1918 United States Senate elections
The 1918 United States Senate elections were held throughout 1918,[a] the midpoint of Woodrow Wilson's second term as President of the United States. Republicans gained a slim 2-seat control after picking up a net 6 seats (4 in general elections and 2 in special elections).
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38 of the 96 seats in the United States Senate 48 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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![]() Results of the elections: Democratic gain Democratic hold Republican gain Republican hold No election | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The change in control meant that the Republicans could deny entry of the United States into the League of Nations. American participation in this new international institution was the centerpiece of Wilson's post-war foreign policy.
It was the first election in which all Class 2 senators were subject to direct or popular election following the enactment of the Seventeenth Amendment, making them the final class under the old system.
Gains and lossesEdit
Republicans gained seven seats:
- Lawrence C. Phipps (CO)
- L. Heisler Ball (DE)
- Joseph M. McCormick (IL)
- Arthur Capper (KS)
- Selden P. Spencer (MO)
- Henry W. Keyes (NH)
- Irvine Lenroot (WI) — won in a special election
Democrats gained one seat:
- David I. Walsh (MA)
Party divisionEdit
These numbers represent composition at the March 4, 1919 start of the 66th United States Congress. Composition often changes due to deaths, resignations, or party shifting.
- Majority Party: Republican (49 seats)
- Minority Party: Democratic (47 seats)
- Other Parties: 0
- Total Seats: 96
Change in compositionEdit
Before the electionsEdit
D1 | D2 | D3 | D4 | D5 | D6 | D7 | D8 | ||
D18 | D17 | D16 | D15 | D14 | D13 | D12 | D11 | D10 | D9 |
D19 | D20 | D21 | D22 | D23 | D24 | D25 | D26 | D27 | D28 |
D38 Kan. Ran |
D37 Ill. Ran |
D36 Idaho Ran |
D35 Ga. Ran |
D34 Del. Ran |
D33 Colo. Ran |
D32 Ark. Ran |
D31 Ala. Ran |
D30 | D29 |
D39 La. (reg) Ran |
D40 La. (sp) Ran |
D41 Mo. (sp) Ran |
D42 Mont. Ran |
D43 Nev. (sp) Ran |
D44 N.H. (reg) Retired |
D45 N.C. Ran |
D46 Okla. Ran |
D47 S.C. (reg) & S.C. (sp) Ran |
D48 Tenn. Ran |
Majority → | D49 Va. Ran | ||||||||
R39 N.J. (sp) Ran N.J. (reg) Retired |
R40 N.M. Ran |
R41 Ore. (sp) Retired Ore. (reg) Ran |
R42 R.I. Ran |
R43 S.D. Ran |
R44 Texas Ran |
R45 W.Va. Retired |
D51 Wyo. Ran |
D50 Wis. Died | |
R38 N.H. (sp) Retired |
R37 Neb. Ran |
R36 Miss. Ran |
R35 Minn. Ran |
R34 Mich. Retired |
R33 Mass. Ran |
R32 Me. Ran |
R31 Ky. Retired |
R30 Iowa Ran |
R29 Idaho (reg) Ran |
R19 | R20 | R21 | R22 | R23 | R24 | R25 | R26 | R27 | R28 |
R18 | R17 | R16 | R15 | R14 | R13 | R12 | R11 | R10 | R9 |
R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | R8 |
Elections resultsEdit
D1 | D2 | D3 | D4 | D5 | D6 | D7 | D8 | ||
D18 | D17 | D16 | D15 | D14 | D13 | D12 | D11 | D10 | D9 |
D19 | D20 | D21 | D22 | D23 | D24 | D25 | D26 | D27 | D28 |
D38 Mass. Gain |
D37 La. (sp) Hold |
D36 La. (reg) Re-elected |
D35 Ky. Hold |
D34 Idaho Elected[b] |
D33 Ga. Hold |
D32 Ark. Re-elected |
D31 Ala. Re-elected |
D30 | D29 |
D39 Miss. Hold |
D40 Mont. Re-elected |
D41 Nev. Elected[b] |
D42 N.C. Re-elected |
D43 Okla. Re-elected |
D44 S.C. (reg) & S.C. (sp) Hold |
D45 Tenn. Re-elected |
D46 Texas Re-elected |
