Elections to the United States House of Representatives

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

were held in 1850. The Democrats

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 gained 14 seats, increasing their majority relative to the Whigs

Whig Party (United States)

The Whig Party was a political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. Considered integral to the Second Party System and operating from the early 1830s to the mid-1850s, the party was formed in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and his Democratic...

, who lost 23 seats.

Whig President

President of the United States

The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

 Millard Filmore, the Whig who had gained the presidency after the death of Zachary Taylor

Zachary Taylor

Zachary Taylor was the 12th President of the United States and an American military leader. Initially uninterested in politics, Taylor nonetheless ran as a Whig in the 1848 presidential election, defeating Lewis Cass...

, grew increasingly unpopular. The election saw sectionalism

Sectionalism

-Defined:Sectionalism is loyalty to the interests of one's own region or section of the country, rather than to the country as a whole.-United States:...

 and slavery continue to emerge as major issues.

The Constitutional Union Party

Constitutional Union Party (United States)

The Constitutional Union Party was a political party in the United States created in 1860. It was made up of conservative former Whigs who wanted to avoid disunion over the slavery issue...

, formed in support of the Compromise of 1850

Compromise of 1850

The Compromise of 1850 was a package of five bills, passed in September 1850, which defused a four-year confrontation between the slave states of the South and the free states of the North regarding the status of territories acquired during the Mexican-American War...

, gained 10 seats (its first ever) and was concentrated in Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

. The Free Soil Party

Free Soil Party

The Free Soil Party was a short-lived political party in the United States active in the 1848 and 1852 presidential elections, and in some state elections. It was a third party and a single-issue party that largely appealed to and drew its greatest strength from New York State. The party leadership...

, which was strongly abolitionist

Abolitionism

Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...

, lost five seats and was reduced to four Representatives, all in New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

 districts. The States' Rights Party, a pro-slavery state's rights party, gained ground in South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

.

Overall results

Party	Total seats (change)		Seat percentage
Democratic Party Democratic Party (United States) The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...	127	+14	54.5%
Whig Party Whig Party (United States) The Whig Party was a political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. Considered integral to the Second Party System and operating from the early 1830s to the mid-1850s, the party was formed in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and his Democratic...	84	-23	36.5%
Constitutional Union Party Constitutional Union Party (United States) The Constitutional Union Party was a political party in the United States created in 1860. It was made up of conservative former Whigs who wanted to avoid disunion over the slavery issue...	10	+10	4.3%
Free Soil Party Free Soil Party The Free Soil Party was a short-lived political party in the United States active in the 1848 and 1852 presidential elections, and in some state elections. It was a third party and a single-issue party that largely appealed to and drew its greatest strength from New York State. The party leadership...	4	-5	1.7%
Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...	4	+3	1.7%
States Rights Party	3	+3	1.3%
Totals	232	+1	100%

California

Note: From statehood to 1864, California's representatives were elected at-large, with the top two vote-getters winning election from 1849 to 1858; in 1860 when California gained a seat in the House the top three vote-getters were elected.

District	Opponent
California California California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...  AL	Edward C. Marshall Edward C. Marshall Edward Colston Marshall was a Democratic congressman from California's 1st district. He served as California attorney general from 1883 to 1887.-External links:...  (D) Joseph W. McCorkle Joseph W. McCorkle Joseph Walker McCorkle was a California congressman. He served as representative for the second district .-External links:*...  (D)

1849

District

Opponent

California California California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...  AL

George W. Wright (I) 22% Edward Gilbert Edward Gilbert Edward Gilbert was a Democratic California Politician. He was elected in November 1849 at-large as one of California's first two Representatives in the 31st Congress he was seated on September 11, 1850 and served until March 3, 1851. A newspaper editor after his service in Congress, he was killed...  (D) 20.6% Rodman M. Price 16.3% P. A. Morse 8.3% Lewis Dent 8.2% E. J. C. Kewen 7.3% W. M. Sheppard 7.2% William E. Shannon 5.4% Peter Halsted 2.4% L. W. Hastings 0.9% Pierson B. Reading Pierson B. Reading Pierson Barton Reading was a California pioneer.-Life:Pierson B. Reading, was born in New Jersey. He came across country to California with Samuel J. Hensley as a member of the Chiles-Walker party in 1843... 0.7% W. H. Russell 0.4% J. S. Thompson 0.3% Kimball H. Dimmick 0.2%