1916 United States House of Representatives elections

← 1914

November 7, 1916^[a]

1918 →

All 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives
218 seats needed for a majority

	First party	Second party	Third party

Leader	James Mann	Champ Clark
Party	Republican	Democratic	Progressive
Leader since	March 4, 1911	March 4, 1909
Leader's seat	Illinois 2nd	Missouri 9th
Last election	196 seats	230 seats	6 seats
Seats won	216^[b]	214^[c]	3
Seat change	19	16	3

	Fourth party	Fifth party	Sixth party

Party	Socialist	Prohibition	Independent
Last election	1 seat	1 seat	1 seat
Seats won	1	1	0
Seat change			1

Speaker before election

Champ Clark
Democratic

Elected Speaker

Champ Clark
Democratic

Elections to the United States House of Representatives in 1916 were held for members of the 65th Congress, coinciding with the re-election of President Woodrow Wilson.

Wilson eked out a narrow re-election, but his Democratic Party lost seats to the Republican Party. Wilson's hybrid approach, which injected a progressive element into Democratic policies, had proved to be dissatisfying to much of the nation. International affairs also became important in the traditionally non-interventionist United States, as voters attempted to determine which party would be best served to keep the nation from entering The Great War.

Republicans actually won a plurality of seats in the 1916 election. Even so, when the 65th Congress convened in April 1917, the Democrats narrowly maintained control of the House, forming an alliance with third-party (Progressive and Socialist) members. Not since the 34th Congress (1855–57) had the party with the most seats not been part of the ruling government. This Congress is the last example to date of a type of coalition holding power in the House, rather than a single party winning a majority of seats.

Jeannette Rankin, a Republican from Montana, became the first woman ever elected to congress.

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Election summaries

↓
214	3	1	1	216
Democratic	P	Pn	S	Republican

State	Type	Total seats	Democratic		Progressive		Republican		Others
State	Type	Total seats	Seats	Change	Seats	Change	Seats	Change	Seats	Change
Alabama	District^[d]	10	10		0		0		0
Arizona	At-large	1	1		0		0		0
Arkansas	District	7	7		0		0		0
California	District	11	4	1	1	1	5	1	1^[e]	1
Colorado	District	4	3		0		1		0
Connecticut	District	5	1	1	0		4	1	0
Delaware	At-large	1	1	1	0		0	1	0
Florida	District	4	4		0		0		0
Georgia	District	12	12		0		0		0
Idaho	At-large	2	0		0		2		0
Illinois	District +2 at-large	27	6	4	0	1	21	5	0
Indiana	District	13	4	7	0		9	7	0
Iowa	District	11	0	1	0		11	1	0
Kansas	District	8	5	1	0		3	1	0
Kentucky	District	11	9		0		2		0
Louisiana	District	8	7	1	1	1	0		0
Maine^[f]	District	4	0	1	0		4	1	0
Maryland	District	6	4	1	0		2	1	0
Massachusetts	District	16	4		0		12		0
Michigan	District	13	1	1	0		12	1	0
Minnesota	District	10	1		0		9		0
Mississippi	District	8	8		0		0		0
Missouri	District	16	14		0		2		0
Montana	At-large	2	1	1	0		1	1	0
Nebraska	District	6	3		0		3		0
Nevada	At-large	1	0		0		1		0
New Hampshire	District	2	0	2	0		2	2	0
New Jersey	District	12	3	1	0		9	1	0
New Mexico	At-large	1	1	1	0		0	1	0
New York	District	43	16	3	0	1	26	4	1^[g]
North Carolina	District	10	10	1	0		0	1	0
North Dakota	District	3	0		0		3		0
Ohio	District	22	13	4	0		9	4	0
Oklahoma	District	8	6	1	0		2	1	0
Oregon	District	3	0		0		3		0
Pennsylvania	District +4 at-large	36	6		1	1	29	1	0
Rhode Island	District	3	1		0		2		0
South Carolina	District	7	7		0		0		0
South Dakota	District	3	1		0		2		0
Tennessee	District	10	8		0		2		0
Texas	District +2 at-large	18	18		0		0		0
Utah	District	2	2	1	0		0	1	0
Vermont	District	2	0		0		2		0
Virginia	District	10	9		0		1		0
Washington	District	5	1	1	0	2	4	1	0
West Virginia	District^[d]	6	2	1	0		4	1	0
Wisconsin	District	11	0	3	0		11	3	0
Wyoming	At-large	1	0		0		1		0
Total		435	214 49.2%	16	3 0.7%	2	216^[b] 49.7%	19	2^[h] 0.5%	1

House seats

Democratic			49.20%
Progressive			0.69%
Prohibition			0.23%
Republican			49.66%
Socialist			0.23%

The Democrats retained control of the House by forming a coalition with the three Progressive members and the single Socialist member, combining to form a razor-thin majority of 218 Representatives.