D47 Va. Re-elected |
R49 Wyo. Re-elected |
Majority → | |||||||||
R39 Neb. Re-elected |
R40 N.H. (reg) Gain |
R41 N.H. (sp) Hold |
R42 N.J. (sp) Elected N.J. (reg) Hold |
R43 N.M. Re-elected |
R44 Ore. (sp) Hold Ore. (reg) Elected[b] |
R45 R.I. Re-elected |
R46 S.D. Re-elected |
R47 W.Va. Hold |
R48 Wis. Gain |
R38 Mo. Gain |
R37 Minn. Re-elected |
R36 Mich. Hold |
R35 Me. Re-elected |
R34 Kan. Gain |
R33 Iowa Re-elected |
R32 Ill. Gain |
R31 Idaho (reg) Re-elected |
R30 Del. Gain |
R29 Colo. Gain |
R19 | R20 | R21 | R22 | R23 | R24 | R25 | R26 | R27 | R28 |
R18 | R17 | R16 | R15 | R14 | R13 | R12 | R11 | R10 | R9 |
R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | R8 |
Key: |
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Complete list of racesEdit
Special elections during the 65th CongressEdit
In these special elections, the winner was seated during 1918 or before March 4, 1919; ordered by election date.
State | Incumbent | Results | Candidates | ||
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Senator | Party | Electoral history | |||
Wisconsin (Class 3) |
Paul O. Husting | Democratic | 1914 | Incumbent died October 21, 1917. New senator elected April 2, 1918. Republican gain. |
▌Anthony J. Benjamin (Prohibition), 0.06%[1] |
Idaho (Class 3) |
John F. Nugent | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee elected November 5, 1918. |
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Louisiana (Class 3) |
Walter Guion | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee retired. New senator elected November 5, 1918. Democratic hold. |
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Missouri (Class 3) |
Xenophon P. Wilfley | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee lost nomination. New senator elected November 5, 1918. Republican gain. |
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Nevada (Class 3) |
Charles Henderson | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee elected November 5, 1918. |
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New Hampshire (Class 3) |
Irving W. Drew | Republican | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee retired. New senator elected November 5, 1918. Republican hold. |
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New Jersey (Class 2) |
David Baird | Republican | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee elected November 5, 1918. Interim appointee was not a candidate for the next term, see below. |
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Oregon (Class 2) |
Charles L. McNary | Republican | 1917 (Appointed) | Interim appointee retired. New senator elected November 5, 1918. Republican hold. Interim appointee was instead elected to the next term, see below. Mulkey took the seat but subsequently resigned so McNary could be re-appointed ahead of the term. |
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South Carolina (Class 2) |
Christie Benet | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee lost renomination. New senator elected November 5, 1918. Democratic hold. Neither the interim appointee nor the winner were elected to the next term, see below. |
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Elections leading to the 66th CongressEdit
In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1919; ordered by state.
All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.
