1894–95 United States Senate elections

The 1894–95 United States Senate elections were held on various dates in various states. As these U.S. Senate elections were prior to the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913, senators were chosen by state legislatures. Senators were elected over a wide range of time throughout 1894 and 1895, and a seat may have been filled months late or remained vacant due to legislative deadlock. In these elections, terms were up for the senators in Class 2.

← 1892 & 1893

Dates vary by state

1896 & 1897 →

← 1888 & 1889

Class 2

1900 & 1901 →

30 of the 88 seats in the United States Senate (as well as special elections)
45 seats needed for a majority

	Majority party	Minority party

Leader	John Sherman	Arthur Pue Gorman
Party	Republican	Democratic
Leader since	March 4, 1891	March 4, 1889
Leader's seat	Ohio	Maryland
Seats before	37	44
Seats won	18	10
Seats after	39	40
Seat change	2	4
Seats up	16	14

	Third party	Fourth party

Party	Populist	Silver
Seats before	3	1
Seats won	1	0
Seats after	4	1
Seat change	1
Seats up	0	0

Results of the elections:
     Democratic hold
     Republican gain      Republican hold
     Populist gain      Legislature failed to elect

Majority Party before election

Democratic

Elected Majority Party

Republican

The Republican Party gained plurality control of the Senate with the support of the Populist Party and Silver Party.

Results summary

Senate party division, 54th Congress (1895–1897)

Plurality: Republican: 42
Minority: Democrats: 39
Other parties: Populist: 4, Silver: 2
Total: 88
Vacant: 1, due to failure to elect. Later filled by a Democrat

Change in composition

Before the elections

At the beginning of 1894, including early elections in Mississippi and Virginia.

						D₁	D₂	D₃	D₄
D₁₄	D₁₃	D₁₂	D₁₁	D₁₀	D₉	D₈	D₇	D₆	D₅
D₁₅	D₁₆	D₁₇	D₁₈	D₁₉	D₂₀	D₂₁	D₂₂	D₂₃	D₂₄
D₃₄ Ky. Ran	D₃₃ Ga. Ran	D₃₂ Ark. Ran	D₃₁ Ala. Ran	D₃₀	D₂₉	D₂₈	D₂₇	D₂₆	D₂₅
D₃₅ La. Ran	D₃₆ N.C. Ran	D₃₇ S.C. Ran	D₃₈ Tenn. Ran	D₃₉ W.Va. Ran	D₄₀ Kan. Unknown	D₄₁ N.J. Unknown	D₄₂ Miss. Retired	D₄₃ Texas Retired	D₄₄ Va. Retired
Majority with vacancies →									D₄₄ Va. Retired
R₃₅ Iowa Retired	R₃₆ Mont. Retired	R₃₇ R.I. Retired	S₁	P₁	P₂	P₃	V₃	V₂	V₁
R₃₄ Neb. Unknown	R₃₃ Wyo. Ran	R₃₂ S.D. Ran	R₃₁ Ore. Ran	R₃₀ N.H. Ran	R₂₉ Minn. Ran	R₂₈ Mich. Ran	R₂₇ Mass. Ran	R₂₆ Maine Ran	R₂₅ Ill. Ran
R₁₅	R₁₆	R₁₇	R₁₈	R₁₉	R₂₀	R₂₁	R₂₂ Colo. Ran	R₂₃ Del. Ran	R₂₄ Idaho Ran
R₁₄	R₁₃	R₁₂	R₁₁	R₁₀	R₉	R₈	R₇	R₆	R₅
						R₁	R₂	R₃	R₄

