| Election Name: | 1810–11 United States Senate elections |
| Country: | United States |
| Flag Year: | 1795 |
| Type: | legislative |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1808–09 United States Senate elections |
| Next Election: | 1812–13 United States Senate elections |
| Seats For Election: | 11 of the 34 seats in the United States Senate (plus special elections) |
| Majority Seats: | 18 |
| Election Date: | Dates vary by state |
| 1Blank: | Seats up |
| 2Blank: | Races won |
| Party1: | Democratic-Republican Party |
| Seats Before1: | 26 |
| Seats After1: | 26 |
| 1Data1: | 8 |
| 2Data1: | 8 |
| Party2: | Federalist Party |
| Seats Before2: | 8 |
| Seats After2: | 7 |
| Seat Change2: | 1 |
| 1Data2: | 2 |
| 2Data2: | 1 |
| Majority Party | |
| Before Party: | Democratic-Republican Party |
| After Party: | Democratic-Republican Party |
The 1810–11 United States Senate elections were held on various dates in various states. As these U.S. Senate elections were prior to the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913, senators were chosen by state legislatures. Senators were elected over a wide range of time throughout 1810 and 1811, and a seat may have been filled months late or remained vacant due to legislative deadlock.[1] In these elections, terms were up for the senators in Class 2.
The Democratic-Republican Party maintained their Senate majority. The minority Federalists had gone into the elections with such a small share of Senate seats (8 out of 34, or 23.5%) that, had they won all of the elections, they would still not have reached a majority.
Democratic-Republicans: 28 seats Federalists: 6 seats
Democratic-Republicans: 30 seats Federalists: 6 seats
Democratic-Republicans: The Democratic-Republicans gained 2 seats, increasing their majority from 28 to 30 seats. Federalists: The number of Federalist seats remained unchanged at 6.
The Democratic-Republican Party continued to dominate the Senate, reflecting the broader political landscape of the era. The period was marked by the lead-up to the War of 1812, with growing tensions between the United States and Great Britain influencing political discourse and legislative priorities.[2]
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Except if/when noted, number following candidates is whole number votes.
In these special elections, the winners were seated during 1810 or before March 4, 1811; ordered by election date.
| State | Incumbent | Results | Candidates | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senator | Party | Electoral history | |||||||
| Delaware (Class 1) | Samuel White | Federalist | 1796 1801 1803 1809 | Incumbent died November 4, 1809. New senator elected January 12, 1810. Federalist hold. | nowrap | ||||
| New Hampshire (Class 3) | Nahum Parker | Democratic-Republican | 1807 | Incumbent resigned June 1, 1810. New senator elected June 21, 1810. Federalist gain. | nowrap | ||||
| Connecticut (Class 1) | James Hillhouse | Federalist | 1796 1797 1803 1809 | Incumbent resigned June 10, 1810. New senator elected June 1810. Federalist hold. | nowrap | ||||
| Ohio (Class 1) | Return J. Meigs Jr. | Democratic-Republican | 1808 1808 | Incumbent resigned December 8, 1810, to become Governor of Ohio. New senator elected December 15, 1810 on the sixth ballot. Democratic-Republican hold. | nowrap | ||||
| South Carolina (Class 2) | Thomas Sumter | Democratic-Republican | 1801 1809 | Incumbent resigned December 16, 1810. New senator elected December 18, 1810 on the third ballot. Democratic-Republican hold. Winner also elected to the next term, see below. | nowrap | ||||
In these regular elections, the winner was seated on March 4, 1811 (except where noted due to late election); ordered by state.
All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.
| State | Incumbent | Results | Candidates | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senator | Party | Electoral history | ||||||
| Delaware | James A. Bayard | Federalist | 1804 1805 | Incumbent re-elected January 8, 1811. | nowrap | |||
| Georgia | William H. Crawford | Democratic-Republican | 1807 | Incumbent re-elected in 1810 or 1811. | nowrap | |||
| Kentucky | Henry Clay | Democratic-Republican | 1810 | Appointee retired to run for U.S. House of Representatives. New senator elected January 8, 1811. Democratic-Republican hold. | nowrap | |||
| Massachusetts | Timothy Pickering | Federalist | 1803 1805 | Incumbent lost re-election. Legislature failed to elect due to partisan deadlock in the Massachusetts Senate. Federalist loss. | nowrap | |||
| New Hampshire | Nicholas Gilman | Democratic-Republican | 1804 | Incumbent re-elected June 21, 1810, on the fourth ballot. | nowrap | |||
| New Jersey | John Condit | Democratic-Republican | 1803 1803 1809 1809 1809 | Incumbent re-elected November 5, 1810. | nowrap | |||
| North Carolina | James Turner | Democratic-Republican | 1804 | Incumbent re-elected November 28, 1810, on the third vote. | nowrap | |||
| Rhode Island | Elisha Mathewson | Democratic-Republican | 1807 | Unknown if incumbent retired or lost re-election. New senator elected November 2, 1810. Democratic-Republican hold. | nowrap | |||
| South Carolina | Thomas Sumter | Democratic-Republican | 1801 1809 | Incumbent resigned December 16, 1810. New senator elected December 18, 1810, on the third ballot. Democratic-Republican hold. Winner also elected to finish the current term, see above. | nowrap | |||
| Tennessee | Jenkin Whiteside | Democratic-Republican | 1809 | Incumbent re-elected early October 28, 1809. | nowrap | |||
| Virginia | William B. Giles | Democratic-Republican | 1804 1804 1804 | Incumbent re-elected January 2, 1811. | nowrap | |||
In these special elections, the winners were seated in 1811 after March 4; ordered by election date.
| State | Incumbent | Results | Candidates | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senator | Party | Electoral history | |||||||
| Massachusetts (Class 2) | Vacant | Legislature had failed to elect, see above. New senator elected late June 6, 1811 on the second ballot. Democratic-Republican gain. | nowrap | ||||||
| Tennessee (Class 2) | Jenkin Whiteside | Democratic-Republican | 1809 | Incumbent resigned October 8, 1811. New senator elected October 1, 1811. Democratic-Republican hold. | nowrap | ||||
| Rhode Island (Class 1) | Christopher G. Champlin | Federalist | 1809 | Incumbent resigned October 12, 1811. New senator elected October 28, 1811. Federalist hold. | nowrap | ||||
See also: List of United States senators from Connecticut and 1810 United States House of Representatives election in Connecticut.
See also: List of United States senators from Delaware and 1810 United States House of Representatives election in Delaware.
See also: List of United States senators from Georgia and 1810 United States House of Representatives election in Georgia.
See also: List of United States senators from Kentucky and 1810 United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky.
See also: List of United States senators from Massachusetts and 1810–1811 United States House of Representatives elections in Massachusetts.
See also: List of United States senators from New Hampshire and 1810–1811 United States House of Representatives election in New Hampshire.
See also: List of United States senators from New Jersey.
See also: List of United States senators from North Carolina and 1810 United States House of Representatives elections in North Carolina.
See also: List of United States senators from Ohio and 1810 United States House of Representatives election in Ohio.
See also: List of United States senators from Rhode Island and 1810 United States House of Representatives election in Rhode Island.
See also: List of United States senators from South Carolina and 1810 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina.
See also: List of United States senators from Tennessee and 1811 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee.
See also: List of United States senators from Virginia and 1811 United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia.