1796–97 United States House of Representatives elections

The 1796–97 United States House of Representatives elections took place in the various states took place between August 12, 1796 (in North Carolina), and October 15, 1797 (in Tennessee). Each state set its own date for its elections to the House of Representatives. The size of the House increased to 106 seats after Tennessee became the 16th state to join the union. The first session of the 5th United States Congress was convened on May 15, 1797, at the proclamation of the new President of the United States, John Adams. Since Kentucky and Tennessee had not yet voted, they were unrepresented until the second session began on November 13, 1797.

1796–97 United States House of Representatives elections

← 1794 & 1795 August 12, 1796 – October 15, 1797 1798 & 1799 →
← outgoing members elected members →
All 106 seats in the United States House of Representatives 54 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Jonathan Dayton Nathaniel Macon Party Federalist Democratic-Republican Leader's seat New Jersey at-large North Carolina 5 Last election 47 seats 59 seats Seats won 57 49 Seat change 10 10
Results:      Federalist hold      Federalist gain      Democratic-Republican hold      Democratic-Republican gain      Undistricted territory

Gains for the Federalist Party provided the president with a reliable majority in support of his policies. Many of the Federalist pick-ups in Congress came from the former Middle Colonies (New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware). New England remained heavily Federalist, whereas the South and West favored Democratic-Republican candidates. Federalist trade and infrastructure policies found widespread approval in the Mid-Atlantic states during this era. With the growth of cities in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York, government intervention in the interest of industrialization and mercantilism became more attractive to voting citizens in these areas.

During this period, each state fixed its own date for a congressional general election. Elections to a Congress took place both in the even-numbered year before and in the odd-numbered year when the Congress convened. In some states the congressional delegation was not elected until after the legal start of the Congress (on the 4th day of March in the odd-numbered year).

Election summaries

During this period, each state fixed its own date for a congressional general election. Elections took place both in the even-numbered year before and in the odd-numbered year when a Congress convened. In some states, the congressional delegation was not elected until after the legal start of the Congress (on the 4th day of March in the odd-numbered year). The 1st session of the 5th Congress ran May 15 – July 10, 1797, before the states of Kentucky and Tennessee had their elections, causing those states to be unrepresented in the 1st session.

↓

49	57
Democratic-Republican	Federalist

State	Type	↑ Date	Total seats	Democratic- Republican		Federalist
				Seats	Change	Seats	Change
Regular elections
North Carolina	Districts	August 12, 1796	10	9		1
New Hampshire	At-large	August 29, 1796	4	0	1	4	1
Rhode Island	At-large	August 30, 1796	2	0		2
Vermont	Districts	September 9, 1796	2	1		1
Connecticut	At-large	September 19, 1796	7	0		7
Maryland	Districts	October 3, 1796	8	2	2	6	2
Delaware	At-large	October 4, 1796	1	0	1	1	1
Pennsylvania	Districts	October 11, 1796	13	7	2	6	2
South Carolina	Districts	October 11, 1796	6	3	1	3	1
Georgia	At-large	November 7, 1796	2	2		0
Massachusetts	Districts	November 7, 1796	14	3		11
New York	Districts	December 15, 1796	10	4	1	6	1
New Jersey	At-large	January 11, 1797	5	0		5
Late elections (after the March 4, 1797 start of Congress)
Virginia	Districts	March 20, 1797	19	15	2	4	2
Kentucky	Districts	September 2, 1797	2	2		0
Tennessee	At-large	October 15, 1797	1	1		0
Total			106	49 46.2%	10	57 53.8%	10

House seats Democratic-Republican   46.23% Federalist   53.77%

Special elections

Elections are sorted by election date, then by district.

Fourth Congress

There were special and late elections to the 4th Congress in 1796.

