November 2, 1886 1888 → 167 154 0 seats 1 seat | 183 seats 141 seats 16 13 2 1 | |
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Winner John G Carlisle | ||
Elections to the United States House of Representatives were held in 1886 for Representatives to the 50th Congress, taking place in the middle of President Grover Cleveland's first term.
Contents
As in many midterm elections, Cleveland's Democratic Party lost seats to the opposition Republican Party, although a narrow majority was retained. Many of these Republican pickups were in the industrializing Midwest states, where the debate over tariffs, which were advocated by Republicans to protect domestic industry but opposed by Democrats to allow for free agricultural trade, led to political change. The small Labor Party, supported by industrial workers, gained one seat each in Virginia (VA-06) and Wisconsin (WI-04), while the Greenback Party maintained its one seat in Iowa (James B. Weaver of IA-06). John Nichols was also elected as an Independent to NC-04.
Election summaries
There were 2 Labor Party and 1 Independent members elected, and 1 Greenback Party member re-elected in Iowa. The previous election saw just the Greenback elected.
Early election dates
In 1886, three states, with 7 seats among them, held elections early: