Beginning shortly after the city's incorporation as a city in 1846, elections have been held in the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. The following article provides information on the elections for mayor in the city during the 19th century.
The rules of the original 1846 city charter, in effect for the city's earliest elections, required that, to be elected, a candidate needed to receive a majority of the vote in a mayoral election. If no candidate received a majority, or if the winning candidate refused to take office, further election(s) would be held until an election produced a candidate with a majority of the vote.[1]
From 1846 to 1857, mayors served for a one-year term, expiring on the third Tuesday in March. From 1857 to 1872, the mayor's term expired on the last day of December. In 1873, the term ended annually on the third Tuesday in March, up until 1880, when it became a two-year term.[citation needed]
The 1846 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral elections were held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. The first election was part of the first municipal election held after Manchester formally became a city (having previously been a town), which was held on August 19, 1846. The August municipal election's mayoral election, however, failed to produce a winner, as first-place finisher Hiram Brown fell 17 votes shy of the majority threshold needed to win the election. A second election was held on September 1, which saw Brown win a majority.[3][4]
The candidates in the August election were Hiram Brown, Thomas Brown, William C. Clarke, James McQueston, William Stephens, James Wilkins.[5] Hiram Brown was affiliated with the Whig Party, Thomas Brown was affiliated with the Abolition Party, and Clarke was affiliated with the Democratic Party.[4] Candidates in the September 1 election were Hiram Brown, Thomas Brown, Issac C. Flanders, Jacob F. James, William Stephens, and J. Sullivan Wiggin.[6] Flanders was affiliated with the Democratic Party.[4]
August 19, 1846, Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election (no winner)
Candidate
Votes
%
September 1, 1846, Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election[7]
The 1847 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral elections were held on March 10, March 31, April 30, and May 22, 1847,[5] to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. The conclusive fourth election saw the election of Jacob F. James.
In the first three elections, no candidate had managed to reach the required majority threshold to win election. In the fourth election, Jacob F. James won election by receiving a majority of the vote.[5]
March 10, 1847, Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election[5] (no winner)
The 1848 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral elections were held on March 18, April 8, and April 26, 1848,[5] to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. The conclusive third election saw the reelection of incumbent mayor Jacob F. James.
In the first two elections, no candidate had managed to reach the required majority threshold to win election. In the third election, Jacob F. James won election by receiving a majority of the vote.[5]
The initial March 18 election had coincided with the elections for the city's aldermen.[5]
March 18, 1848, Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election[5] (no winner)
The 1849 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral elections were held in April, May, and October 1849,[5] to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. The conclusive third election saw the election of Warren L. Lane.
In the first two elections, no candidate had managed to reach the required majority threshold to win election. In the third election, Warren L. Lane won election by receiving a majority of the vote.[5]
The third election coincided with the October elections for the city's aldermen.[5]
April 1849 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election[5] (no winner)
The 1850 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the election of Moses Fellows, who unseated incumbent mayor Warren L. Lane. Fellows and Lane were the only two candidates running in the election, which coincided with the city's aldermanic elections.[5]
The 1851 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the reelection of Moses Fellows, who defeated challengers Walter French, Alonzo Smith, and D.L. Stevens.[5] The election coincided with the city's aldermanic elections.[5]
The 1852 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the election of Frederick Smyth, who defeated Walter French, the only other candidate running in the election. The election coincided with the city's aldermanic elections.[5]
The 1853 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the reelection of Frederick Smyth, who defeated challenger Stevens James, the only other candidate running in the election.[5] The election coincided with the city's aldermanic elections.[5]
The 1854 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held in March 1854[5] to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the reelection of Frederick Smyth, who defeated challenger William C. Clarke, the only other candidate running in the election. This made Clarke the first mayor of the city to be elected to a third term.[5] The election coincided with the city's aldermanic elections.[5]
The 1855 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held in March 1855[5] to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the election of Theodore T. Abbott, who defeated Frederick G. Stark, the only other candidate running in the election.[5] The election coincided with the city's aldermanic elections.[5]
The March 1856 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the reelection of Theodore T. Abbott, who defeated challenger George W. Morrison, the only other candidate running in the election.[5] The election coincided with the city's aldermanic elections.[5]
The November 1856 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the election of Jacob F. James to a third nonconsecutive term.[2] James defeated Isaac C. Flanders, the only other candidate running in the election.[5] The election coincided with the city's aldermanic elections.[5]
The 1863 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the election of Frederick Smyth to a fourth nonconsecutive term, making him the first mayor of the city to be elected to a fourth term.[2][5] Smyth was elected nearly unanimously, with the remainder of the vote being a scattering of write-in votes, with no single individual receiving more than five write-in votes.[5]
The 1870 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the reelection of James A. Weston to a third overall term, defeating Peter Chandler and Andrew C. Wallace.[2][5]
The 1873 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the election of James A. Weston to a second nonconsecutive term. Weston defeated Charles Kenniston and incumbent mayor John P. Newell (who had been appointed by the city's aldermen and Common Council after the resignation of Person C. Cheney).[5][2]
The November 1878 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the reelection of John L. Kelly, who defeated Andrew C. Wallace.[5]
The 1884 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the election of George H. Stearns, who defeated Joseph Kidder and Lewis Simons.[5]
The 1888 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the election of David B. Varney, who defeated William Corey and Augustus Stevens.[5]
The 1890 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the election of Edgar J. Knowlton, who defeated Thomas W. Lane and Augustus Stevens.[5]
The 1892 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the reelection of Edgar J. Knowlton, who defeated John C. Bickford and Augustus Stevens.[5]
The 1900 Manchester, New Hampshire, mayoral election was held to elect the mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. It saw the reelection of Republican incumbent William C. Clarke to a fourth consecutive term. Clarke defeated Democratic candidate James Sullivan.[5] Clarke was the second mayor of the city to win election to a fourth term (after Frederick Smyth did so in 1863), and the first to win a fourth consecutive term.[2][5]
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