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Maryland 2	Gabriel Duvall	Democratic- Republican	1794 (special)	Incumbent resigned March 28, 1796, having been elected judge of the Supreme Court of Maryland. New member elected April 18, 1796 and seated May 5, 1796. Democratic-Republican hold. Winner was later elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y Richard Sprigg Jr. (Democratic-Republican) Unopposed
Massachusetts 10	Benjamin Goodhue	Federalist	1789	Incumbent resigned in June 1796 to become a U.S. Senator. New member elected September 12, 1796 and seated December 7, 1796. Federalist hold. Winner was later elected to the next term; see below.	First ballot (August 1, 1796) ▌Samuel Sewall (Federalist) 31.9% ▌Jonathan Ingersoll (Unknown) 22.5% ▌John Morris (Unknown) 21.2% ▌John Cabot (Unknown) 10.5% ▌Samuel Holten (Federalist) 6.8% ▌Elias H. Dooly (Unknown) 4.0% Scattering 3.1% Second ballot (September 12, 1796) ▌Y Samuel Sewall (Federalist) 61.7% ▌Loammi Baldwin (Federalist) 38.3%
Connecticut at-large	James Hillhouse	Federalist	1790	Incumbent resigned July 1, 1796 to become U.S. Senator. New member elected September 19, 1796 and seated December 5, 1796. Federalist hold. On the same day, winner lost election to the next term; see below.	▌Y James Davenport (Federalist) [data missing]
Maryland 3	Jeremiah Crabb	Federalist	1794	Incumbent resigned in 1796. New member elected October 3, 1796 and seated December 5, 1796. Federalist hold. On the same ballot, winner was elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y William Craik (Federalist) 50.7% ▌Benjamin Edwards (Federalist) 49.3%
Pennsylvania 5	Daniel Hiester	Democratic- Republican	1788	Incumbent resigned July 1, 1796. New member elected October 11, 1796 and seated December 8, 1796. Federalist gain.	▌Y George Ege (Federalist) 56.8% ▌Joseph Hiester (Democratic-Republican) 45.2%
Tennessee at-large	None (District created)			New state admitted June 1, 1796. New member elected October 15, 1796 and seated December 5, 1796. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y Andrew Jackson (Democratic-Republican) 98.9% ▌James Rody (Unknown) 1.1%
Rhode Island at-large	Benjamin Bourne	Federalist	1790 (late ratification)	Incumbent resigned in 1796 to become a U.S. district judge. New member elected November 15, 1796 and seated December 19, 1796. Federalist hold. Winner was also elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y Elisha Reynolds Potter (Federalist) 71.0% ▌Peleg Arnold (Democratic-Republican) 29.0%
Massachusetts 1	Theodore Sedgwick	Federalist	1789	Incumbent resigned in June 1796, having been elected U.S. Senator. New member elected November 21, 1796 and seated January 27, 1797. Democratic-Republican gain.	First ballot (September 5, 1796) ▌Thomson J. Skinner (Democratic-Republican) 48.0% ▌Ephraim Williams (Federalist) 49.9% Scattering 2.1% Second ballot (November 21, 1796) ▌Y Thomson J. Skinner (Democratic-Republican) 62.7% ▌Ephraim Williams (Federalist) 32.0% Scattering 5.3%
North Carolina 4	Absalom Tatom	Democratic- Republican	1795	Incumbent resigned June 1, 1796. New member elected November 28, 1796 and seated December 13, 1796. Federalist gain. Winner did not run for the next term.	▌Y William F. Strudwick (Federalist) 76.3% ▌Richard Stanford (Democratic-Republican) 22.5% Scattering 1.2%
Connecticut at-large	Uriah Tracy	Federalist	1792	Incumbent resigned October 13, 1796 to become U.S. Senator. New member elected December 5, 1796 and seated January 3, 1797. Federalist hold. Winner had already been elected to the next term; see below.	▌Y Samuel Dana (Federalist) [data missing]

Fifth Congress

There were special and late elections to the 5th Congress in 1797.

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Vermont 2	Daniel Buck	Federalist	1795	Incumbent re-elected, but declined to serve. New member elected May 23, 1797. Federalist hold.	▌Y Lewis R. Morris (Federalist) 56.9% ▌Stephen Jacob (Federalist) 13.6% ▌Nathaniel Niles (Democratic-Republican) 11.2% ▌Amasa Paine (Federalist) 6.6% Scattering 11.8%
Massachusetts 11	Theophilus Bradbury	Federalist	1794/95	Incumbent resigned July 24, 1797. New member elected August 4, 1797 and seated November 27, 1797. Federalist hold.	▌Y Bailey Bartlett (Federalist) 81.4% Scattering 18.6%
New Hampshire at-large	Jeremiah Smith	Federalist	1794	Incumbent resigned July 26, 1797. New member elected August 28, 1797 and seated December 15, 1797. Federalist hold.	First ballot (August 28, 1797) ▌Peleg Sprague (Federalist) 43.3% ▌Woodbury Langdon (Democratic-Republican) 22.5% ▌Edward Livermore (Federalist) 21.3% Others 12.8% Second ballot (October 30, 1797): ▌Y Peleg Sprague (Federalist) 66.6% ▌Woodbury Langdon (Democratic-Republican) 33.4%
Rhode Island at-large	Elisha Potter	Federalist	1796 (special)	Incumbent resigned sometime in 1797. New member elected August 29, 1797 and seated November 13, 1797. Federalist hold.	▌Y Thomas Tillinghast (Federalist) 78.3% ▌James Burrill Jr. (Federalist) 18.1% Scattering 3.6%
South Carolina 1	William L. Smith	Federalist	1788	Incumbent resigned July 10, 1797. New member elected September 4–5, 1797 and seated November 23, 1797. Federalist hold.	▌Y Thomas Pinckney (Federalist) Unopposed
Connecticut at-large	James Davenport	Federalist	1796 (special)	Died August 3, 1797. New member elected September 18, 1797 and seated November 13, 1797. Federalist hold.	▌Y William Edmond (Federalist) 56.3% ▌John Treadwell (Federalist) 24.8% ▌Gideon Granger (Democratic-Republican) 16.1% ▌David Daggett (Federalist) 2.8%
Tennessee at-large	Andrew Jackson	Democratic- Republican	1797 (new state)	Incumbent resigned in September 1797 when elected U.S. Senator. New member elected September 26, 1797 and seated November 23, 1797, despite being under the minimum age for service. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y William C. C. Claiborne (Democratic-Republican) ▌John Rhea (Unknown) ▌ (Unknown)
Pennsylvania 5	George Ege	Federalist	1796 (special)	Incumbent resigned in October 1797. New member elected October 10, 1797 and seated December 1, 1797. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y Joseph Hiester (Democratic-Republican) Unopposed

Connecticut

Connecticut's results

Connecticut elected its seven representatives at-large on a general ticket.

