| Elections in Wisconsin |
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The 1897 United States Senate election in Wisconsin was held in the 43rd Wisconsin Legislature on January 27, 1897. Incumbent Democratic U.S. senator William F. Vilas did not run for a second term. His predecessor, Republican former U.S. senator John Coit Spooner was elected to succeed him on the first ballot.[1]
In the 1897 term, Republicans held overwhelming majorities in both chambers of the Wisconsin Legislature, so had more than enough votes to elect a Republican United States senator.
Major candidates
Democratic
- Willis C. Silverthorn, 1896 Democratic gubernatorial nominee, former state legislator from Wausau, Wisconsin.
Republican
- John Coit Spooner, former U.S. senator.
National Democratic (Gold Democrats)
- Edward S. Bragg, former U.S. representative, former U.S. ambassador, former Union Army general.
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John Coit Spooner | 117 | 92.13% | ||
| Democratic | Willis C. Silverthorn | 8 | 6.30% | ||
| National Democratic | Edward S. Bragg | 2[a] | 1.57% | ||
| Absent or not voting | 6 | ||||
| Majority | 64 | 50.39% | |||
| Total votes | 127 | 95.49% | |||
| Republican gain from Democratic | |||||
Notes
- ↑ Democratic senators Stephen F. Mayer and Albert Solliday voted for Bragg.
References
- 1 2 "January 27, 1897". State of Wisconsin Assembly Journal (Report). Wisconsin Legislature. 1897. pp. 118–120. Retrieved March 21, 2025 – via HathiTrust.