1910 Minnesota Senate election

The 1910 Minnesota Senate election was held in the U.S. state of Minnesota on November 8, 1910, to elect members to the Senate of the 37th and 38th Minnesota Legislatures.

The Minnesota Republican Party won a large majority of seats, followed by the Minnesota Democratic Party, the People's Party, and the Prohibition Party. The new Legislature convened on January 3, 1911.

14 Republicans and 4 Democrats were uncontested.^[1]

Background

The last election resulted in the Minnesota Republican Party winning a large majority of seats, which they had maintained since the 1859 State Senate Election. The Minnesota Democratic Party was the main competition to the Republicans, although their chances of taking the body were considered slim to none. The major competitions of the election cycle were during the primary season, during which partisans faced off over the issue of the 'county option.' Numerous incumbents lost renomination over the issue.^[2]

Major issues of the general election campaign were addressed in a speech by then-Governor Adolph Olson Eberhart on October 5, 1910 in Mankato. He stood by what he called the "distinctly progressive" Republican Party platform. It advocated for a tariff commission that would be composed of non-partisan experts who would have control over taxes on imports, the end of political bossism, strong support for the 'county option' (as opposed to the Prohibitionists who stood for an outright statewide alcohol ban, and the Democrats who offered tepid support for the 'county option'), conservation of natural resources, fair re-apportionment, and additional funding for the state road system.^[3]

Electoral system

The 63 members of the Senate were elected from single-member districts via first-past-the-post voting for four-year terms. Contested nominations of the parties for each district were determined by local party primaries. Minor party and independent candidates were nominated by petition. This was the last Minnesota Senate election to be officially partisan until 1976.

Results

Summary of the November 6, 1910 Minnesota Senate election results
Party		Candidates	Votes	Seats
Party		Candidates	Votes	No.	%
	Republican Party	57	155,865	40	58.41
	Democratic Party	36	70,243	20	26.32
	Prohibition Party	10	15,948	1	5.98
	People's Party	1	3,694	1	1.38
	Public Ownership Party	11	13,379	0	5.01
	Independent	5	6,710	1	2.51
Total			266,866	63	100.00
Source: Minnesota Secretary of State^[4]

Results by District

District	Incumbent			Candidates
District	Name	Party	First elected	Name	Party	Votes	%	Winner Party
1	John Q. Briggs‡	Republican	1906	Francis A. Duxbury^[5]	Republican	1,657	100.00	Republican
2	George D. French^[6]	Republican	1908*	M. J. McGrath^[7]	Democratic	2,776	48.90	Democratic
				George D. French	Republican	2,652	46.71
				William G. Thompson	Prohibition	249	4.39
3	Lytle O. Cooke^[8]	Republican	1902	Lytle O. Cooke	Republican	2,028	52.96	Republican
3	Lytle O. Cooke^[8]	Republican	1902	James A. Carley^[9]	Democratic	1,801	47.04	Republican
4	Horace H. Witherstine‡	Democratic	1902	Alonzo T. Stebbins^[10]	Republican	1,993	50.74	Republican
4	Horace H. Witherstine‡	Democratic	1902	James I. Vermilya^[11]	Democratic	1,935	49.26	Republican
5	Samuel A. Nelson^[12]	Republican	1906	Samuel A. Nelson	Republican	2,710	100.00	Republican
6	Alex S. Campbell^[13]‡	Republican	1902	Charles F. Cook^[14]	Democratic	1,791	51.03	Democratic
6	Alex S. Campbell^[13]‡	Republican	1902	Harlan G. Palmer	Republican	1,719	48.97	Democratic
7	Daniel E. White^[15]‡	Republican	1906	Fremont J. Thoe	Republican	1,183	100.00	Republican
8	Thomas E. Cashman^[16]	Democratic	1906	Thomas E. Cashman	Democratic	1,926	54.38	Democratic
8	Thomas E. Cashman^[16]	Democratic	1906	Samuel A. Rask^[17]	Republican	1,616	45.62	Democratic
9	Bernhart N. Anderson^[18]	Republican	1906	Bernhart N. Anderson	Republican	2,034	57.65	Republican
				H. C. Nelson	Democratic	1,360	38.55
				Henry Kammer	Public Ownership	134	3.80
10	John Moonan^[19]	Democratic	1906	John Moonan	Democratic	1,841	100.00	Democratic
11	Samuel D. Works^[20]	Democratic	1906	Samuel D. Works	Democratic	2,745	50.16	Democratic
11	Samuel D. Works^[20]	Democratic	1906	Benjamin Taylor	Republican	2,727	49.84	Democratic
12	Frank E. Putnam^[21]	Republican	1902	Frank E. Putnam	Republican	1,845	67.81	Republican
12	Frank E. Putnam^[21]	Republican	1902	A. A. Johnson	Democratic	876	32.19	Republican
13	William A. Hinton^[22]‡^{[nb 1]}	Republican	1906	Julius E. Haycraft^[23]	Republican	3,315	100.00	Republican
14	Henry E. Hanson^[24]‡	Republican	1906	Andrew C. Olson^[25]	Republican	2,111	50.53	Republican
14	Henry E. Hanson^[24]‡	Republican	1906	T. J. Knox	Democratic	2,067	49.47	Republican
15	Salathiel B. Bedford^[26]	Republican	1906	Salathiel B. Bedford	Republican	2,517	56.40	Republican
15	Salathiel B. Bedford^[26]	Republican	1906	A. J. Schaeffer	Democratic	1,946	43.60	Republican
16	Edwin H. Canfield^[27]§	Republican	1906	Severt B. Duea^[28]	Republican	1,460	50.84	Republican
16	Edwin H. Canfield^[27]§	Republican	1906	Samuel B. Nelson	Democratic	1,412	49.16	Republican
17	Virgil B. Seward^[29]	Republican	1906	Olai A. Lende^[30]	Republican	4,862	100.00	Republican
18	O. G. Dale^[31]	Republican	1902	O. G. Dale	Republican	2,452	56.32	Republican
18	O. G. Dale^[31]	Republican	1902	John H. Skogrand	Prohibition	1,902	43.68	Republican
19	Frank Clague^[32]‡	Republican	1906	Frank Clague	Republican	4,624	100.00	Republican
20	Charles A. Johnson^[33]‡	Republican	1902	Henry N. Benson^[34]	Republican	1,738	100.00	Republican
21	Albert A. Poehler^[35]	Democratic	1906	Albert A. Poehler	Democratic	1,379	61.13	Democratic
21	Albert A. Poehler^[35]	Democratic	1906	J. W. Stark	Republican	877	38.87	Democratic
22	Darwin Hall^[36]‡	Republican	1886, 1906†	Frank Murray^[37]	Republican	2,314	59.47	Republican
22	Darwin Hall^[36]‡	Republican	1886, 1906†	T. O'Connor	Independent	1,577	40.53	Republican
23	Jonathan W. Wright^[38]	Republican	1906	Edward P. Peterson^[39]	Democratic	1,810	52.72	Democratic
				John A. Martner	Independent	1,027	29.92
				Jonathan W. Wright	Republican	596	17.36
24	Charles R. Donaldson^[40]	Democratic	1906	Charles R. Donaldson	Democratic	1,720	100.00	Democratic
