A gubernatorial election was held in Massachusetts on April 7, 1788. John Hancock, the incumbent governor, defeated Elbridge Gerry, a former delegate to the United States Constitutional Convention.[1][2]
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The election took place in the immediate aftermath of a narrow vote to ratify the United States Constitution, which Hancock supported and Gerry opposed. A political moderate, Hancock's public endorsement of the Constitution was decisive in Massachusetts: although too ill to take his seat as president of the Massachusetts ratifying convention, his speech recommending adoption of the Constitution with amendments persuaded the closely-divided assembly to vote in favor of ratification.[3] In recognition of his importance to the pro-ratification cause, the "friends of the Constitution" decided to promote the popular Hancock as the federalist candidate for governor; meanwhile, Gerry was put forward by the anti-federalists who remained skeptical of the incoming federal government.[4] Gerry had been a delegate to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, but refused to sign the final document in protest of the Three-Fifths Clause, which inflated the representation of the slave states in the United States House of Representatives, and the lack of a bill of rights.[5] Although Gerry publicly accepted the outcome of the ratification vote, the issue of the Constitution loomed large in the gubernatorial campaign. Despite the significant opposition to ratification, Gerry was ultimately unable to overcome Hancock's immense personal popularity and was defeated by more than 12,000 votes.[6]
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Federalist[a] | John Hancock (incumbent) | 17,856 | 80.53% | +5.44 | |
| Anti-federalist | Elbridge Gerry | 4,145 | 18.70% | New | |
| Federalist | James Bowdoin | 102 | 0.46% | −21.46 | |
| Anti-federalist | James Warren | 35 | 0.16% | +0.15 | |
| Federalist | Benjamin Lincoln | 16 | 0.07% | −2.01 | |
| Federalist | Samuel Adams | 3 | 0.01% | +0.01 | |
| Federalist | Nathaniel Gorham | 2 | 0.01% | −0.32 | |
| Federalist | John Adams | 1 | 0.00% | New | |
| Daniel Bimby | 1 | 0.00% | New | ||
| Charles Chauncey | 1 | 0.00% | New | ||
| Job Cushing | 1 | 0.00% | New | ||
| Federalist | William Cushing | 1 | 0.00% | New | |
| Solomon Freeman | 1 | 0.00% | New | ||
| Joseph Lefert | 1 | 0.00% | New | ||
| Nehemiah Pratt | 1 | 0.00 | New | ||
| Federalist | James Sullivan | 1 | 0.00 | New | |
| Federalist | Artemas Ward | 1 | 0.00% | New | |
| Abraham White | 1 | 0.00% | New | ||
| Blank ballots | 2 | 0.01% | +0.01 | ||
| Total votes | 22,172 | 100.00% | |||
| Federalist[a] hold | |||||
Results by county
edit| John Hancock Federalist[a] |
Elbridge Gerry Anti-federalist |
Scattering | County total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| County | Votes | Percent | Votes | Percent | Votes | Percent | |
| Barnstable | 334 | 80.87 | 75 | 18.16 | 4[b] | 0.97 | 413 |
| Berkshire | 923 | 66.02 | 471 | 33.69 | 4[c] | 0.29 | 1,398 |
| Bristol | 875 | 50.23 | 863 | 49.54 | 4[d] | 0.23 | 1,742 |
| Cumberland | 707 | 95.93 | 20 | 2.71 | 10[e] | 1.36 | 737 |
| Dukes | 91 | 100.00 | — | — | 91 | ||
| Essex | 2,268 | 82.35 | 481 | 17.46 | 5[f] | 0.22 | 2,754 |
| Hampshire | 2,129 | 69.48 | 892 | 29.11 | 43[g] | 1.40 | 3,064 |
| Lincoln | 778 | 83.93 | 142 | 15.32 | 7[h] | 0.76 | 927 |
| Middlesex | 2,560 | 89.45 | 292 | 10.20 | 10[i] | 0.35 | 2,862 |
| Nantucket | No votes recorded | — | |||||
| Plymouth | 1,068 | 89.37 | 103 | 8.62 | 24[j] | 2.01 | 1,195 |
| Suffolk | 2,841 | 97.43 | 48 | 1.65 | 27[k] | 0.92 | 2,916 |
| Worcester | 2,866 | 79.61 | 708 | 19.67 | 26[l] | 0.72 | 3,600 |
| York | 416 | 87.95 | 50 | 10.57 | 7[m] | 1.48 | 473 |
| TOTAL | 17,856 | 80.53 | 4,145 | 18.70 | 171 | 0.77 | 22,172 |
References
edit- ^ a b c d Hancock belonged to the "federalist" political faction in Massachusetts favoring ratification of the United States Constitution, not to be confused with the later Federalist Party.
- ^ Bowdoin 2, John Adams 1, Lincoln 1. Manuscript returns transcribed by Lampi show single votes for Adams in both Barnstable and Hampshire counties, but only one vote for Adams in the statewide tally; meanwhile, Solomon Freeman is awarded one vote in the statewide tally, but no recorded votes in any county. This appears to be a transcription error, in which case either the vote in Barnstable County or the vote in Hampshire County was likely cast for Freeman.
- ^ Bowdoin 3, Warren 1
- ^ Bowdoin 2, Pratt 1, Warren 1
- ^ Bowdoin 7, Samuel Adams 1, Blank 2
- ^ Bowdoin 2, Lincoln 2, Bimby 1
- ^ Warren 20, Bowdoin 19, Lincoln 3, John Adams 1. Manuscript returns transcribed by Lampi show single votes for Adams in both Barnstable and Hampshire counties, but only one vote for Adams in the statewide tally; meanwhile, Solomon Freeman is awarded one vote in the statewide tally, but no recorded votes in any county. This appears to be a transcription error, in which case either the vote in Barnstable County or the vote in Hampshire County was likely cast for Freeman.
- ^ Warren 7
- ^ Bowdoin 5, Lincoln 2, Samuel Adams 1, Gorham 1, Warren 1
- ^ Bowdoin 17, Warren 3, Lincoln 2, William Cushing 1, Lefert 1
- ^ Bowdoin 23, Lincoln 3, White 1
- ^ Bowdoin 17, Lincoln 3, Samuel Adams 1, Job Cushing 1, Gorham 1, Sullivan 1, Ward 1, Warren 1
- ^ Bowdoin 5, Chauncey 1, Warren 1
- ^ Dubin, Michael J. (2003). United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1776-1860: The Official Results by State and County. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland. p. 100. ISBN 0786414391.
- ^ Lampi, Philip J. "Massachusetts 1788 Governor". A New Nation Votes. American Antiquarian Society. Retrieved November 18, 2024.
- ^ Fowler, William M. (1980). The Baron of Beacon Hill: A Biography of John Hancock. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. pp. 268–71.
- ^ "The Commonwealth, on the subject of the federal Constitution ..." The New-Hampshire Spy. June 3, 1788.
- ^ Finkelman, Paul (1987). "Slavery and the Constitutional Convention: Making a Covenant With Death". In Beeman, Richard R. (ed.). Beyond Confederation: Origins of the Constitution and American National Identity. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. pp. 224–25.
- ^ A New Nation Votes