1834–35 United States Senate elections

1834–35 United States Senate elections
16 of the 48 seats in the United States Senate (plus special elections); 25 seats needed for a majority
	300px Results:; Jacksonian Hold Jacksonian Gain; Anti-Jacksonian Hold Anti-Jacksonian Gain; Nullifier Hold Legislature Failed To Elect
Majority Party before election; ; Anti-Jacksonian Party (US)	Elected Majority Party; ; Anti-Jacksonian Party (US)

The 1834–35 United States Senate elections were elections that had the Anti-Jackson coalition maintain control of the United States Senate. However, during the 24th Congress, the Jacksonian coalition gained control of the Senate.

As this election was prior to ratification of the seventeenth amendment, Senators were chosen by state legislatures.

Results summary

Senate Party Division, 24th Congress (1835–1837)

Majority Party: Jacksonian (21–31)
Minority Party: Anti-Jackson (24–19)
Other Parties: Nullifier (2)
Total Seats: 48–52

Change in composition

Before the elections

						AJ₁	AJ₂	AJ₃	AJ₄
AJ₁₄	AJ₁₃	AJ₁₂	AJ₁₁	AJ₁₀	AJ₉	AJ₈	AJ₇	AJ₆	AJ₅
AJ₁₅	AJ₁₆	AJ₁₇	AJ₁₈	AJ₁₉ Del. Ran	AJ₂₀ Miss. Ran	AJ₂₁ R.I. Ran	AJ₂₂ Va. Ran	AJ₂₃ La. Unknown	AJ₂₄ N.J. Unknown
Majority →									AJ₂₅ Mass. Retired
J₁₅ Ga. Ran	J₁₆ Ill. Ran	J₁₇ N.C. Ran	J₁₈ Tenn. Ran	J₁₉ Ky. Unknown	N₁	N₂ S.C. Ran	AJ₂₇ Maine Resigned	AJ₂₆ N.H. Retired	AJ₂₅ Mass. Retired
J₁₄ Ala. Ran	J₁₃	J₁₂	J₁₁	J₁₀	J₉	J₈	J₇	J₆	J₅
						J₁	J₂	J₃	J₄

Result of the regular elections

						AJ₁	AJ₂	AJ₃	AJ₄
AJ₁₄	AJ₁₃	AJ₁₂	AJ₁₁	AJ₁₀	AJ₉	AJ₈	AJ₇	AJ₆	AJ₅
AJ₁₅	AJ₁₆	AJ₁₇	AJ₁₈	AJ₁₉ Del. Re-elected	AJ₂₀ R.I. Re-elected	AJ₂₁ Va. Re-elected	AJ₂₂ Mass. Hold	AJ₂₃ Ky. Gain	AJ₂₄ Tenn. Re-elected to different party
Plurality →									AJ₂₄ Tenn. Re-elected to different party
J₁₅ Ga. Re-elected	J₁₆ Ill. Re-elected	J₁₇ N.C. Re-elected	J₁₈ Maine Gain	J₁₉ Miss. Gain	J₂₀ N.H. Gain	J₂₁ N.J. Gain	N₁	N₂ S.C. Re-elected	V₁ La. AJ Loss^{[lower-alpha 1]}
J₁₄ Ala. Re-elected	J₁₃	J₁₂	J₁₁	J₁₀	J₉	J₈	J₇	J₆	J₅
						J₁	J₂	J₃	J₄

Key:

