The 1790–91 United States House of Representatives elections were held on various dates in various states between April 27, 1790, and October 11, 1791. Each state set its own date for its elections to the House of Representatives before or after the first session of the 2nd United States Congress convened on October 24, 1791. This was the first midterm election cycle, which took place in the middle of PresidentGeorge Washington's first term. The size of the House increased to 67 seats after the new state of Vermont elected its first representatives.
While formal political parties still did not exist, coalitions of pro-Washington (pro-Administration) representatives and anti-Administration representatives each gained two seats as a result of the addition of new states to the union.
In this period, each state fixed its own date for congressional general elections, as early as April 27, 1790 (in New York) and as late as October 11, 1791 (in Pennsylvania). 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). The first session of this Congress was convened in Philadelphia on October 24, 1791.
Kentucky and Vermont became states during the 2nd Congress, adding two seats each.[3] The legislation admitted Vermont was passed at the end of the 1st Congress taking effect on March 4, 1791, the first day of the 2nd Congress, so that Vermont was represented from the start of the Congress, while Kentucky was unrepresented until the 2nd session.
Predecessor declined election. New member electedDecember 16, 1790. Pro-Administration hold. Winner had already been elected to the next term, see below.
Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Pro-Administration hold. Winner declined to serve and the incumbent was re-elected in a special election.
Georgia switched to a conventional district system for the Second Congress. At the time, the districts were not numbered, but are retroactively renumbered as the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respectively here.
Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Anti-Administration hold. Election was subsequently challenged, the House determined that electoral fraud had occurred, and the seat was declared void.
Under Maryland law for the election for the 1st and 2nd Congresses "candidates were elected at-large but had to be residents of a specific district with the statewide vote determining winners from each district."
In Maryland, two local factions briefly emerged, the Chesapeake and Potomac (or Potowmack) "parties". The Potomac faction, consisting of individuals from the small counties of southern Maryland and the Eastern Shore, aimed to maintain their status by curbing the increasing influence of the city of Baltimore and the more populous counties. To do so, they supported the development of the federal city and a canal on the Potomac River to secure their economic future. Conversely, the Chesapeake faction advocated for Baltimore's growth. Their strategy involved improving the Susquehanna River to channel the lucrative wheat trade from western Maryland and Pennsylvania through Baltimore. They also believed that political representation should reflect population growth patterns rather than be defined by the counties. They feared that a canal on the Potomac River would undermine Baltimore's prosperity by diverting trade to competitors like Georgetown, the proposed federal city, and Alexandria.[5][6]
Temporarily setting aside differences at the national level, the "Chesapeake Ticket" was formed to punish incumbents who had supported the Potomac location for the proposed federal city. A "Potomac Ticket" was organized and led by Governor Smallwood. Turnout in Baltimore was around 99%, and almost every ballot was cast for the Chesapeake Ticket. Statewide, the ticket won an overwhelming majority, securing all six seats. This victory threatened the county-based rural oligarchy, prompting the House of Delegates to transition from a mixed system to a district-based system on December 19, 1790. Under this new system, all of Baltimore's votes would go to just one representative, Hartford County was grouped with Kent and Cecil Counties, and Anne Arundel County was grouped with Prince George's County and Annapolis. With the base of the Chesapeake "party" split between three districts, the Chesapeake faction would disappear. The political pattern created by this division would, however, "linger on indefinitely."[6]
Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Pro-Administration gain. Winner later resigned due to questions of ineligibility due to his residence[7] and was replaced in a special election by John Francis Mercer (Anti-Administration).
Massachusetts law required a majority for election. This condition was met in four of the eight districts, the remaining four required between 2 and 9 ballots for election.
Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Pro-Administration gain. Winner died May 24, 1790, before the start of the 2nd Congress. A special election was then held (see above), leading to an Anti-Administration hold.
First member elected March 24, 1790. Pro-Administration win. District covered areas beyond the Appalachian Mountains that were ceded to in May 1790 to form the Southwest Territory, but member retained seat for the remainder of term.
Due to the cession of North Carolina's trans-Appalachian territory to form the Southwest Territory, the territory of the old 5th district was lost. North Carolina retained the same number of Representatives, and so it redistricted for the Second Congress.
Pennsylvania had elected its Representatives at-large in the 1st Congress, but switched to using districts in the 2nd Congress. Five incumbents ran for re-election, four of whom won, while three others retired leaving three open seats. Two districts had no incumbents residing in them, while one (the 8th district) had a single representative who declined to run for re-election and one (the 2nd district) had three incumbents, only one of whom ran for re-election.
Rhode Island held elections for the 2nd Congress on October 18, 1790, about six weeks after elections for the 1st Congress due to the state's late ratification of the Constitution.
Vermont was admitted at the end of the First Congress, with the admission taking effect at the start of the Second Congress. Vermont was entitled to elect two representatives. Vermont law at the time required a majority to win an office. In the 1st district, no candidate won a majority, necessitating a run-off.
^2 more seats were added by the admission of new states after the start of this Congress
^ ab Includes the late election from Kentucky who was admitted to the union after the 2nd Congress had started to meet, and did not hold their elections for U.S. representatives until June 1791
^Including three Chesapeake members who were Pro-Administration
^Including three Chesapeake members who were Anti-Administration
^Maryland had six representatives elected by the whole state electorate, who had to choose one candidate from each district.
^add Massachusetts required a majority for electionitional trials were required in 4 districts, held between November 26, 1790, and April 2, 1792.
^A majority was required for election, which was not met in one of the districts necessitating a second election on September 6, 1791
^ abcd Only candidates with at least 1% of the vote listed