had introduced several resolutions which Sherman vetoed for being too partisan. Republicans sought to see Democrats provide greater support for war measures, while Democrats were critical of President Lincoln's handling of the war. At the time the Common Council's swing vote was Alderman Shimp, a Democrat voted with the Republicans. Nominations Democratic The Democratic Party renominated Mayor Sherman. National Union The National Union party nominated Thomas Barbour Bryan. He had previously been an unsuccessful candidate in the 1861 mayoral election. Names presented for balloting at the convention were Bryan, George W. Gage, and William Hoyt. After an informal ballot, Philip Wadsworth announced to the convention that Gage had authorized the withdrawal of his name, and offered his full support to the selection of Bryan as the party's nominee. + National Union convention ballotingThe Republican Union Convention https://www.newspapers.com/image/https://www.newspapers.com/image/466277568 April 18, 1863 Chicago Tribune 12 February 2025 April 17, 1863 Candidate Informalballot Formalballot Bryan 74 86 Gage 9 9 Hoyt 9 7 Total 92 93 After the balloting, the convention adopted a motion to make Gage's nomination unanimous. Campaigning Sherman's candidacy benefited immensely from the support of Irish and German voters from the newly annexed neighborhoods of the city. The Chicago Tribune characterized Sherman as being sound in his position on the war, but criticized his affiliation with the Chicago Times and copperheads. Bryan was a reluctant candidate, as was also the case when he ran in 1861. The Bridgeport ward of Chicago was nicknamed the "Egypt of Chicago". Democrats believed the ward would secure Sherman his margin of victory, a prediction which ultimately proved true. Results With the exception of the nullified March 1844 mayoral election, Sherman's margin of victory was the narrowest in Chicago mayoral election history. By winning this election, Sherman became the first individual to be elected to three terms as mayor of Chicago. In the Common Council elections held simultaneously, nineteen Democrats and twelve National Unionists were elected, with an additional seat being vacant. Nearly the entire Democratic ticket was elected by majorities between 250 and 300 votes. 1863 Chicago mayoral electionRogues, Rebels, And Rubber Stamps: The Politics Of The Chicago City Council, 1863 To The Present Portada; Dick Simpson Routledge, Mar 8, 2018 Democratic Party (United States) Francis Cornwall Sherman (incumbent) 10,252 50.39 National Union Party (United States) Thomas Barbour Bryan 10,095 49.62 20,347 100 Controversy With a narrow vote, Republicans claimed that the Democrats had won through electoral fraud. They appointed a committee to investigate, and Bryan notified Sherman that he would contest the result. Ultimately, Bryan did not contest. While he believed that he had received a majority of the legal votes, and was pressured by friends to contest the election he was not greatly enough concerned about the result of the election to pursue the process of contesting it.Biographical Sketches Of The Leading Men Of Chicago, written by the Best Talent of the Northwest 1868 Wilson & St. Clair, Publishers Chicago References collapsed Category:Mayoral elections in Chicago Chicago Chicago Category:1860s in Chicago Category:April 1863 in the United States