AJ_#	= Anti-Jacksonian
J_#	= Jacksonian
N_#	= Nullfier
V_#	= Vacant

Race summaries

Special elections during the 23rd Congress

In these special elections, the winners were seated during 1834 or before March 4, 1835; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
Virginia (Class 2)	William Rives	Jacksonian	1832 (Special)	Incumbent resigned February 22, 1834. Successor elected February 26, 1834. Successor was also elected to the next term, see below. National Republican gain.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Benjamin W. Leigh (National Republican) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Pennsylvania (Class 3)	William Wilkins	Jacksonian	1832	Incumbent resigned June 30, 1834, to become U.S. Minister to Russia. New senator elected December 6, 1834. Jacksonian hold.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y James Buchanan (Jacksonian) 66 (49.62%)^[1] ▌Amos Ellmaker (National Republican) 31 (23.31%) ▌James Clarke (Jacksonian) 26 (19.55%) ▌Joseph Lawrence (National Republican) 6 (4.51%) ▌Joel Sutherland (Jacksonian) 1 (0.75%) ▌Not voting 3 (2.26%)
Georgia (Class 3)	John Forsyth	Jacksonian	1818 (Special) 1819 (Resigned) 1829 (Special) 1830 or 1831	Incumbent resigned June 27, 1834, to become U.S. Minister to Spain. New senator elected January 12, 1835. Jacksonian hold.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Alfred Cuthbert (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Maryland (Class 3)	Ezekiel F. Chambers	National Republican	1826 (Special) 1831	Incumbent resigned December 20, 1834, to become judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals. New senator elected January 13, 1835. National Republican hold.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Robert Henry Goldsborough (National Republican) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Maine (Class 2)	Peleg Sprague	National Republican	1829	Incumbent resigned January 1, 1835. New senator elected January 20, 1835. Successor was also elected to the next term, see below. Jacksonian gain.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y John Ruggles (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]

Races leading to the 24th Congress

In these regular elections, the winner was seated on March 4, 1835; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
Alabama	William R. King	Jacksonian	1819 1822 1828	Incumbent re-elected in 1834.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y William R. King (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Delaware	John M. Clayton	National Republican	1827 (Special) 1829	Incumbent re-elected in 1835.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y John M. Clayton (National Republican) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Georgia	John Pendleton King	Jacksonian	1833 (Special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1834.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y John Pendleton King (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Illinois	John M. Robinson	Jacksonian	1830 (Special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1835.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y John M. Robinson (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Kentucky	George M. Bibb	Jacksonian	1829	Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election. New senator elected in 1835. National Republican gain.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y John J. Crittenden (National Republican) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Louisiana	George A. Waggaman	National Republican	1831 (Special)	Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election. New senator elected in 1835, but due to ill-health, resigned without having been seated. National Republican loss.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Charles Gayarré (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Maine	Peleg Sprague	National Republican	1829	Incumbent resigned December 20, 1834, to become judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals. New senator elected January 19, 1835. Jacksonian gain. Successor was also elected the same day to finish the term, see above.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y John Ruggles (Jacksonian) 73.91% ▌George Evans (National Republican) 26.09%^[2]
Massachusetts	Nathaniel Silsbee	National Republican	1826 (Special) 1828	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1835. National Republican hold.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y John Davis (National Republican) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Mississippi	George Poindexter	National Republican	1830 (Appointed) 1830 (Special)	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1835. Jacksonian gain.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Robert J. Walker (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
New Hampshire	Samuel Bell	National Republican	1823	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1835. Jacksonian gain.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Henry Hubbard (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
New Jersey	Theodore Frelinghuysen	National Republican	1829	Unknown if incumbent ran for re-election. New senator elected in 1835. Jacksonian gain.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Garret D. Wall (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
North Carolina	Bedford Brown	Jacksonian	1829 (Special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1835.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Bedford Brown (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Rhode Island	Nehemiah R. Knight	National Republican	1821 (Special) 1823 1829	Incumbent re-elected May 13, 1835.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Nehemiah R. Knight (National Republican) 41 votes ▌Elisha Reynolds Potter (Unknown) 38 votes^[3]
South Carolina	John C. Calhoun	Nullifier	1832 (Special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1834.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y John C. Calhoun (Nullifier) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Tennessee	Hugh Lawson White	Jacksonian	1825 (Special) 1829	Incumbent re-elected in 1835 as National Republican. National Republican gain.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Hugh Lawson White (National Republican) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Virginia	Benjamin W. Leigh	National Republican	1834 (Special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1835.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y Benjamin W. Leigh (National Republican) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]

Special election during the 24th Congress

In this special election, the winner was seated in 1835 after March 4; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
Connecticut (Class 1)	Nathan Smith	National Republican	1832	Incumbent died December 6, 1835. New senator elected December 21, 1835. Jacksonian gain.	<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> ▌Y John M. Niles (Jacksonian) [Data unknown/missing. You can help!]