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Connecticut at-large 7 seats on a general ticket	Uriah Tracy	Federalist	1792	Incumbent re-elected. Winner declined to serve.	▌Y Uriah Tracy (Federalist) 13.8% ▌Y Roger Griswold (Federalist) 13.3% ▌Y Joshua Coit (Federalist) 12.1% ▌Y Zephaniah Swift (Federalist) 12.0% ▌Y Nathaniel Smith (Federalist) 11.9% ▌Y Chauncey Goodrich (Federalist) 9.7% ▌Y Samuel W. Dana (Federalist) 7.5% ▌James Davenport (Federalist) 6.2% ▌David Daggett (Federalist) 4.7% ▌John Allen (Federalist) 3.3% ▌William Edmond (Federalist) 3.3% ▌Jonathan Treadwell 2.6% ▌Gideon Granger (Democratic-Republican) 2.2%
	Roger Griswold	Federalist	1794	Incumbent re-elected.
	Joshua Coit	Federalist	1792	Incumbent re-elected.
	Zephariah Swift	Federalist	1792	Incumbent re-elected. Winner declined to serve.
	Nathaniel Smith	Federalist	1795 (special)	Incumbent re-elected.
	Chauncey Goodrich	Federalist	1794	Incumbent re-elected.
	James Hillhouse	Federalist	1790	Incumbent resigned July 1, 1796. Federalist hold.

Delaware

Delaware's result

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Delaware at-large	John Patten	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent retired. Federalist gain.	▌Y James A. Bayard (Federalist) 56.3% ▌William Perry (Democratic-Republican) 43.7%

Georgia

Georgia's results

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Georgia at-large 2 seats on a general ticket	Abraham Baldwin	Democratic- Republican	1789	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Abraham Baldwin (Democratic-Republican) 35.8% ▌Y John Milledge (Democratic-Republican) 33.1% ▌Thomas P. Carnes (Federalist) 18.7% ▌Francis Willis (Democratic-Republican) 10.5% ▌George Nailor (Democratic-Republican) 1.8%
	John Milledge	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent re-elected.

Kentucky

Kentucky's results by district

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Kentucky 1 "Southern District"	Christopher Greenup	Democratic- Republican	1792	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Thomas Davis (Democratic-Republican) 100%
Kentucky 2 "Northern District"	Alexander D. Orr	Democratic- Republican	1792	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y John Fowler (Democratic-Republican) ▌Notley Conn (Unknown) ▌Edmund Bollock (Unknown)

Maryland

Maryland's results by district

Two of the four Democratic-Republicans were replaced by Federalists, bringing the Federalists from a 4–4 split to a 6–2 majority.

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Maryland 1	George Dent	Federalist	1792	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y George Dent (Federalist) 99.7% ▌Philip Key (Unknown) 0.3%
Maryland 2	Richard Sprigg Jr.	Democratic-Republican	1796 (special)	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Richard Sprigg Jr. (Democratic-Republican) 100%
Maryland 3	William Craik	Federalist	1796 (special)	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y William Craik (Federalist) 51.0% ▌Benjamin Edwards (Federalist) 49.0%
Maryland 4	Thomas Sprigg	Democratic-Republican	1792	Incumbent retired. Federalist gain.	▌Y George Baer Jr. (Federalist) 72.1% ▌Samuel Ringgold (Democratic-Republican) 27.9%
Maryland 5	Samuel Smith	Democratic-Republican	1792	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Samuel Smith (Democratic-Republican) 100%
Maryland 6	Gabriel Christie	Democratic-Republican	1792	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist gain.	▌Y William Matthews (Federalist) 51.5% ▌Gabriel Christie (Democratic-Republican) 48.5%
Maryland 7	William Hindman	Federalist	1792	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y William Hindman (Federalist) 62.6% ▌Robert Wright (Democratic-Republican) 37.4%
Maryland 8	William V. Murray	Federalist	1790	Incumbent retired. Federalist hold.	▌Y John Dennis (Federalist) 100%

Massachusetts

Massachusetts's results

Massachusetts's electoral law required a majority for election, necessitating additional trials in three districts.

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Massachusetts 1 "1st Western District"	Vacant			Incumbent rep.-elect Theodore Sedgwick (F) resigned in June 1796 to become U.S. Senator. Democratic-Republican gain. New member also elected to finish the term on a later ballot; see above.	▌Y Thomson J. Skinner (Democratic-Republican) 56.4% ▌Ephraim Williams (Federalist) 43.6%
Massachusetts 2 "2nd Western District"	William Lyman	Democratic- Republican	1792	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist gain.	First ballot (November 7, 1796) ▌William Shepard (Federalist) 46.3% ▌Sam Hinshaw (Unknown) 23.9% ▌William Lyman (Democratic-Republican) 21.4% ▌John Williams (Unknown) 4.0% ▌Nahum Park (Unknown) 2.0% Scattering 2.4% Second ballot (January 16, 1797) ▌Y William Shepard (Federalist) 100%
Massachusetts 3 "3rd Western District"	Samuel Lyman	Federalist	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Samuel Lyman (Federalist) 83.3% ▌Daniel Bigelow (Democratic-Republican) 16.7%
Massachusetts 4 "4th Western District"	Dwight Foster	Federalist	1792	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Dwight Foster (Federalist) 80.8% ▌Levi Lincoln Sr. (Democratic-Republican) 19.2%
Massachusetts 5 "1st Southern District"	Nathaniel Freeman	Federalist	1794	Incumbent switched parties and was re-elected. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y Nathaniel Freeman (Democratic-Republican) 82.1% ▌Peleg Coffin Jr. (Federalist) 17.9%
Massachusetts 6 "2nd Southern District"	John Reed Sr.	Federalist	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y John Reed Sr. (Federalist) 78.8% ▌Edward H. Robbins (Federalist) 21.2%
Massachusetts 7 "3rd Southern District"	George Leonard	Federalist	1788 1794	Incumbent retired. Federalist hold.	First ballot (November 7, 1796) ▌Elisha May (Federalist) 45.3% ▌Stephen Bullock (Federalist) 28.3% ▌Laban Wheaton (Federalist) 26.4% Second ballot (January 16, 1797) ▌Stephen Bullock (Federalist) 35.8% ▌Laban Wheaton (Federalist) 32.7% ▌Elisha May (Federalist) 31.5% Third ballot (April 3, 1797) ▌Y Stephen Bullock (Federalist) 56.7% ▌Elisha May (Federalist) 28.3% ▌Laban Wheaton (Federalist) 15.1%
Massachusetts 8 "1st Middle District"	Fisher Ames	Federalist	1788	Incumbent retired. Federalist hold.	▌Y Harrison Gray Otis (Federalist) 57.0% ▌James Bowdoin (Democratic-Republican) 43.0%
Massachusetts 9 "2nd Middle District"	Joseph Varnum	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Joseph Varnum (Democratic-Republican) 69.0% ▌Ebenezer Bridge (Federalist) 16.8% ▌Samuel Dexter (Federalist) 14.3%
Massachusetts 10 "3rd Middle District"	Samuel Sewall	Federalist	1796 (special)	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Samuel Sewall (Federalist) 67.9% ▌Loammi Baldwin (Federalist) 22.1%
Massachusetts 11 "4th Middle District"	Theophilus Bradbury	Federalist	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Theophilus Bradbury (Federalist) 100%
Massachusetts 12 District of Maine "1st Eastern District"	Henry Dearborn	Democratic- Republican	1792	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist gain.	First ballot (November 7, 1796) ▌Isaac Parker (Federalist) 40.5% ▌Henry Dearborn (Democratic-Republican) 31.7% ▌John Bowman (Unknown) 27.8% Second ballot (January 16, 1797) ▌Isaac Parker (Federalist) 48.2% ▌Henry Dearborn (Democratic-Republican) 33.8% ▌John Bowman (Unknown) 18.0% Third ballot (April 3, 1797) ▌Y Isaac Parker (Federalist) 52.6% ▌Henry Dearborn (Democratic-Republican) 47.5%
Massachusetts 13 District of Maine "2nd Eastern District"	Peleg Wadsworth	Federalist	1792	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Peleg Wadsworth (Federalist) 100%
Massachusetts 14 District of Maine "3rd Eastern District"	George Thatcher	Federalist	1788	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y George Thatcher (Federalist) 100%

New Hampshire

New Hampshire's results

In 1796, New Hampshire had a single at-large district with 4 seats. Each voter cast 4 votes and a majority of voters (12.5% of votes) was required to be elected. Since only three candidates received a majority, a run-off was held between the candidates in fourth and fifth place to fill the remaining seat.

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
New Hampshire at-large 4 seats on a general ticket	Jeremiah Smith	Federalist	1790	Incumbent re-elected.	First ballot (August 29, 1796) ▌Y Jeremiah Smith (Federalist) 25.0% ▌Y Abiel Foster (Federalist) 24.3% ▌Y William Gordon (Federalist) 14.9% ▌Y Jonathan Freeman (Federalist) 9.5% ▌Y Peleg Sprague (Federalist) 4.4% ▌Woodbury Langdon (Democratic-Republican) 4.2% ▌John Prentice 4.1% ▌Thomas Cogwell 3.4% ▌Nathaniel Peabody 2.3% ▌John Bellows 2.1% ▌Joseph Cilley 1.9% ▌Nathaniel Rogers 1.9% Second ballot (November 7, 1796) ▌Y Jonathan Freeman (Federalist) 72.5% ▌Peleg Sprague (Federalist) 27.5%
	Nicholas Gilman	Federalist	1788/89	Incumbent retired. Federalist hold.
	John S. Sherburne	Democratic- Republican	1792	Incumbent retired. Federalist gain.
	Abiel Foster	Federalist	1794	Incumbent re-elected.

