1851 Boston mayoral election
Election in Massachusetts, United States
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 1851 Boston mayoral election saw the election of Benjamin Seaver, a former president of the Boston Common Council, as mayor of Boston. The election took three votes, as no candidate secured the needed majority in the first two attempts. In the third attempt, Seaver won the required majority by the margin of a single vote. Incumbent Whig mayor John P. Bigelow was not a nominee for reelection.
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Dec. 8, 1851 (1st vote)
Dec. 17, 1851 (2nd vote) Dec. 24, 1851 (3rd vote) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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First vote (December 8, 1851)
Candidates
- Jerome V. C. Smith ("Native American Party" âKnow Nothing),[1] physician
- John H. Wilkins (Whig)[1]
- George F. Williams (Free Soil Party)[1]
- Adam Wallace Thaxter Jr. (Democratic Party),[1] merchant[2] and Democratic for mayor in the first vote of the 1844 election
Result
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | John H. Wilkins | 4,423 | 45.13 | |
| Know Nothing | Jerome V. C. Smith | 2,672 | 27.26 | |
| Democratic | Adam W. Thaxter Jr. | 2,150 | 21.94 | |
| Free Soil | George F. Williams | 475 | 4.85 | |
| Scattering | Other | 81 | 0.83 | |
| Total votes | 9,801 | 100 | ||
Second vote (December 17, 1851)
Candidates
- Benjamin Seaver (Whig),[4] former president of the Boston Common Council
- Jerome V. C. Smith, physician
- John H. Wilkins
- George F. Williams
- Henry B. Rogers
- Adam Wallace Thaxter Jr., merchant[2] and candidate for mayor in 1844
Result
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | Benjamin Seaver | 3,970 | 47.31 | |
| Know Nothing | Jerome V. C. Smith | 2,680 | 31.94 | |
| Democratic | Adam W. Thaxter Jr. | 1,290 | 15.37 | |
| Free Soil | George F. Williams | 244 | 2.91 | |
| Henry B. Rogers | 158 | 1.88 | ||
| Scattering | Other | 50 | 0.60 | |
| Total votes | 8,392 | 100 | ||
Third vote (December 24, 1851)
Candidates
- Benjamin Seaver (Whig),[4] former president of the Boston Common Council
- Jerome V. C. Smith, physician
- Henry B. Rogers
- Adam Wallace Thaxter Jr., merchant[2] and candidate for mayor in 1844
Result
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | Benjamin Seaver | 3,990 | 50.05 | |
| Know Nothing | Jerome V. C. Smith | 2,736 | 34.32 | |
| Democratic | Adam W. Thaxter Jr. | 1,024 | 12.84 | |
| Henry B. Rogers | 188 | 2.36 | ||
| Scattering | Other | 38 | 0.48 | |
| Total votes | 7,976 | 100 | ||
Summary table of all votes
| Vote round | Whig Party | Democratic Party | Know Nothing Party | Free Soil Party | Other candidate | Scattering | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominee | % | Nominee | % | Nominee | % | Nominee | % | Candidate | % | % | |
| 1st | John H. Wilkins | 45.13 | Adam W. Thaxter Jr | 21.95 | Jerome V. C. Smith | 27.26 | George F. Williams | 4.85 | N/a | 0.83 | |
| 2nd | Benjamin Seaver | 47.31 | 15.37 | 31.94 | 2.91 | Henry B. Rogers | 1.88 | 0.60 | |||
| 3rd | 50.05 | 12.84 | 34.32 | N/a | 2.36 | 0.48 | |||||