State | Incumbent | Results | Candidates | ||
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Senator | Party | Electoral history | |||
Alabama | John H. Bankhead | Democratic | 1907 (Appointed) 1907 (Special) 1911 (Early) |
Incumbent re-elected. |
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Arkansas | Joseph Robinson | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Colorado | John F. Shafroth | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected. Republican gain. |
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Delaware | Willard Saulsbury, Jr. | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected. Republican gain. |
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Georgia | Thomas W. Hardwick | Democratic | 1914 (Special) | Incumbent lost renomination. New senator elected. Democratic hold. |
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Idaho | William Borah | Republican | 1907 1913 |
Incumbent re-elected. |
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Illinois | J. Hamilton Lewis | Democratic | 1913 (Late) | Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected. Republican gain. |
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Iowa | William S. Kenyon | Republican | 1911 (Special) 1913 |
Incumbent re-elected. |
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Kansas | William Thompson | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected. Republican gain. |
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Kentucky | George B. Martin | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Incumbent retired. New senator elected. Democratic hold. |
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Louisiana | Joseph E. Ransdell | Democratic | 1912 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Maine | Bert M. Fernald | Republican | 1916 (Special) | Incumbent re-elected September 9, 1918. |
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Massachusetts | John W. Weeks | Republican | 1913 | Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected. Democratic gain. |
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Michigan | William Alden Smith | Republican | 1911 1913 |
Incumbent retired. New senator elected. Republican hold. |
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Minnesota | Knute Nelson | Republican | 1895 1901 1907 1913 |
Incumbent re-elected. |
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Mississippi | James K. Vardaman | Democratic | 1912 | Incumbent lost renomination. New senator elected. |
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Montana | Thomas J. Walsh | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Nebraska | George W. Norris | Republican | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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New Hampshire | Henry F. Hollis | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent retired. New senator elected. Republican gain. |
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New Jersey | David Baird | Republican | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee retired. New senator elected. Republican hold. Interim appointee, however, was elected to finish the current term, see above. |
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New Mexico | Albert B. Fall | Republican | 1912 (New state) 1912 (Invalidated) 1913 |
Incumbent re-elected. |
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North Carolina | Furnifold Simmons | Democratic | 1901 1907 1913 |
Incumbent re-elected. |
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Oklahoma | Robert L. Owen | Democratic | 1907 1913 |
Incumbent re-elected. |
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Oregon | Charles L. McNary | Republican | 1917 (Appointed) | Interim appointee elected to the next term but not to finish the term. Winner subsequently appointed to begin next term early when winner of the special election, see above, resigned. |
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Rhode Island | LeBaron B. Colt | Republican | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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South Carolina | Christie Benet | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee retired. New senator elected. Democratic hold. Neither the interim appointee nor the winner were elected to finish the current term, see above. |
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South Dakota | Thomas Sterling | Republican | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Tennessee | John K. Shields | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Texas | Morris Sheppard | Democratic | 1913 (Special) | Incumbent re-elected. |
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Virginia | Thomas S. Martin | Democratic | 1893 (Early) 1899 (Early) 1906 1912 |
Incumbent re-elected. |
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West Virginia | Nathan Goff, Jr. | Republican | 1913 | Incumbent retired. New senator elected. Republican hold. |
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Wyoming | Francis E. Warren | Republican | 1890 1893 (Lost) 1895 1901 1907 1913 |
Incumbent re-elected. |
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AlabamaEdit
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
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Democratic | John H. Bankhead (incumbent) | 54,880 | 100.00 | |
Total votes | 54,880 | 100.00 | ||
Democratic hold |
ArkansasEdit
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
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Democratic | Joseph T. Robinson (incumbent) | 78,377 | 100.00 | |
Total votes | 78,377 | 100.00 | ||
Democratic hold |
ColoradoEdit
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
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Republican | Lawrence C. Phipps | 107,726 | 49.49 | |
Democratic | John F. Shafroth (incumbent) | 104,347 | 47.94 | |
Prohibition | P. A. Richardson | 5,606 | 2.58 | |
Majority | 3,379 | 1.55 | ||
Total votes | 217,679 | 100.00 | ||
Republican gain from Democratic |
DelawareEdit
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GeorgiaEdit
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IdahoEdit
Idaho (regular)Edit
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Idaho (special)Edit
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IllinoisEdit
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
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Republican | Medill McCormick | 479,983 | 50.50 | |
Democratic | James Hamilton Lewis (incumbent) | 426,943 | 44.92 | |
Socialist | William Bross Lloyd | 37,167 | 3.91 | |
Socialist Labor | John M. Francis | 3,268 | 0.34 | |
Prohibition | Frank B. Vennum | 3,151 | 0.33 | |
Majority | 53,024 | 5.58 | ||
Turnout | 950,496 | |||
Republican gain from Democratic |
IowaEdit
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KansasEdit
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KentuckyEdit
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LouisianaEdit
Louisiana (regular)Edit
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Louisiana (special)Edit
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MaineEdit
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MassachusettsEdit
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MichiganEdit
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Republican | Truman Handy Newberry | 220,054 | 50.19% | ||
Democratic | Henry Ford | 212,487 | 48.47% | ||
Socialist | Edward O. Foss | 4,763 | 1.09% | ||
Prohibition | William J. Faull | 1,133 | 0.26% | ||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
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Majority | 7,567 | 1.72 | |||
Total votes | 438,437 | 100.00 | |||
Republican hold |
MinnesotaEdit
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
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Republican | Knute Nelson (incumbent) | 206,428 | 60.05 | |
National | Willis Calderwood | 137,334 | 39.95 | |
Majority | 69,094 | 20.10 | ||
Total votes | 343,762 | 100.00 | ||
Republican hold |
MississippiEdit
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Missouri (special)Edit
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MontanaEdit
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County results | |||||||||||||||||||||
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NebraskaEdit
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Nevada (special)Edit
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Results by county Henderson: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Roberts: 40–50% 50–60% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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New HampshireEdit
New Hampshire (regular)Edit
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New Hampshire (special)Edit
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New JerseyEdit
New Jersey (regular)Edit
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New Jersey (special)Edit
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New MexicoEdit
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North CarolinaEdit
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OklahomaEdit
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OregonEdit
Oregon (Regular)Edit
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Oregon (Special)Edit
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Rhode IslandEdit
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South CarolinaEdit
South Carolina (regular)Edit
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
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Democratic | Nathaniel B. Dial | 65,064 | 58.70 | |
Democratic | Coleman L. Blease | 40,456 | 36.50 | |
Democratic | James F. Rice | 5,317 | 4.80 | |
Majority | 24,608 | 22.20 | ||
Total votes | 110,837 | 100.00 | ||
Democratic hold |
South Carolina (special)Edit
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
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Democratic | William P. Pollock | 38,816 | 34.91 | |
Democratic | Thomas H. Peeples | 37,567 | 33.79 | |
Democratic | Christie Benet (incumbent) | 34,807 | 31.30 | |
Total votes | 111,190 | 100.00 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
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Democratic | William P. Pollock | 49,920 | 62.43 | |
Democratic | Thomas H. Peeples | 30,044 | 37.57 | |
Majority | 19,876 | 24.86 | ||
Total votes | 79,964 | 100.00 | ||
Democratic hold |
South DakotaEdit
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TennesseeEdit
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TexasEdit
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VirginiaEdit
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West VirginiaEdit
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Wisconsin (Special)Edit
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
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Republican | Irvine Lenroot | 163,983 | 38.73 | |
Democratic | Joseph E. Davies | 148,923 | 35.12 | |
Socialist | Victor L. Berger | 110,487 | 26.09 | |
Prohibition | Anthony J. Benjamin | 233 | 0.06 | |
Write-in | Scattering | 371 | 0.06 | |
Majority | 15,060 | 3.61 | ||
Total votes | 423,997 | 100.00 | ||
Republican gain from Democratic |
WyomingEdit
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See alsoEdit
NotesEdit
ReferencesEdit
- ^ a b The Wisconsin Blue Book. 1919. Madison: Democrat Printing Co. 1919. p. 46.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Kalb, Deborah, ed. (2010). Guide to U.S. Elections. Washington, DC: CQ Press. ISBN 978-1-60426-536-1.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Dubin, Michael J. (1998). United States Congressional Elections, 1788-1997: The Official Results. Jefferson: McFarland & Company. ISBN 0-7864-0283-0.
- ^ 1919 Official Directory of Wyoming and Election Returns For 1918. Wyoming official directory and election returns. W.E. Chaplin, Wyoming Secretary of State. pp. 36–37. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
- ^ a b c Jordan, Frank E. (1966). The Primary State: A History of the Democratic Party in South Carolina, 1876-1962. Columbia. pp. 64–66.