1812 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

• Elbridge Gerry, incumbent Governor (Democratic-Republican)
• Caleb Strong, former Governor (Federalist)

{{Election box begin | title=1812 Massachusetts gubernatorial election{{cite web |url=https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=224568 |title=MA Governor, 1812 |publisher=Our Campaigns |access-date=11 November 2021}}{{cite book |title=Gubernatorial Elections, 1787-1997 |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=Congressional Quarterly Inc. |date=1998 |page=57 |isbn=1-56802-396-0 }}{{cite book |last=Dubin |first=Michael J. |title=United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1776-1860: The Official Results by State and County |publisher=McFarland |year=2003 |page=xxv |isbn=978-0-7864-1439-0 |location=Jefferson, North Carolina }}{{cite book |last=Glashan |first=Roy R. |title=American Governors and Gubernatorial Elections, 1775-1978 |publisher=Meckler Books |location=Westport, CT |year=1979 |pages=140–141 |isbn=0-930466-17-9}}{{cite book |editor1-last=Kallenbach |editor1-first=Joseph E. |editor2-last=Kallenbach |editor2-first=Jessamine S. |date=1977 |title=American State Governors, 1776-1976 |volume=I |page=273 |location=Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. |publisher=Oceana Publications, Inc. |isbn=0-379-00665-0}}{{cite web |publisher= Tufts University |work= Tufts Digital Collations and Archives |title=Massachusetts 1812 Governor |series= A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825 |access-date= 11 November 2021 |url= https://elections.lib.tufts.edu/catalog/0v8380808 }}{{cite book |last=Burdick |first=Charles |date=1814 |title=The Massachusetts Manual: or Political and Historical Register, for the Political Year from June 1814 to June 1815 |volume=I |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DP7Y2qQ68wAC&pg=PA26 |location=Boston |publisher=Charles Callender |page=26 }}{{cite book |author= |title=The Massachusetts Register and United States Calendar; for the Year of Our Lord 1814, &c., &c. |year=1814 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wcw7AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA36 |location=Boston |publisher=John West & Co. |page=36 }}{{cite book |last=Hayward |first=John |date=1847 |title=A Gazetteer of Massachusetts, &c., &c. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4I0-AAAAYAAJ&pg=PA417 |location=Boston |publisher=John Hayward |page=417 }}

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{{Election box winning candidate with party link|

| party = Federalist Party

| candidate = Caleb Strong

| votes = 52,696

| percentage = 50.60%

| change =

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link|

| party = Democratic-Republican Party

| candidate = Elbridge Gerry (incumbent)

| votes = 51,326

| percentage = 49.28%

| change =

}}

{{Election box candidate

|party = Scattering

|candidate =

|votes = 124

|percentage = 0.12%

|change =

}}

{{Election box majority|

| votes = 1,370

| percentage = 1.32%

| change =

}}

{{Election box turnout|

| votes = 104,146

| percentage =

| change =

}}

{{Election box gain with party link |

| winner = Federalist Party

| loser = Democratic-Republican Party

| swing =

}}

{{Election box end}}

Although the Federalists in Massachusetts had successfully taken the house and the governor's seat from the Democratic-Republican party in the 1812 election cycle, these gains did not translate into control of the Massachusetts State Senate, which remained in the hands of the Democratic-Republicans.{{cite book|last=Griffith|first=Elmer|title=The Rise and Development of the Gerrymander|url=https://archive.org/details/risedevelopmento00grif|page=[https://archive.org/details/risedevelopmento00grif/page/73 72-73]|location=Chicago|publisher=Scott, Foresman and Co|year=1907|oclc=45790508}} The cause for this laid in new constitutionally mandated electoral district boundaries that the state had adopted prior to the election. The Republican-controlled legislature had created district boundaries designed to enhance their party's control over state and national offices, leading to some oddly shaped legislative districts.{{cite book|editor-last=Hart|editor-first=Albert Bushnell |title=Commonwealth History of Massachusetts|url=https://archive.org/details/commonwealthhist03hart|page=3:458|publisher=The States History Company|location=New York|year=1927|oclc=1543273}} (five volume history of Massachusetts until the early 20th century) Although Gerry was unhappy about the highly partisan districting (according to his son-in-law, he thought it "highly disagreeable"), he signed the legislation. The shape of one of the state senate districts in Essex County was compared to a salamander{{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Gerry, Elbridge |volume=11 |pages=903–904}} by a local Federalist newspaper in a political cartoon, calling it a "Gerry-mander".{{cite book|last=Billias|first=George|title=Elbridge Gerry, Founding Father and Republican Statesman|url=https://archive.org/details/elbridgegerryfou0000bill|url-access=registration|year=1976|publisher=McGraw-Hill Publishers|page=317|isbn=0-07-005269-7}} Ever since, the creation of such districts has been called gerrymandering.

On May 30, 1812, Nathaniel Ames wrote in his diary that "Strong declared Governor by majority of 600! and not near so many as the illegal vote of Boston."{{cite book|title = Jacobin and Junto: Or, Early American Politics as Viewed in the Diary of Dr. Nathaniel Ames, 1758-1822 | first = Charles | last = Warren | year =1931 | publisher = Harvard University Press |page=249 }}{{efn|In Ames' hometown of Dedham, voters cast 299 votes for Elbridge Gerry and 172 for Caleb Strong.{{sfn|Warren|1931|p=248}} The Republicans gained 46 votes over the previous election but the Federalists gained 56.{{sfn|Warren|1931|p=248}}}}

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{{1812 United States elections}}

{{Massachusetts elections}}

1812

Massachusetts

Gubernatorial

Category:Elbridge Gerry

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