New Jersey

New Jersey's results

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
New Jersey at-large 5 seats on a general ticket	Jonathan Dayton	Federalist	1791	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Jonathan Dayton (Federalist) 15.8% ▌Y Mark Thomson (Federalist) 10.4% ▌Y James H. Imlay (Federalist) 9.6% ▌Y James Schureman (Federalist) 9.3% ▌Y Thomas Sinnickson (Federalist) 9.1% ▌Aaron Kitchell (Democratic-Republican) 8.6% ▌Joseph Bloomfield (Democratic-Republican) 5.5% ▌James Linn (Democratic-Republican) 5.3% ▌Ebenezer Elmer (Democratic-Republican) 4.8% ▌John Condit (Democratic-Republican) 4.6% ▌William Crane (Federalist) 3.5% ▌Joseph Cooper (Democratic-Republican) 3.5% ▌William Helms (Democratic-Republican) 2.8% ▌Thomas Lowrey (Federalist) 1.5% ▌Jonathan Elmer (Federalist) 1.3%
	Mark Thomson	Federalist	1794	Incumbent re-elected.
	Aaron Kitchell	Federalist	1794 (special)	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist hold.
	Thomas Henderson	Federalist	1794	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist hold.
	Isaac Smith	Federalist	1794	Incumbent retired. Federalist hold.

New York

New York's results by district

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
New York 1	Jonathan Nicoll Havens	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Jonathan Nicoll Havens (Democratic-Republican) 66.0% ▌Selah Strong (Federalist) 34.0%
New York 2	Edward Livingston	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Edward Livingston (Democratic-Republican) 56.6% ▌James Watson (Federalist) 43.3%
New York 3	Philip Van Cortlandt	Democratic- Republican	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Philip Van Cortlandt (Democratic-Republican) 50.3% ▌Samuel Haight (Federalist) 49.7%
New York 4	John Hathorn	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Lucas Elmendorf (Democratic-Republican) 56.1% ▌Conrad E. Elmendorf (Federalist) 43.9%
New York 5	Theodorus Bailey	Democratic- Republican	1793	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist gain.	▌Y David Brooks (Federalist) 54.5% ▌Theodorus Bailey (Democratic-Republican) 45.5%
New York 6	Ezekiel Gilbert	Federalist	1793	Incumbent retired. Federalist hold.	▌Y Hezekiah L. Hosmer (Federalist) 57.7% ▌John P. Van Ness (Democratic-Republican) 42.3%
New York 7	John E. Van Alen	Federalist	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y John E. Van Alen (Federalist) 57.9% ▌John Woodworth (Democratic-Republican) 42.1%
New York 8	Henry Glen	Federalist	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Henry Glen (Federalist) 77.7% ▌Peter Swart (Democratic-Republican) 22.3%
New York 9	John Williams	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent re-elected as a Federalist. Federalist gain.	▌Y John Williams (Federalist) 62.8% ▌James Gordon (Federalist) 27.3% ▌Douw I. Fonda (Democratic-Republican) 10.0%
New York 10	William Cooper	Federalist	1794	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist hold.	▌Y James Cochran (Federalist) 50.6% ▌William Cooper (Federalist) 48.7% ▌Charles Williamson (Democratic-Republican) 0.7%

North Carolina

North Carolina's results by district

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
North Carolina 1	James Holland	Democratic- Republican	1795	Incumbent lost re-election. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Joseph McDowell (Democratic-Republican) ▌James Holland (Democratic-Republican)
North Carolina 2	Matthew Locke	Democratic- Republican	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Matthew Locke (Democratic-Republican) 56.9% ▌Nathaniel Alexander (Democratic-Republican) 27.1% ▌Robert Irwin (Federalist) 15.8% Others 0.2%
North Carolina 3	Jesse Franklin	Democratic- Republican	1795	Incumbent lost re-election. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Robert Williams (Democratic-Republican) ▌Jesse Franklin (Democratic-Republican)
North Carolina 4	William F. Strudwick	Federalist	1796 (special)	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y Richard Stanford (Democratic-Republican) ▌Absalom Tatom (Democratic-Republican) ▌William Sheppard (Federalist) ▌Stephen Moore (Federalist)
North Carolina 5	Nathaniel Macon	Democratic- Republican	1791	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Nathaniel Macon (Democratic-Republican) 100%
North Carolina 6	James Gillespie	Democratic- Republican	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y James Gillespie (Democratic-Republican) ▌William H. Hill (Federalist) ▌James Keenan (Unknown) ▌Gabriel Holmes (Independent)
North Carolina 7	William B. Grove	Federalist	1791	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y William B. Grove (Federalist) 73.4% ▌Duncan MacFarland (Democratic-Republican) 26.6%
North Carolina 8	Dempsey Burgess	Democratic- Republican	1795	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Dempsey Burgess (Democratic-Republican) ▌Joseph Riddick (Democratic-Republican) ▌James Gregory (Federalist) ▌James Brown (Federalist)
North Carolina 9	Thomas Blount	Democratic- Republican	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Thomas Blount (Democratic-Republican) ▌Willis Alston (Federalist)
North Carolina 10	Nathan Bryan	Democratic- Republican	1795	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Nathan Bryan (Democratic-Republican) 54.1% ▌Richard D. Spaight (Democratic-Republican) 45.9%

