1788 Massachusetts Senate election

Elections to the Massachusetts Senate September 2023 Elections to the Massachusetts Senate were held in 1788 to elect 40 State Senators. Candidates were elected at the county level, with some counties electing multiple Senators. For election, a candidate needed the support of a majority of those voting. If a seat remained vacant because no candidate received such a majority, the Massachusetts General Court was empowered to fill it by a majority vote of its members. Apportionment The apportionment of seats by population was as follows: Barnstable County: 1 Berkshire County: 2 Bristol County: 3 Cumberland County: 1 Dukes and Nantucket Counties: 1 Essex County: 6 Hampshire County: 4 Lincoln County: 1 Middlesex County: 5 Plymouth County: 3 Suffolk County: 6 Worcester County: 5 York County: 2 Results Barnstable 1788 Barnstable Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Barnstable County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/tq57nr270, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA), Falmouth Town Records, The Boston Gazette (June 2, 1788) and The Salem Mercury (June 3, 1788). Solomon Freeman Unknown 231 50.55 Thomas Smith (incumbent) Unknown – – 457 100.00 Exact totals for Smith, the incumbent Senator, are unknown. Berkshire 1788 Berkshire Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Berkshire County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/0v8381066, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA), . William Whiting Unknown 833 58.21 Thompson J. Skinner (incumbent) Unknown 609 42.56 Elijah Dwight (incumbent) Unknown 576 40.25 1,431 100.00 William Williams, Ebenezer Pierce, John Bacon, and William Walker also received votes, though exact totals are unknown. Dwight was subsequently elected by the General Court. Bristol 1788 Bristol Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Bristol County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/qb98mg10p, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA). Holder Slocum (incumbent) Unknown 991 58.78 Phanuel Bishop (incumbent) Unknown 981 58.19 Abraham White Unknown 973 57.71 1,686 100.00 Thomas Durfee, Walter Spooner, and Elisha May also received votes, but their exact totals are unknown. Cumberland 1788 Cumberland Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Cumberland County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/s4655g81b, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA), The Boston Gazette (June 2, 1788) and The Salem Mercury (June 3, 1788). Josiah Thacher Unknown 396 61.30 All others Scattering 250 38.70 646 100.00 Dukes and Nantucket 1788 Dukes and Nantucket Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Dukes and Nantucket Counties https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/j098zb23s, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA), The Boston Gazette (June 2, 1788) and The Salem Mercury (June 3, 1788). Unknown Matthew Mayhew 95 100.00 95 100.00 Essex 1788 Essex Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Essex County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/4j03d022r, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA) and several newspapers. Tristram Dalton Federalist Party 2,053 79.11 Benjamin Goodhue Federalist Party 1,988 76.61 Azor Orne Federalist Party 1,980 76.30 Samuel Phillips Jr. Federalist Party 1,939 74.72 Stephen Choate Federalist Party 1,719 66.24 Samuel Holten Federalist Party 1,157 44.59 Jonathan Greenleaf Federalist Party 934 35.99 Peter Osgood Jr. Anti-Federalist – – Daniel Kilham Anti-Federalist – – Israel Hutchinson Anti-Federalist – – Aaron Wood Anti-Federalist – – John Manning Anti-Federalist – – Richard Ward Anti-Federalist – – 2,595 100.00 Exact totals for the Anti-Federalist ticket were not listed. Unaffiliated candidates Peter Coffin and John Choate also received votes, but their exact totals are unknown. Jonathan Greenleaf was subsequently elected by the General Court. Hampshire 1788 Hampshire Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Hampshire County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/6w924b98b, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA), The Boston Gazette (June 2, 1788) and The Salem Mercury (June 3, 1788). Caleb Strong (incumbent) Federalist Party 1,460 55.07 John Hastings (incumbent) Unknown 1,441 54.36 John Bliss Unknown 1,267 47.79 David Sexton Unknown 1,240 46.77 William Rodman Unknown 1,082 40.81 Oliver Phelps (incumbent) Unknown 962 35.29 2,651 100.00 Incumbent Senator David Smead was not re-elected, and his exact vote total is unknown. Many other candidates received votes throughout the county, but their exact totals are unknown: *Samuel Fowler Phinease Stebbins Daniel Cooley William Lyman William Shepard Samuel Lyman (Federalist) Simeon Strong Solomon Stoddard Samuel Phelps Samuel Field Robinson, unnamed Benjamin Eli Wareham Parks Samuel Mather Job Wright Hugh MacClellan Noah Goodman Ebenezer Mattoon (Federalist) William Pynchon 20em Bliss and Sexton were subsequently elected by the General Court. Lincoln 1788 Lincoln Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Lincoln County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/gx41mk16d, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA). Samuel Thompson (incumbent) Unknown 358 37.37 Dummer Sewall Unknown 245 25.57 958 100.00 Waterman Thomas, Daniel Cony, and Henry Dearborn also received votes, but their exact totals are unknown. Since no candidate received a majority of votes cast, the General Court elected Dummer Sewall to the seat. Middlesex 1788 Middlesex Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Middlesex County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/ms35t909p, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA), The Boston Gazette (June 2, 1788) and The Salem Mercury (June 3, 1788). Ebenezer Bridge (incumbent) Federalist Party 1,754 66.44 Joseph B. Varnum (incumbent) Federalist Party 1,674 63.41 Joseph Hosmer (incumbent) Federalist Party 1,628 61.67 Isaac Stearns (incumbent) Federalist Party 1,549 58.67 Eleazer Brooks Federalist Party 1,441 54.58 Walter MacFarland (incumbent) Anti-Federalist – – Walter Thompson Anti-Federalist – – David Brown Anti-Federalist – – Samuel Reed Anti-Federalist – – Marshall Spring Anti-Federalist – – 2,640 100.00 Exact totals for Anti-Federalist ticket are not listed. Nathaniel Gorham, William Hunt, John Brooks (Federalist), William Hull, Joseph Curtis, James Winthrop and Elbridge Gerry also received votes, though their exact totals are unknown. Plymouth 1788 Plymouth Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Plymouth County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/c821gm347, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA). Charles Turner (incumbent) Unknown 785 74.13 Nathan Cushing (incumbent) Unknown 779 73.56 Daniel Howard Unknown 636 60.06 1,059 100.00 Isaac Winslow, Hugh Orr, Joseph Bryant, James Briggs, and Ebenezer White also received votes. Suffolk 1788 Suffolk Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Suffolk County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/br86b4002, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA). Samuel Adams (incumbent) Anti-Federalist 2,332 91.49 Stephen Metcalf (incumbent) Unknown 2,311 90.66 Cotton Tufts (incumbent) Federalist Party 2,268 88.98 William Phillips Jr. (incumbent) Federalist Party 2,164 84.90 Thomas Dawes Unknown 2,071 81.25 Elijah Dunbar (incumbent) Unknown 1,923 75.44 Benjamin Austin Jr. (incumbent) Unknown – – 2,549 100.00 Many other candidates received votes throughout the county, but their exact totals are unknown: *Benjamin Lincoln (Federalist) Richard Cranch William Heath Samuel Breck John Metcalf Caleb Davis Stephen Higginson (Federalist) Jonathan Mason Jabez Fisher James Warren Samuel Niles James Sullivan 20em Worcester 1788 Worcester Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, Worcester County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/0c483k66d, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA), The Boston Gazette (June 2, 1788) and The Salem Mercury (June 3, 1788). Amos Singletary Anti-Federalist 1,687 32.77 Jonathan Grout (incumbent) Unknown 1,651 67.72 John Fessenden Unknown 1,636 67.72 Peter Penneman Unknown 1,524 53.25 Abel Wilder (incumbent) Unknown 1,240 53.25 Samuel Baker Unknown 1,036 47.30 John Taylor Unknown 990 28.67 3,457 100.00 Many other candidates received votes throughout the county, but their exact totals are unknown: *Moses Gill Timothy Paine John Sprague Joseph Stone Seth Washburn Samuel Willard Josiah Whitney Jonathan Warner Timothy Fuller Artemas Ward (Federalist) Jeremiah Learned Samuel Denny Martin Kinsley Stephen Maynard John Tysington Timothy Newhall Caleb Ammidown Bezaleel Taft Sr. Samuel Curtis Ezra Houghton Joseph Allen Joseph Behor Levi Lincoln Sr. Josiah Stearns 20em York 1788 York Senate election Tufts University Tufts Digital Collections and Archives A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1788–1825 April 27, 2020 Massachusetts 1788 State Senate, York County https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/q524jq28m, citing Governor's Council Records (Boston, MA), The Boston Gazette (June 2, 1788) and The Salem Mercury (June 3, 1788). John Frost Unknown 209 48.83 Nathaniel Wells Unknown 176 41.12 Edward Cutts (incumbent) Unknown 141 32.94 Tristram Jordan (incumbent) Unknown 118 27.57 428 100.00 Nathaniel Low also received votes, but his exact total is unknown. No candidate received a majority. Edward Cutts and Nathaniel Wells were subsequently elected by the General Court. See also List of former districts of the Massachusetts Senate References Senate 1788 Category:1788 Massachusetts elections Category:1788 state legislature elections in the United States