House seats by party holding plurality in state 80.1-100% Democratic 80.1-100% Republican 60.1-80% Democratic 60.1-80% Republican Up to 60% Democratic Up to 60% Republican

House seats by party holding plurality in state
80.1-100% Democratic	80.1-100% Republican
60.1-80% Democratic	60.1-80% Republican
Up to 60% Democratic	Up to 60% Republican

Net gain in party representation 6+ Democratic gain 6+ Republican gain 3-5 Democratic gain 3-5 Republican gain 1-2 Democratic gain 1-2 Progressive gain 1-2 Republican gain no net change

Net gain in party representation
6+ Democratic gain		6+ Republican gain
3-5 Democratic gain		3-5 Republican gain
1-2 Democratic gain	1-2 Progressive gain	1-2 Republican gain
no net change

Early election date

Maine held its election early, on September 11, 1916. There had previously been multiple states with earlier elections, but between 1914 and 1958, Maine was alone in holding early elections.

A slash between two labels indicates a fusion ticket

Special elections

There were special elections in 1916 to the 64th United States Congress.

Special elections are sorted by date then district.

District	Incumbent			This election
District	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
California 10	William Stephens	Progressive	1910	Incumbent resigned July 22, 1916 to become Lieutenant Governor of California. New member elected November 7, 1916. Progressive hold. Successor was not elected to the next term, see below.	Y Henry Stanley Benedict (Progressive) 62.82% Joy Clark (Independent) 23.59% Henry Clay Needham (Prohibition) 4.32% George Clark (Unknown) 3.54% James H. Ryckman (Socialist) 3.01% Rufus V. Bowden (Democratic) 1.83% John C. Wray (Unknown) 0.89%

California

District	Incumbent	Party	First elected	Result	Candidates
California 1	William Kent	Independent	1910	Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic gain.	Y Clarence F. Lea (Democratic) 48.8% Edward H. Hart (Republican) 42.8% Mary M. Morgan (Socialist) 5.5% Jay Scott Ryder (Prohibition) 2.9%
California 2	John E. Raker	Democratic	1910	Incumbent re-elected.	Y John E. Raker (Democratic) 71% James T. Matlock (Republican) 29%
California 3	Charles F. Curry	Republican	1912	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Charles F. Curry (Republican) 66.7% O. W. Kennedy (Democratic) 23.4% Ben Cooper (Socialist) 6.2% Edwin F. Van Vlear (Prohibition) 3.7%
California 4	Julius Kahn	Republican	1898	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Julius Kahn (Republican) 77.2% J. M. Fernald (Democratic) 15.7% Allen K. Gifford (Socialist) 5.6% Henry W. Hutchinson (Prohibition) 1.5%
California 5	John I. Nolan	Republican	1912	Incumbent re-elected.	Y John I. Nolan (Republican) 84.7% Charles A. Preston (Socialist) 9.6% Frederick Head (Prohibition) 5.8%
California 6	John A. Elston	Progressive	1912	Incumbent re-elected.	Y John A. Elston (Progressive) 64.6% H. Avery Whitney (Democratic) 22.6% Luella Twining (Socialist) 8.7% Harlow E. Wolcott (Prohibition) 4.1%
California 7	Denver S. Church	Democratic	1912	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Denver S. Church (Democratic) 51% W. W. Phillips (Republican) 36.4% Harry M. McKee (Socialist) 7.2% J. F. Butler (Prohibition) 5.3%
California 8	Everis A. Hayes	Republican	1904	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Everis A. Hayes (Republican) 68.6% George S. Walker (Prog/D) 23.8% Cora Pattleton Wilson (Socialist) 7.5%
California 9	Charles H. Randall	Prohibition	1914	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Charles H. Randall (Proh.) 57.8% Charles W. Bell (Independent) 32.7% Ralph L. Criswell (Socialist) 9.5%
California 10	Vacant			William Stephens (Progressive) had resigned July 22, 1916 to become Lieutenant Governor of California. New member elected. Republican gain. Successor was not elected to finish the term.	Y Henry Z. Osborne (Republican) 49.5% Rufus V. Bowden (Democratic) 25.7% Henry S. Benedict (Progressive) 11.1% James H. Ryckman (Socialist) 7% Henry Clay Needham (Prohibition) 6.8%
California 11	William Kettner	Democratic	1912	Incumbent re-elected.	Y William Kettner (Democratic) 44.5% Robert C. Harbison (Republican) 35.7% James S. Edwards (Prohibition) 15.6% Marcus W. Robbins (Socialist) 4.1%

Montana

This was the last time Montana used an at-large district until its representation was reduced to one in 1992. This was also the first time a woman was elected to Congress.