Result of the general elections

						D₁	D₂	D₃	D₄
D₁₄	D₁₃	D₁₂	D₁₁	D₁₀	D₉	D₈	D₇	D₆	D₅
D₁₅	D₁₆	D₁₇	D₁₈	D₁₉	D₂₀	D₂₁	D₂₂	D₂₃	D₂₄
D₃₄ La. Appointee elected	D₃₃ Ky. Re-elected	D₃₂ Ark. Re-elected	D₃₁ Ala. Re-elected	D₃₀	D₂₉	D₂₈	D₂₇	D₂₆	D₂₅
D₃₅ Tenn. Re-elected	D₃₆ Ga. Hold	D₃₇ Miss. Hold	D₃₈ S.C. Hold	D₃₉ Texas Hold	D₄₀ Va. Hold	P₄ N.C. Gain	P₃	V₁	V₂
No majority
R₃₅ R.I. Hold	R₃₆ Wyo. Hold	R₃₇ Kan. Gain	R₃₈ N.J. Gain	R₃₉ W.Va. Gain	S₁	P₁	P₂	V₄ Del. R Loss	V₃
R₃₄ Ore. Hold	R₃₃ Neb. Hold	R₃₂ Mont. Hold	R₃₁ Minn. Hold	R₃₀ Iowa Hold	R₂₉ S.D. Re-elected	R₂₈ N.H. Re-elected	R₂₇ Mich. Re-elected	R₂₆ Mass. Re-elected	R₂₅ Maine Re-elected
R₁₅	R₁₆	R₁₇	R₁₈	R₁₉	R₂₀	R₂₁	R₂₂ Colo. Re-elected	R₂₃ Idaho Re-elected	R₂₄ Ill. Re-elected
R₁₄	R₁₃	R₁₂	R₁₁	R₁₀	R₉	R₈	R₇	R₆	R₅
						R₁	R₂	R₃	R₄

Result of the special elections and party change

						D₁ Calif. Appointee elected	D₂ La. Appointee elected	D₃	D₄
D₁₄	D₁₃	D₁₂	D₁₁	D₁₀	D₉	D₈	D₇	D₆	D₅
D₁₅	D₁₆	D₁₇	D₁₈	D₁₉	D₂₀	D₂₁	D₂₂	D₂₃	D₂₄
D₃₄ La. Appointee elected	D₃₃	D₃₂	D₃₁	D₃₀	D₂₉	D₂₈	D₂₇	D₂₆	D₂₅
D₃₅	D₃₆ Ga. Appointee elected	D₃₇ Miss. Hold	D₃₈	D₃₉	P₄	P₃	P₂	P₁	V₁
↓ Republican plurality (majority with Silver support →)									S₁
R₃₅	R₃₆	R₃₇	R₃₈	R₃₉ Mont. Gain from V	R₄₀ Wash. Gain from V	R₄₁ Wyo. Gain from V	R₄₂ N.C. Gain from D	S₂ Nev. Changed from R	S₁
R₃₄	R₃₃	R₃₂	R₃₁	R₃₀	R₂₉	R₂₈	R₂₇	R₂₆	R₂₅
R₁₅	R₁₆	R₁₇	R₁₈	R₁₉	R₂₀	R₂₁	R₂₂	R₂₃	R₂₄
R₁₄	R₁₃	R₁₂	R₁₁	R₁₀	R₉	R₈	R₇	R₆	R₅
						R₁ Mich. Hold	R₂	R₃	R₄

Key:

D_#	Democratic
P_#	Populist
R_#	Republican
S_#	Silver
V_#	Vacant

Race summaries

Elections during the 53rd Congress

In these elections, the winners were seated during 1894 or in 1895 before March 4; ordered by election date.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
Mississippi (Class 2)	Edward C. Walthall	Democratic	1885 (appointed) 1886 (special) 1889 1892 (early)	Incumbent resigned due to ill health. New senator elected February 7, 1894. Democratic hold. Walthall, however, had already been re-elected to next term.	▌Y Anselm J. McLaurin (Democratic) [data missing]
Louisiana (Class 2)	Donelson Caffery	Democratic	1892 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected May 23, 1894. Winner had already been elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y Donelson Caffery (Democratic) [data missing]
Louisiana (Class 3)	Newton C. Blanchard	Democratic	1894 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected May 23, 1894.	▌Y Newton C. Blanchard (Democratic) [data missing]
Georgia (Class 2)	Patrick Walsh	Democratic	1894 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected November 7, 1894. Winner was not elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y Patrick Walsh (Democratic) [data missing]
North Carolina (Class 3)	Thomas Jarvis	Democratic	1894 (appointed)	Interim appointee retired or lost election to finish the term. New senator elected November 7, 1894. Republican gain. New senator qualified January 23, 1895.	▌Y Jeter C. Pritchard (Republican) [data missing]
Montana (Class 1)	Vacant			Legislature had failed to elect. New senator elected January 16, 1895. Republican gain.	▌Y Lee Mantle (Republican) [data missing]
Wyoming (Class 1)	Vacant			Legislature had failed to elect. New senator elected January 23, 1895. Republican gain.	▌Y Clarence D. Clark (Republican) [data missing]
California (Class 3)	George C. Perkins	Republican	1893 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected January 23, 1895.	▌Y George C. Perkins (Republican) [data missing]
Michigan (Class 1)	John Patton Jr.	Republican	1894 (appointed)	Interim appointee lost election to finish the term. New senator elected January 24, 1895. Republican hold.	▌Y Julius C. Burrows (Republican) [data missing]
Washington (Class 1)	Vacant			Legislature had failed to elect. New senator elected February 1, 1895. Republican gain.	▌Y John L. Wilson (Republican) [data missing]