25	Frederick E. DuToit^[41]‡	Democratic	1898	Charles H. Klein^[42]	Republican	1,663	54.08	Republican
25	Frederick E. DuToit^[41]‡	Democratic	1898	J. J. Farrell	Democratic	1,412	45.92	Republican
26	Julius A. Coller^[43]	Democratic	1898	Julius A. Coller	Democratic	1,029	100.00	Democratic
27	Harry F. Weis^[44]	Democratic	1906	Harry F. Weis	Democratic	2,622	100.00	Democratic
28	Frank L. Glotzbach^[45]	Democratic	1906	Frank L. Glotzbach	Democratic	2,544	56.94	Democratic
28	Frank L. Glotzbach^[45]	Democratic	1906	W. F. Schilling	Republican	1,924	43.06	Democratic
29	Ole K. Naeseth^[46]‡	Republican	1902	Anton J. Rockne^[47]	Republican	2,990	61.08	Republican
29	Ole K. Naeseth^[46]‡	Republican	1902	C. C. Holter	Prohibition	1,905	38.92	Republican
30	Albert Schaller^[48]	Democratic	1894	Albert Schaller	Democratic	2,512	57.60	Democratic
30	Albert Schaller^[48]	Democratic	1894	Marcus W. Brown	Republican	1,849	42.40	Democratic
31	George H. Sullivan^[49]	Republican	1906	George H. Sullivan	Republican	2,253	68.58	Republican
31	George H. Sullivan^[49]	Republican	1906	M. L. Hilliard	Prohibition	1,032	31.42	Republican
32	Victor L. Johnson^[50]	Republican	1906	Victor L. Johnson	Republican	6,346	100.00	Republican
33	Winslow W. Dunn^[51]	Republican	1902	Winslow W. Dunn	Republican	3,229	58.78	Republican
33	Winslow W. Dunn^[51]	Republican	1902	Charles E. Nyberg	Democratic	2,264	41.22	Republican
34	Henry McColl^[52]§	Democratic	1906	James Handlan^[53]	Democratic	2,602	54.55	Democratic
34	Henry McColl^[52]§	Democratic	1906	Carl Wirth	Republican	2,168	45.45	Democratic
35	John C. Hardy^[54]‡	Democratic	1902	Peter H. Van Hoven^[55]	Democratic	3,094	57.90	Democratic
35	John C. Hardy^[54]‡	Democratic	1902	Vincent J. Hawkins	Republican	2,250	42.10	Democratic
36	Edmund S. Durment^[56]§	Republican	1906	James D. Denegre^[57]	Republican	4,572	100.00	Republican
37	Joseph M. Hackney^[58]	Republican	1906	Joseph M. Hackney	Republican	4,711	100.00	Republican
38	John T. McGowan^[2]§	Democratic	1898	Napoleon A. L'Herault^[59]	Democratic	1,616	58.94	Democratic
				J. W. Shadewald	Republican	710	25.89
				Charles E. Williams	Public Ownership	416	15.17
39	James T. Elwell^[60]	Republican	1906	James T. Elwell	Republican	2,899	64.71	Republican
39	James T. Elwell^[60]	Republican	1906	Frank Plachy Jr.	Democratic	1,581	35.29	Republican
40	John F. Calhoun^[61]‡	Republican	1902	William S. Dwinnell	Republican	2,242	100.00	Republican
41	George P. Wilson^[62]	Republican	1898	George P. Wilson	Republican	1,760	47.21	Republican
				Alonzo Phillips	Democratic	1,271	34.09
				C. M. Erickson	Public Ownership	697	18.70
42	Manley L. Fosseen^[63]	Republican	1906	Manley L. Fosseen	Republican	3,544	58.06	Republican
				John H. Hirt	Public Ownership	1,479	24.23
				S. R. Tollefson	Prohibition	1,081	17.71
43	Edward Everett Smith^[64]‡	Republican	1898	Carl L. Wallace^[65]	Republican	6,284	75.19	Republican
43	Edward Everett Smith^[64]‡	Republican	1898	A. T. Ankeny	Democratic	2,074	24.81	Republican
44	John W. Pauly^[66]	Democratic	1906	John W. Pauly	Democratic	2,506	50.07	Democratic
				Thomas H. Girling^[67]	Republican	1,908	38.12
				Andrew Hanson	Public Ownership	591	11.81
45	Charles J. Swanson^[68]	Republican	1906	Charles J. Swanson	Republican	3,114	53.76	Republican
45	Charles J. Swanson^[68]	Republican	1906	William A. Rice	Prohibition	2,678	46.24	Republican
46	George C. Carpenter^[69]	Republican	1906	George C. Carpenter	Republican	1,644	45.64	Republican
				Austin B. Rice	Prohibition	1,282	35.59
				W. F. Ludemann	Democratic	676	18.77
47	John E. C. Robinson^[70]§	Democratic	1906	John D. Sullivan	Democratic	1,739	52.41	Democratic
47	John E. C. Robinson^[70]§	Democratic	1906	Arthur C. Cooper	Republican	1,579	47.59	Democratic