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania's results by district

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Pennsylvania 1	John Swanwick	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y John Swanwick (Democratic-Republican) 51.3% ▌ (Federalist) 48.7%
Pennsylvania 2	Frederick Muhlenberg	Democratic- Republican	1788	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Blair McClenachan (Democratic-Republican) 60.2% ▌Robert Waln (Federalist) 39.8%
Pennsylvania 3	Richard Thomas	Federalist	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Richard Thomas (Federalist) 52.9% ▌William Gibbons (Democratic-Republican) 47.1%
Pennsylvania 4 Plural district with 2 seats	Samuel Sitgreaves	Federalist	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Samuel Sitgreaves (Federalist) 42.6% ▌Y John Chapman (Federalist) 25.2% ▌Peter Muhlenberg (Democratic-Republican) 13.0% ▌John Richards (Democratic-Republican) 12.3% ▌Robert Lollar (Democratic-Republican) 6.9%
	John Richards	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist gain.
Pennsylvania 5	Vacant			Representative Daniel Hiester (D-R) resigned July 1, 1796. Federalist gain. Winner was also elected to finish the current term; see above.	▌Y George Ege (Federalist) 56.8% ▌Joseph Hiester (Democratic-Republican) 43.2%
Pennsylvania 6	Samuel Maclay	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent lost re-election. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y John A. Hanna (Democratic-Republican) 74.3% ▌John Carson (Federalist) 21.1% ▌Samuel Maclay (Democratic-Republican) 4.6%
Pennsylvania 7	John W. Kittera	Federalist	1791	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y John W. Kittera (Federalist) 95.6% ▌William Webb (Federalist) 4.4%
Pennsylvania 8	Thomas Hartley	Federalist	1788	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Thomas Hartley (Federalist) 100%
Pennsylvania 9	Andrew Gregg	Democratic- Republican	1791	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Andrew Gregg (Democratic-Republican) 53.8% ▌William Irvine (Democratic-Republican) 32.0% ▌James Wallace (Federalist) 7.9% ▌Robert Whitehall (Democratic-Republican) 4.1% ▌Thomas Kennedy (Federalist) 2.3%
Pennsylvania 10	David Bard	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y David Bard (Democratic-Republican) 45.1% ▌Abraham Smith (Democratic-Republican) 30.3% ▌William M. Brown (Federalist) 24.6%
Pennsylvania 11	William Findley	Democratic- Republican	1791	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y William Findley (Democratic-Republican) 79.3% ▌James Findley (Federalist) 20.7%
Pennsylvania 12	Albert Gallatin	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Albert Gallatin (Democratic-Republican) 61.7% ▌John Woods (Federalist) 26.4% ▌Thomas Stokely (Federalist) 11.9%

Rhode Island

Rhode Island's results

Rhode Island had an at-large district with two seats, each of which were elected separately.

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Rhode Island at-large Seat A	Benjamin Bourne	Federalist	1790	Incumbent re-elected. Winner later declined the seat.	▌Y Benjamin Bourne (Federalist) 99.9% Others 0.1%
Rhode Island at-large Seat B	Francis Malbone	Federalist	1792	Incumbent retired. Federalist hold.	▌Y Christopher G. Champlin (Federalist) 51.4% ▌William Greene (Federalist) 48.4% Others 0.2%

South Carolina

South Carolina's results by district

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
South Carolina 1 "Charleston district"	William L. Smith	Federalist	1788	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y William L. Smith (Federalist) 84.8% ▌Robert Simons (Democratic-Republican) 13.6% ▌John Rutledge (Democratic-Republican) 1.6%
South Carolina 2 "Beaufort district"	Wade Hampton	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent retired. Federalist gain.	▌Y John Rutledge Jr. (Federalist) 87.3% ▌Elnathan Haskell (Democratic-Republican) 16.7%
South Carolina 3 "Georgetown district"	Lemuel Benton	Democratic- Republican	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Lemuel Benton (Democratic-Republican) 63.3% ▌Tristam Thomas (Federalist) 24.4% ▌Joseph Blyth (Federalist) 12.3%
South Carolina 4 "Camden district"	Richard Winn	Democratic- Republican	1793	Incumbent lost re-election. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Thomas Sumter (Democratic-Republican) 50.7% ▌Richard Winn (Federalist) 49.3%
South Carolina 5 "Ninety-Six district"	Robert Goodloe Harper	Federalist	1794	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Robert Goodloe Harper (Federalist) 67.6% ▌William Butler (Democratic-Republican) 32.4%
South Carolina 6 "Washington district"	Samuel Earle	Democratic- Republican	1794	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y William Smith (Democratic-Republican) 37.0% ▌Abraham Nott (Federalist) 32.5% ▌William Will (Democratic-Republican) 25.4% ▌Samuel Lowrie (Federalist) 2.6% ▌Robert Anderson (Democratic-Republican) 2.5%

Tennessee

Tennessee's result

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Tennessee at-large	Andrew Jackson	Democratic- Republican	1796	Incumbent re-elected. Winner later resigned in September 1797 when elected U.S. senator.	▌Y Andrew Jackson (Democratic-Republican) [data missing]

Vermont

Vermont's results by district

Due to Vermont's law requiring a majority to secure a congressional seat, the 1st district required three ballots to choose a winner.