District	Incumbent	Party	First elected	Result	Candidates
Montana at-large 2 seats on a general ticket	John M. Evans	Democratic	1912	Incumbent re-elected.	Y John M. Evans (Democratic) 26.7% Y Jeannette Rankin (Republican) 24.3% Harry B. Mitchell (Democratic) 22.3% George W. Farr (Republican) 21.2% John McGuffey (Socialist) 2.8% Albert F. Meissner (Socialist) 2.7%
Montana at-large 2 seats on a general ticket	Tom Stout	Democratic	1912	Incumbent retired. New member elected. Republican gain.

North Dakota

District	Incumbent	Party	First elected	Result	Candidates
North Dakota 1	Henry Thomas Helgesen	Republican	1910	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Henry Thomas Helgesen (Republican) 59.9% George A. Bangs (Democratic) 38.3% V. Gram (Socialist) 1.8%
North Dakota 2	George M. Young	Republican	1912	Incumbent re-elected.	Y George M. Young (Republican) 71.7% Hugh McDonald (Democratic) 24.6% Samuel O. Olson (Socialist) 3.7%
North Dakota 3	Patrick Daniel Norton	Republican	1912	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Patrick Daniel Norton (Republican) 65.2% Charles Simon (Democratic) 26.5% Anton Klemmens (Socialist) 8.3%

South Carolina

District	Incumbent	Party	First elected	Result	Candidates
South Carolina 1	Richard S. Whaley	Democratic	1913 (Special)	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Richard S. Whaley (Democratic) 95.4% J. O. Ladd (Republican) 4.6%
South Carolina 2	James F. Byrnes	Democratic	1910	Incumbent re-elected.	Y James F. Byrnes (Democratic) 98.5% Isaac Myers (Republican) 1.5%
South Carolina 3	Wyatt Aiken	Democratic	1902	Incumbent lost renomination. New member elected. Democratic hold.	Y Frederick H. Dominick (Democratic) 100%
South Carolina 4	Samuel J. Nicholls	Democratic	1915 (Special)	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Samuel J. Nicholls (Democratic) 99.4% G. F. Mills (Republican) 0.6%
South Carolina 5	David E. Finley	Democratic	1898	Incumbent re-elected.	Y David E. Finley (Democratic) 100%
South Carolina 6	J. Willard Ragsdale	Democratic	1912	Incumbent re-elected.	Y J. Willard Ragsdale (Democratic) 99.1% W. L. McFarlan (Republican) 0.9%
South Carolina 7	Asbury F. Lever	Democratic	1901 (Special)	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Asbury F. Lever (Democratic) 93.5% I. S. Leevy (Republican) 6.5%

South Dakota

District	Incumbent	Party	First elected	Result	Candidates
South Dakota 1	Charles H. Dillon	Republican	1912	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Charles H. Dillon (Republican) 58.1% O.D. Anderson (Democratic) 40.2% H.W. Fenner (Socialist) 1.7%
South Dakota 2	Royal C. Johnson	Republican	1914	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Royal C. Johnson (Republican) 60.1% J.J. Batterton (Democratic) 34.7% E. Francis Atwood (Socialist) 3.4% R. Clendening (Prohibition) 1.8%
South Dakota 3	Harry L. Gandy	Democratic	1914	Incumbent re-elected.	Y Harry L. Gandy (Democratic) 55.6% John G. Bartine (Republican) 40.9% B.M. Mulcahy (Socialist) 3.4%

Notes

^ Maine held early elections on September 11, 1916.
^ ^a ^b Includes 1 Independent Republican.
^ Democrats maintained control of the U.S. House after the 1916 elections by forming a 218-member coalition with the three Progressive members and the one Socialist member.
^ ^a ^b At-large seat eliminated in redistricting.
^ Prohibition
^ Elections held early.
^ Socialist
^ 1 Socialist and 1 Prohibition.

Bibliography

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.
Moore, John L., ed. (1994). Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. Elections (Third ed.). Congressional Quarterly Inc. ISBN 978-0871879967.
"Party Divisions of the House of Representatives* 1789–Present". Office of the Historian, House of United States House of Representatives. Retrieved January 21, 2015.

External links

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

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This page was last edited on 2 December 2019, at 11:21