1848 Wisconsin gubernatorial election

Summary

The 1848 Wisconsin gubernatorial election was held on May 8, 1848. This was the election for the first Governor of Wisconsin, which became a U.S. state that year, as it was held concurrent with a public referendum to ratify the Constitution of Wisconsin.

1848 Wisconsin gubernatorial election
May 8, 1848 1849 →
 
Nominee Nelson Dewey John Hubbard Tweedy
Party Democratic Whig
Popular vote 19,875 14,621
Percentage 55.69% 40.97%

Elected Governor

Nelson Dewey
Democratic

Democrat Nelson Dewey, of Grant County, won the election with nearly 56% of the vote. Dewey defeated Whig Party candidate John Hubbard Tweedy, of Milwaukee.[1]

Democratic Party edit

Nelson Dewey was a prominent lawyer and real-estate investor in Grant County, Wisconsin. He did extensive business with the lead-mining industry, which was a major component of the economy of the Wisconsin Territory. He had been a member of nearly every session of the Wisconsin Territorial Legislature, first as a member of the Territorial Assembly, from 1838 to 1842, then as a member of the Territorial Council from 1842 to 1846. He served as Speaker of the Territorial Assembly in 1840, and President of the Territorial Council in 1846.[2]

Dewey was chosen as a compromise candidate at the Democratic Party Convention after delegates became deadlocked between the lead-mining region's preferred candidate, Hiram Barber, and the eastern region's preferred candidate, Morgan Lewis Martin.[3]

Other candidates edit

Whig Party edit

John Hubbard Tweedy was, at the time of the 1848 election, the non-voting representative of the Wisconsin Territory to the United States House of Representatives for the 30th Congress. He had been a delegate to Wisconsin's first constitutional convention, and had served in the Wisconsin Territorial Assembly during the second session of the third legislature (Winter of 1841-1842).[2]

Independent candidate edit

Charles Durkee was a merchant, and one of the founders of Southport (now Kenosha, Wisconsin). He was a member of the Wisconsin Territorial Assembly for the first legislature (1836 to 1838).[2]

General election edit

Results edit

Wisconsin Gubernatorial Election, 1848[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
General Election, May 8, 1848
Democratic Nelson Dewey 19,875 55.69%
Whig John Hubbard Tweedy 14,621 40.97%
Independent Charles Durkee[note 1] 1,134 3.18%
Scattering 56 0.16%
Total votes 35,686 100.0%
Democratic win (new seat)

County results edit

County results[5]
County Nelson Dewey

Democratic

John H. Tweedy

Whig

Charles Durkee

Independent

Total votes
# % # % # %
Brown 311 69.4% 137 30.6% 0 0.0% 448
Calumet 113 63.1% 66 36.9% 0 0.0% 179
Chippewa[note 2] 270 71.6% 107 28.4% 0 0.0% 377
Columbus 328 44.4% 411 55.6% 0 0.0% 739
Dane 1,098 59.0% 751 40.3% 13 0.7% 1,862
Dodge 1,116 59.6% 706 37.7% 52 2.8% 1,874
Fond du Lac 622 49.1% 510 40.2% 136 10.7% 1,268
Grant 1,199 44.9% 1,467 55.0% 3 0.1% 2,669
Green 481 53.4% 406 45.1% 13 1.4% 900
Iowa & Richland[note 3] 847 53.2% 745 46.8% 0 0.0% 1,592
Jefferson 1,157 54.8% 893 42.3% 61 2.9% 2,111
La Fayette 1,232 58.8% 863 41.2% 0 0.0% 2,095
Marquette 230 45.0% 258 50.5% 23 4.5% 511
Milwaukee 2,021 61.2% 1,194 36.1% 89 2.7% 3,304
Portage 160 51.1% 153 48.9% 0 0.0% 313
Racine 1,765 55.0% 1,209 37.6% 238 7.4% 3,212
Rock 1,394 48.0% 1,475 50.8% 33 1.1% 2,902
Sauk 187 53.0% 157 44.5% 9 2.5% 353
Sheboygan 554 57.8% 384 40.0% 21 2.2% 959
Walworth 1,478 49.1% 1,356 45.1% 175 5.8% 3,009
Washington 1,598 85.9% 263 14.1% 0 0.0% 1,861
Waukesha 1,197 49.8% 938 39.0% 268 11.2% 2,716
Totals 19,538 55.6% 14,449 41.1% 1,134 3.2% 35,121

References edit

  1. ^ a b Joint Committee on Legislative Organization, Wisconsin Legislature (2015). Wisconsin Blue Book 2015–2016. Madison, Wisconsin: Wisconsin Department of Administration. pp. 699–701. ISBN 978-0-9752820-7-6.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Heg, J.E., ed. (1882). "Annals of the legislature". The Blue Book of the state of Wisconsin, 1882 (Report). State of Wisconsin. pp. 161–171, 175–176. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
  3. ^ Toepel, M. G.; Kuehn, Hazel L., eds. (1960). "Wisconsin's former governors, 1848-1959". The Wisconsin Blue Book, 1960 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. p. 73. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
  4. ^ Theobald, H. Rupert, ed. (1966). "Statistical information on Wisconsin". The Wisconsin Blue Book, 1966 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. p. 607. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
  5. ^ Dubin, Michael J. (2003). United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1776-1860: The Official Results by State and County. Jefferson: McFarland & Company. p. 287. ISBN 9780786414390.

Notes edit

  1. ^ 1848 Election data is incomplete. Totals for Dewey and Tweedy are widely cited in earlier blue books and primary sources, but data for Durkee was compiled later using county returns still available -- Winnebago and Manitowoc counties were not available, thus are missing from Durkee's total.[4]
  2. ^ Dubin reports Chippewa as also including Crawford, Lapointe, and St. Croix counties.
  3. ^ Dubin reports Iowa & Richland counties together