June 6, 1870 –
October 6, 1871 1872 → 139 104 Start date 1870 | 171 seats 67 seats 32 37 | |
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Winner James G Blaine | ||
Elections to the United States House of Representatives were held in 1870 and 1871 to elect Representatives for the 42nd Congress, and were held in the middle of President Ulysses S. Grant's first term.
Contents
With Grant's administration rocked by a number of scandals (including a shady deal for gold speculation that led to a crash in the market and several business deals that saw high-ranking governmental officials gain kickbacks) and Reconstruction winding down, his Republican Party lost seats to the opposition Democratic Party but retained an overall majority. Also, since the Democratic Party controlled governments were reestablishing themselves in some portions of the South, the Democrats were able to make huge gains in this election.
Election summaries
The previous election included 5 Conservatives
Election dates
In 1845, Congress passed a law providing for a uniform nationwide date for choosing Presidential electors. This law did not affect election dates for Congress, which remained within the jurisdiction of State governments, but over time, the States moved their Congressional elections to this date as well. In 1870, there remained 12 States that held elections before Election Day, and 4 that held it after at this time:
Florida
Niblack subsequently successfully challenged Walls' election, and took Florida's at-large seat on January 29, 1873.