Elections leading to the 54th Congress

In these regular elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1895; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.

State	Incumbent			Results	Candidates
State	Senator	Party	Electoral history	Results	Candidates
Alabama	John T. Morgan	Democratic	1876 1882 1888	Incumbent re-elected in 1894.	▌Y John T. Morgan (Democratic) [data missing]
Arkansas	James Berry	Democratic	1885 (special) 1889	Incumbent re-elected in 1895.	▌Y James Berry (Democratic) [data missing]
Colorado	Edward O. Wolcott	Republican	1889	Incumbent re-elected in 1895.	▌Y Edward O. Wolcott (Republican) [data missing]
Delaware	Anthony C. Higgins	Republican	1888–89	Legislature failed to elect. Republican loss.	▌Anthony C. Higgins (Republican) [data missing]
Georgia	Patrick Walsh	Democratic	1894 (special)	Incumbent lost renomination. New senator elected in 1894. Democratic hold.	▌Y Augustus Bacon (Democratic) [data missing]
Idaho	George Shoup	Republican	1890	Incumbent re-elected in 1895.	▌Y George Shoup (Republican) [data missing]
Illinois	Shelby M. Cullom	Republican	1882 1888	Incumbent re-elected in 1894.	▌Y Shelby M. Cullom (Republican) [data missing]
Iowa	James F. Wilson	Republican	1888	Incumbent retired. New senator elected January 17, 1894. Republican hold.	▌Y John H. Gear (Republican) ▌Horace Boies (Democratic)
Kansas	John Martin	Democratic	1893 (special)	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected in January 1895. Republican gain.	▌Y Lucien Baker (Republican) [data missing]
Kentucky	William Lindsay	Democratic	1893 (special)	Incumbent re-elected January 16, 1894, after an election on January 9, 1894.	▌Y William Lindsay (Democratic) 89 ▌ Frank Finley (Republican) 30 ▌ Clarence Bate (Republican) 1
Louisiana	Donelson Caffery	Democratic	1891 (appointed)	Interim appointee elected May 14, 1894. Winner was later elected to finish the current term; see below.	▌Y Donelson Caffery (Democratic) 97 ▌[FNU] Jones (Unknown) 21 ▌Allen Barksdale (Unknown) 7
Maine	William P. Frye	Republican	1881 (special) 1883 1889	Incumbent re-elected in 1895.	▌Y William P. Frye (Republican) [data missing]
Massachusetts	George F. Hoar	Republican	1877 1883 1889	Incumbent re-elected in 1895.	▌Y George F. Hoar (Republican) [data missing]
Michigan	James McMillan	Republican	1889	Incumbent re-elected in 1895.	▌Y James McMillan (Republican) [data missing]
Minnesota	W. D. Washburn	Republican	1888	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1895. Republican hold.	▌Y Knute Nelson (Republican) ▌W. D. Washburn (Republican) [data missing]
Mississippi	Anselm J. McLaurin	Democratic	1894 (special)	Incumbent retired as predecessor had already been elected early to the next term January 20, 1892. Democratic hold.	▌Y Edward C. Walthall (Democratic) ▌Clerk Lewis (Unknown) ▌C. E. Hooker (Unknown)
Montana	Thomas C. Power	Republican	1890	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in January 1895. Republican hold.	▌Y Thomas H. Carter (Republican) [data missing]
Nebraska	Charles F. Manderson	Republican	1883 1888	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected January 15, 1895. Republican hold.	▌Y John M. Thurston (Republican) ▌William Jennings Bryan (Democratic) [data missing]
New Hampshire	William E. Chandler	Republican	1887 (special) 1889 (failure to elect) 1889 (special)	Incumbent re-elected in 1895.	▌Y William E. Chandler (Republican) [data missing]
New Jersey	John R. McPherson	Democratic	1877 1883 1889	Incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected in 1895. Republican gain.	▌Y William Joyce Sewell (Republican) [data missing]
North Carolina	Matt W. Ransom	Democratic	1872 (special) 1876 1883 1889	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1894. Populist gain.	▌Y Marion Butler (Populist) ▌Matt W. Ransom (Democratic) [data missing]
Oregon	Joseph N. Dolph	Republican	1882 1888	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected February 23, 1895. Republican hold.	▌Y George W. McBride (Republican) ▌Joseph N. Dolph (Republican) [data missing]
Rhode Island	Nathan F. Dixon III	Republican	1889 (special)	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1894. Republican hold.	▌Y George P. Wetmore (Republican) [data missing]
South Carolina	Matthew Butler	Democratic	1876 1882 1888	Incumbent lost renomination. New senator elected in 1894. Democratic hold.	▌Y Benjamin Tillman (Democratic) [data missing]
South Dakota	Richard F. Pettigrew	Republican	1889	Incumbent re-elected in 1894.	▌Y Richard F. Pettigrew (Republican) [data missing]
Tennessee	Isham G. Harris	Democratic	1877 1883 1889	Incumbent re-elected in 1895.	▌Y Isham G. Harris (Democratic) [data missing]
Texas	Richard Coke	Democratic	1876 1882 1888	Incumbent retired. New senator elected in 1894. Democratic hold.	▌Y Horace Chilton (Democratic) [data missing]
Virginia	Eppa Hunton	Democratic	1892 (appointed) 1893 (special)	Incumbent retired. New senator was already elected early December 19, 1893. Democratic hold.	▌Y Thomas S. Martin (Democratic) [data missing]
West Virginia	Johnson N. Camden	Democratic	1893 (special)	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected January 23, 1895. Republican gain.	▌Y Stephen B. Elkins (Republican) 60 ▌Johnson N. Camden (Democratic) 29 ▌[FNU] Neal (Populist) 2
Wyoming	Joseph M. Carey	Republican	1890	Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected in 1895. Republican hold.	▌Y Francis E. Warren (Republican) ▌Joseph M. Carey (Republican)

Elections during the 54th Congress

There were no elections in 1895 after March 4.

Alabama

Former brigadier general in the Confederate States Army John T. Morgan was re-elected as one of the two senators in the state of Alabama. His tenure as senator ended in 1907 when he died in office.

Arkansas

California (special)

Colorado

Delaware

Georgia

Georgia (special)

Idaho

Illinois

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

Interim appointee Donelson Caffery (D) was elected May 14, 1894 to the next term. He was later (May 23, 1894) elected to finish the current term.

Louisiana (special, class 2)

Randall L. Gibson (D) had been re-elected in 1889, but died December 15, 1892. Donelson Caffery (D) was appointed by the Governor of Louisiana December 31, 1892 to continue the term, pending a special election. On May 14, 1894, Caffery was elected to the next term, and on May 23, 1894, Caffery was elected to finish the current term.

Louisiana (special, class 3)

Edward Douglass White (D) had been elected in 1891, but resigned March 12, 1894 when appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court. Newton C. Blanchard (D) was appointed by the Governor of Louisiana March 12, 1894 to continue the term, pending a special election. On May 23, 1894, Blanchard was elected to finish the current term, which would end March 3, 1897.

Maine

Massachusetts

Michigan

Michigan (special)

Minnesota

Mississippi

Mississippi (special)

Montana

Montana (special)

Nebraska

New Hampshire

New Jersey

North Carolina

North Carolina (special)

Oregon

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota

Tennessee

Texas

Virginia

Washington (special)

John B. Allen (R) had been elected in 1889 as one of the first senators from Washington. In 1893, however, the Washington State Legislature failed to elect a senator for the term beginning March 4, 1893. The governor appointed Allen to serve until March 20, 1893, but the Senate rejected his credentials.

John L. Wilson (R) was elected February 1, 1895 to finish the term, that would end March 3, 1899, taking his seat February 19, 1895.