48	Solomon F. Alderman^[71]§	Republican	1906	Charles D. Johnson	Democratic	2,473	41.01	Democratic
				O. P. Erickson	Republican	2,229	36.97
				R. A. Henning	Public Ownership	814	13.50
				D. C. Henderson	Independent	514	8.52
49	Patrick R. Vail^[72]§	Republican	1906	James P. Boyle	Republican	5,144	71.22	Republican
49	Patrick R. Vail^[72]§	Republican	1906	Bert N. Wheeler	Prohibition	2,079	28.78	Republican
50	Thomas M. Pugh^[73]	Republican	1902	Thomas M. Pugh	Republican	1,649	62.49	Republican
50	Thomas M. Pugh^[73]	Republican	1902	Ray E. Hunt	Prohibition	990	37.51	Republican
51	George R. Laybourn	Republican	1902	Henry W. Cheadle^[74]	Democratic	2,154	51.72	Democratic
51	George R. Laybourn	Republican	1902	George R. Laybourn^[75]	Republican	2,011	48.28	Democratic
52	Daniel M. Gunn	Republican	1906	Daniel M. Gunn^[76]	Republican	4,607	58.13	Republican
52	Daniel M. Gunn	Republican	1906	Charles D. Viebahn	Public Ownership	3,318	41.87	Republican
53	James Johnston	Republican	1906	James Johnston^[77]	Republican	2,859	49.75	Republican
				Levi M. Davis	Democratic	2,135	37.15
				George W. Cralle	Public Ownership	753	13.10
54	John J. Ahmann^[78]	Democratic	1906	John J. Ahmann^[79]	Democratic	2,849	67.48	Democratic
54	John J. Ahmann^[78]	Democratic	1906	Henry J. Emmel	Independent	1,373	32.52	Democratic
55	Lars O. Thrope^[80]‡	Republican	1894, 1902†	Charles W. Odell	Republican	1,684	51.39	Republican
55	Lars O. Thrope^[80]‡	Republican	1894, 1902†	Victor E. Lawson	Prohibition	1,593	48.61	Republican
56	Ray G. Farrington^[81]	Democratic	1906	Saxe J. Froshaug	Prohibition	1,406	33.71	Prohibition
				Ray G. Farrington	Democratic	1,385	32.21
				T. J. McElligott	Republican	1,380	33.09
57	Ole O. Canestorp^[82]‡	Republican	1890, 1906†	Edward Rustad	Republican	3,120	100.00	Republican
58	Claus J. Gunderson^[83]	Republican	1906	Claus J. Gunderson	Republican	4,306	100.00	Republican
59	Ole O. Sageng	People's	1906	Ole O. Sageng^[84]	People's	3,694	74.58	People's
59	Ole O. Sageng	People's	1906	Sam G. Wallace	Public Ownership	1,259	25.42	People's
60	Frank H. Peterson^[2]§	Republican	1902	Charles S. Marden^[2]	Republican	4,871	67.74	Republican
60	Frank H. Peterson^[2]§	Republican	1902	M. Kuhn	Democratic	2,320	32.26	Republican
61	Albert L. Hanson	Republican	1906	Albert L. Hanson^[85]	Republican	6,041	63.29	Republican
61	Albert L. Hanson	Republican	1906	Carl Geil	Public Ownership	3,504	36.71	Republican
62	Andrew D. Stephens	Republican	1902	Johannes Saugstad^[86]	Independent	2,997	48.46	Independent
				Andrew D. Stephens^[86]	Republican	2,773	44.84
				H. C. Larson	Public Ownership	414	6.69
63	Bengt E. Sundberg^[87]	Republican	1902	Bengt E. Sundberg	Republican	4,522	100.00	Republican

*Elected in a special election.

†Elected to non-consecutive terms.

‡Retired; did not seek re-election.

§Lost primary election for party's nomination.

^[1]

Seats changing parties

Party	Incumbent	District	First elected	Winner	Party
Republican	George D. French	2	1908*	M. J. McGrath	Democratic
	Alex S. Campbell‡	6	1902	Charles F. Cook	Democratic
	Jonathan W. Wright	23	1906	Edward P. Peterson	Democratic
	Solomon F. Alderman§	48	1906	Charles D. Johnson	Democratic
	George R. Laybourn	51	1902	Henry W. Cheadle	Democratic
	Andrew D. Stephens	62	1902	Johannes Saugstad	Independent
Democratic	Horace H. Witherstine‡	4	1902	Alonzo T. Stebbins	Republican
	Frederick E. DuToit‡	25	1898	Charles H. Klein	Republican
	Ray G. Farrington	56	1906	Saxe J. Froshaug	Prohibition

*Elected in a special election.

‡Retired; did not seek re-election.

§Lost primary election for party's nomination.

Notes

References

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