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Vermont 1 "Western District"	Israel Smith	Democratic- Republican	1791	Incumbent lost re-election. Democratic-Republican hold.	First ballot (September 9, 1796) ▌Matthew Lyon (Democratic-Republican) 40.7% ▌Israel Smith (Democratic-Republican) 22.1% ▌Samuel Williams (Unknown) 7.3% ▌Nathaniel Chipman (Federalist) 7.1% ▌Isaac Tichenor (Federalist) 6.5% ▌Gideon Olin (Democratic-Republican) 4.5% ▌Enoch Woodbridge (Unknown) 4.3% ▌Jonas Galusha (Democratic-Republican) 3.4% ▌Daniel Chipman (Federalist) 2.0% ▌Samuel Hitchcock (Federalist) 1.2% Others 1.0% Second ballot (December 11, 1796) ▌Matthew Lyon (Democratic-Republican) 46.7% ▌Samuel Hitchcock (Federalist) 25.7% ▌Israel Smith (Democratic-Republican) 21.4% ▌Samuel Williams (Unknown) 2.9% ▌Gideon Olin (Democratic-Republican) 1.1% Others 2.3% Third ballot (February 7, 1797) ▌Y Matthew Lyon (Democratic-Republican) 55.1% ▌Samuel Hitchcock (Federalist) 29.4% ▌Israel Smith (Democratic-Republican) 8.9% ▌Jonas Galusha (Democratic-Republican) 3.9% ▌Samuel Williams (Unknown) 0.7% Scattering 2.1%
Vermont 2 "Eastern District"	Daniel Buck	Federalist	1795	Incumbent re-elected. Winner declined the seat.	▌Y Daniel Buck (Federalist) 97.1% Scattering 2.9%

Virginia

Virginia's results by district

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Virginia 1	Robert Rutherford	Democratic-Republican	1793	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist gain. Election unsuccessfully challenged by Rutherford.	▌Y Daniel Morgan (Federalist) ▌Robert Rutherford (Democratic-Republican)
Virginia 2	Andrew Moore	Democratic-Republican	1789	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y David Holmes (Democratic-Republican) 60.4% ▌John Steele (Federalist) 27.5% ▌John Bowyer (Democratic-Republican) 12.1%
Virginia 3	George Jackson	Democratic-Republican	1795	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist gain.	▌Y James Machir (Federalist) 45.4% ▌George Jackson (Democratic-Republican) 28.7% ▌John Mitchell (Democratic-Republican) 20.1% ▌Thomas Wilson (Federalist) 5.7%
Virginia 4	Francis Preston	Democratic-Republican	1793	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Abram Trigg (Democratic-Republican) 100%
Virginia 5	George Hancock	Federalist	1793	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican gain.	▌Y John J. Trigg (Democratic-Republican) 100%
Virginia 6	Isaac Coles	Democratic-Republican	1793	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Matthew Clay (Democratic-Republican) 100%
Virginia 7	Abraham B. Venable	Democratic-Republican	1790	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Abraham B. Venable (Democratic-Republican)
Virginia 8	Thomas Claiborne	Democratic-Republican	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Thomas Claiborne (Democratic-Republican) 62.3% ▌Jesse Browne (Federalist) 37.7%
Virginia 9	William B. Giles	Democratic-Republican	1790	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y William B. Giles (Democratic-Republican) 100%
Virginia 10	Carter B. Harrison	Democratic-Republican	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Carter B. Harrison (Democratic-Republican) 55.4% ▌Edwin Gray (Federalist) 44.6%
Virginia 11	Josiah Parker	Federalist	1789	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Josiah Parker (Federalist) 100%
Virginia 12	John Page	Democratic-Republican	1789	Incumbent lost re-election. Federalist gain.	▌Y Thomas Evans (Federalist) ▌John Page (Democratic-Republican)
Virginia 13	John Clopton	Democratic-Republican	1795	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y John Clopton (Democratic-Republican) ▌Burwell Bassett (Federalist)
Virginia 14	Samuel J. Cabell	Democratic-Republican	1795	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Samuel J. Cabell (Democratic-Republican) 100%
Virginia 15	James Madison	Democratic-Republican	1789	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y John Dawson (Democratic-Republican) ▌Thomas Posey (Federalist)
Virginia 16	Anthony New	Democratic-Republican	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Anthony New (Democratic-Republican) 70.6% ▌Carter Braxton Jr. (Federalist) 29.3% ▌Robert P. Waring (Unknown) 0.1%
Virginia 17	Richard Brent	Democratic-Republican	1795	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y Richard Brent (Democratic-Republican) 100% ▌Leven Powell (Federalist)
Virginia 18	John Nicholas	Democratic-Republican	1793	Incumbent re-elected.	▌Y John Nicholas (Democratic-Republican) ▌John Blackwell (Federalist) ▌William Fitzhugh (Federalist)
Virginia 19	John Heath	Democratic-Republican	1793	Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican hold.	▌Y Walter Jones (Democratic-Republican) ▌Burgess Ball (Federalist)

