1847 Massachusetts gubernatorial election
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The 1847 Massachusetts gubernatorial election was held on November 8.
Incumbent Whig Governor George N. Briggs was re-elected to a fifth term in office over Democrat Caleb Cushing. This was the last election in which the Whig Party received a majority of the vote; after the emergence of the Free Soil Party in 1848, Whigs only won pluralities before fading away entirely by the 1857 election.
Democratic nomination
Candidates
- Henry W. Bishop
 - Caleb Cushing, former U.S. Minister to China and U.S. representative from Newburyport
 - Isaac Davis, state senator from Worcester and nominee for governor in 1845 and 1846
 - David Henshaw, former U.S. Secretary of the Navy
 
Convention
| 1847 Massachusetts Democratic Convention[1] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ballot | 1 | 2 | 
| Cushing | 153 | 264 | 
| Davis | 117 | 87 | 
| Henshaw | 65 | 0 | 
| Bishop | 14 | 0 | 
| Others | 19 | 10 | 
| Total | 368 | 361 | 
General election
Candidates
- Francis Baylies, former U.S. Chargé d'Affaires in Buenos Aires and U.S. representative from Taunton
 - Caleb Cushing, former U.S. Minister to China and U.S. representative from Newburyport (Democratic)
 - George N. Briggs, incumbent governor since 1844 (Whig)
 - Samuel Edmund Sewall, Liberty nominee for governor since 1842 (Liberty)
 
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | George N. Briggs (incumbent) | 53,742 | 50.97% | ||
| Democratic | Caleb Cushing | 39,398 | 37.36% | ||
| Liberty | Samuel Edmund Sewall | 9,193 | 8.72% | ||
| Know Nothing | Francis Baylies | 2,876 | 2.73% | ||
| Write-in | 234 | 0.22% | |||
| Total votes | 105,443 | 100.00% | |||
See also
References
- ^ "Our Campaigns - MA Governor - D Convention Race - Sep 22, 1847".
 - ^ "MA Governor, 1847". OurCampaigns. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
 
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