The 1812 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on April 6, 1812.
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 County results Strong: 50-60% 60–70% Gerry: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent Democratic-Republican Governor Elbridge Gerry was defeated by Federalist nominee Caleb Strong.
General election
editCandidates
edit- Elbridge Gerry, incumbent Governor (Democratic-Republican)
- Caleb Strong, former Governor (Federalist)
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Federalist | Caleb Strong | 52,696 | 50.60% | ||
| Democratic-Republican | Elbridge Gerry (incumbent) | 51,326 | 49.28% | ||
| Scattering | 124 | 0.12% | |||
| Majority | 1,370 | 1.32% | |||
| Turnout | 104,146 | ||||
| Federalist gain from Democratic-Republican | Swing | ||||
Analysis
editAlthough the Federalists in Massachusetts had successfully taken the house and the governor's seat from the Democratic-Republican party in the 1812 election cycle, these gains did not translate into control of the Massachusetts State Senate, which remained in the hands of the Democratic-Republicans.[10] The cause for this laid in new constitutionally mandated electoral district boundaries that the state had adopted prior to the election. The Republican-controlled legislature had created district boundaries designed to enhance their party's control over state and national offices, leading to some oddly shaped legislative districts.[11] Although Gerry was unhappy about the highly partisan districting (according to his son-in-law, he thought it "highly disagreeable"), he signed the legislation. The shape of one of the state senate districts in Essex County was compared to a salamander[12] by a local Federalist newspaper in a political cartoon, calling it a "Gerry-mander".[13] Ever since, the creation of such districts has been called gerrymandering.[11]
On May 30, 1812, Nathaniel Ames wrote in his diary that "Strong declared Governor by majority of 600! and not near so many as the illegal vote of Boston."[14][a]
Notes
edit- ^ In Ames' hometown of Dedham, voters cast 299 votes for Elbridge Gerry and 172 for Caleb Strong.[15] The Republicans gained 46 votes over the previous election but the Federalists gained 56.[15]
References
edit- ^ "MA Governor, 1812". Our Campaigns. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
- ^ Gubernatorial Elections, 1787-1997. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Inc. 1998. p. 57. ISBN 1-56802-396-0.
- ^ Dubin, Michael J. (2003). United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1776-1860: The Official Results by State and County. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. p. xxv. ISBN 978-0-7864-1439-0.
- ^ Glashan, Roy R. (1979). American Governors and Gubernatorial Elections, 1775-1978. Westport, CT: Meckler Books. pp. 140–141. ISBN 0-930466-17-9.
- ^ Kallenbach, Joseph E.; Kallenbach, Jessamine S., eds. (1977). American State Governors, 1776-1976. Vol. I. Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.: Oceana Publications, Inc. p. 273. ISBN 0-379-00665-0.
- ^ "Massachusetts 1812 Governor". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
- ^ Burdick, Charles (1814). The Massachusetts Manual: or Political and Historical Register, for the Political Year from June 1814 to June 1815. Vol. I. Boston: Charles Callender. p. 26.
- ^ The Massachusetts Register and United States Calendar; for the Year of Our Lord 1814, &c., &c. Boston: John West & Co. 1814. p. 36.
- ^ Hayward, John (1847). A Gazetteer of Massachusetts, &c., &c. Boston: John Hayward. p. 417.
- ^ Griffith, Elmer (1907). The Rise and Development of the Gerrymander. Chicago: Scott, Foresman and Co. p. 72-73. OCLC 45790508.
- ^ a b Hart, Albert Bushnell, ed. (1927). Commonwealth History of Massachusetts. New York: The States History Company. p. 3:458. OCLC 1543273. (five volume history of Massachusetts until the early 20th century)
- ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 11 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 903–904.
- ^ Billias, George (1976). Elbridge Gerry, Founding Father and Republican Statesman. McGraw-Hill Publishers. p. 317. ISBN 0-07-005269-7.
- ^ Warren, Charles (1931). Jacobin and Junto: Or, Early American Politics as Viewed in the Diary of Dr. Nathaniel Ames, 1758-1822. Harvard University Press. p. 249.
- ^ a b Warren 1931, p. 248.
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