See also

• 1796 United States elections
  • List of United States House of Representatives elections (1789–1822)
  • 1796–97 United States Senate elections
  • 1796 United States presidential election
• 4th United States Congress
• 5th United States Congress

Notes

1. New Hampshire law required a majority for election, requiring an additional ballot on November 7, 1796.
2. Vermont law required a majority for election, requiring additional ballots on December 11, 1796 and February 7, 1797.
3. Massachusetts law required a majority for election, requiring additional ballots on January 16, 1797 and April 3, 1797.
4. Date cited is the election date, but the new member in some cases "took" the seat on a later date.
5. Source mistakenly gives party as Democratic-Republican; Tillinghast did later become a Democratic-Republican, but in the 5th Congress, he was a Federalist
6. Source does not give numbers of votes or has incomplete data
7. Only candidates with at least 1% of the vote listed
8. Although Winn had run as a Democratic-Republican in the previous election, the source used stated that he'd run as a Federalist in this election, however, by the time he returned to Congress in 1801 he was a Democratic-Republican again
9. The source used does not list votes for Powell, but provides a citations stating "Col. Powell of Loudoun was expected to have been a candidate on this occasion; but from the present ill state of his health, it was understood he had declined and consequently had but a few votes."

References

1. "Fifth Congress (membership roster)". Archived from the original on September 19, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
2. Dubin, Michael J. (1998). United States Congressional Elections, 1788-1997: The Official Results of the Elections of the 1st Through 105th Congresses. McFarland and Company. ISBN 0786402830.
3. "Our Campaigns - MD District 2 Race - Apr 18, 1796". www.ourcampaigns.com.
4. "Our Campaigns - MA - 3rd Middle - Special Election - 1st Trial Race - Aug 01, 1796". www.ourcampaigns.com.
5. "Our Campaigns - MA - 3rd Middle - Special Election - 2nd Trial Race - Sep 12, 1796". www.ourcampaigns.com.
6. "Maryland 1796 U.S. House of Representatives, District 3, Special". Archived from the original on March 6, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
7. "Pennsylvania 1796 U.S. House of Representatives, District 5, Special". A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts Digital Library, Tufts University. Archived from the original on March 16, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
8. "Tennessee 1796 U.S. House of Representatives". A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts Digital Library, Tufts University. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
9. "Our Campaigns - RI At-Large-1st Representative Race - Nov 15, 1796". www.ourcampaigns.com.
10. "Our Campaigns - MA - 1st Western - Special Election - 1st Trial Race - Sep 05, 1796". www.ourcampaigns.com.
11. "Our Campaigns - MA - 1st Western - Special Election - 2nd Trial Race - Nov 21, 1796". www.ourcampaigns.com.
12. "Our Campaigns - NC District 10 - Special Election Race - Nov 23, 1796". www.ourcampaigns.com.
13. "Our Campaigns - VT-Eastern District - Special Election Race". www.ourcampaigns.com. May 23, 1797.
14. "Our Campaigns - MA - 4th Middle - Special Election Race". www.ourcampaigns.com. August 4, 1797.
15. "Our Campaigns - NH At-Large - Special Election Race - Aug 28, 1797". www.ourcampaigns.com.
16. "Our Campaigns - NH At-Large - Special Runoff Race". www.ourcampaigns.com. October 30, 1797.
17. "Our Campaigns - RI At-Large-1st Representative Race - Aug 29, 1797". www.ourcampaigns.com.
18. "South Carolina 1797 U.S. House of Representatives, District 1, Special". A New Nation Votes. Archived from the original on March 19, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
19. "Connecticut 1797 U.S. House of Representatives, Special". A New Nation Votes. Archived from the original on March 1, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
20. "Tennessee 1797 U.S. House of Representatives". A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts Digital Library, Tufts University. Archived from the original on March 11, 2020. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
21. "Pennsylvania 1797 U.S. House of Representatives, District 5, Special". A New Nation Votes. Archived from the original on March 4, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
22. "Wilkes University Elections Statistics Project" (PDF). Retrieved November 29, 2022.
23. "Virginia Elections Database » Virginia Election Results and Statistics". Virginia Elections Database. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
24. Columbian Mirror and Alexandria Gazette. March 21, 1797.

Bibliography

• "A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787-1825". Tufts Digital Library, Tufts University. Archived from the original on January 29, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
• Dubin, Michael J. (March 1, 1998). United States Congressional Elections, 1788-1997: The Official Results of the Elections of the 1st Through 105th Congresses. McFarland and Company. ISBN 978-0786402830.
• Martis, Kenneth C. (January 1, 1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress, 1789-1989. Macmillan Publishing Company. ISBN 978-0029201701.
• "Party Divisions of the House of Representatives* 1789–Present". Office of the Historian, United States House of Representatives. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
• Mapping Early American Elections project team (2019). "Mapping Early American Elections". Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media, George Mason University. Retrieved September 6, 2024.

External links

• Office of the Historian (Office of Art & Archives, Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives)