1856 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

1856 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

November 4, 1856 (1856-11-04)

Nominee Henry J. Gardner Erasmus Beach George W. Gordon Party Know Nothing Democratic Know Nothing Alliance Republican Popular vote 92,467 40,082 10,385 Percentage 58.92% 25.54% 6.62%

County results Gardner:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%

Governor before election Henry J. Gardner Know Nothing Elected Governor Henry J. Gardner Know Nothing

The 1856 Massachusetts gubernatorial election on November 4. Incumbent Know-Nothing governor Henry J. Gardner was re-elected to a third term. He benefited greatly from a deal with the state's new Republican Party, which agreed not to field a candidate in exchange for Gardner's support of presidential nominee John C. Frémont. With no serious challenger in the field against him, Gardner easily defeated Democrat Erasmus Beach and George W. Gordon, an American Party member running in support of the national ticket.

This was the last election in which the Whig Party participated.

Whig convention

Candidates

• Thomas Aspinwall, former U.S. consul at London (1816–54)
• Luther Vose Bell, Superintendent of McLean Asylum and candidate for U.S. representative in 1852 and 1854

1856 Massachusetts Whig convention^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	Luther Vose Bell	215	56.58%
	Whig	Thomas Aspinwall	104	27.37%
	Whig	Scattering	61	16.05%
Total votes			380	100.00%

Know-Nothing convention

The American Party convention was held at Faneuil Hall, Boston, on July 24, 1856.

Candidates

• Henry J. Gardner, incumbent governor

1856 Massachusetts Know-Nothing convention^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Know Nothing	Henry J. Gardner (incumbent)	unanimous

General election

Candidates

• Erasmus Beach, nominee for governor in 1855 (Democratic)
• Luther Vose Bell, superintendent of McLean Asylum (Whig)
• Henry J. Gardner, incumbent governor (American)
• George W. Gordon ("Fillmore American")
• Josiah Quincy Jr., former mayor of Boston (Independent)

Results

1856 Massachusetts gubernatorial election^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Know Nothing	Henry J. Gardner (incumbent)	92,467	58.92%	N/A
	Democratic	Erasmus D. Beach	40,082	25.54%	0.10
	Independent	George W. Gordon	10,385	6.62%	N/A
	Whig	Luther Vose Bell	7,075	4.51%	5.23
	Independent Republican	Josiah Quincy Jr.	5,625	3.59%	N/A
	Scattering	All others	1,291	0.82%	0.63
Total votes			136,488	100.00%
	Know Nothing hold		Swing

See also

• 1856 Massachusetts legislature

References

1. "Massachusetts Politics.: THE WHIG STATE CONVENTION--FILLMORE INDORSED--CANDIDATES FOR STATE OFFICERS". The New York Times. September 4, 1856. p. 4. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
2. "Governor Gardner's Letter of Acceptance--His Indorsement of John C. Fremont". New York Times. New York, NY. July 30, 1856. p. 1. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
3. Dubin, Michael J. (2003). United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1776-1860: The Official Results by State and County. Jefferson: McFarland & Company. p. 119. ISBN 9780786414390.