1800 and 1801 United States House of Representatives elections
Elections to the United States House of Representatives for the 7th Congress in 1800 and 1801, at the same time as the 1800 presidential election, in which Vice President Thomas Jefferson, a Democratic Republican, defeated incumbent President John Adams, a Federalist.
These elections resulted in the Democratic-Republicans picking up 22 seats from the Federalists. This brought the Democratic-Republicans a solid majority of 68 seats, whereas the Federalists were only able to secure 38. Many state legislatures also changed to Democratic-Republican control, with the result that many new Democratic-Republicans were voted into the Senate. The Federalists never again succeeded in gaining a majority of seats in the House of Representatives, and the national Federalist Party disintegrated completely in the early 1820s.
The victory of Jefferson and the Democratic-Republicans can be attributed partially to unpopular policies pursued by the Adams administration, including the Alien and Sedition Acts, which sought to curtail guarantees of freedom of speech and freedom of the press spelled out in the Bill of Rights.
The difference between Federalist policies in support of a strong national government and the Democratic-Republican preference for states' rights played a prominent role in the election. Federal taxation became an issue as Southerners and Westerners rejected federal taxes levied on property.
Election summaries
Special elections
There were special elections in 1800 and 1801 during the 6th United States Congress and 7th United States Congress.Elections are sorted here by date then district.
6th Congress
7th Congress
Connecticut
Note: Between the two sources used, there is disagreement over the ordering of the candidates. Both sources have the same numbers of votes recorded, but disagree on which candidates received those votes, one source lists Goddard as 8th, Talmadge as 9th, etc., as listed here, while the other has them as 11th, 12th, etc., three places off for all of them until the bottom three listed here which are moved up to 8th-10th, suggesting that one of the two sources accidentally misplaced three names on the list. They are ordered here as Goddard and Talmadge in 8th and 9th place as it is more likely that they'd been at the top of the runners-up given that they were subsequently elected to fill vacancies in the 7th Congress.Delaware
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| James A. Bayard | Federalist | 1796 | Incumbent re-elected. |
Georgia
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| James Jones | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected to a different party. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| Benjamin Taliaferro | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected to a different party. Democratic-Republican gain. |
Kentucky
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| Thomas T. Davis | Democratic-Republican | 1797 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| John Fowler | Democratic-Republican | 1797 | Incumbent re-elected. |
Maryland
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| George Dent | Federalist | 1792 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Federalist hold. | ||
| John C. Thomas | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| William Craik | Federalist | 1796 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Federalist hold | ||
| George Baer, Jr. | Federalist | 1796 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| Samuel Smith | Democratic-Republican | 1792 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Gabriel Christie | Democratic-Republican | 1792 1794 1798 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican hold. | ||
| Joseph H. Nicholson | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| John Dennis | Federalist | 1796 | Incumbent re-elected. |
Massachusetts
Massachusetts law required a majority for election, which was not met in the 1st and 6th districts, necessitating a second trial.New Hampshire
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| James Sheafe | Federalist | 1799 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Federalist hold. | ||
| Jonathan Freeman | Federalist | 1796 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Federalist hold. | ||
| William Gordon | Federalist | 1796 | Incumbent resigned June 12, 1800 to become N.H. Attorney General. New member elected. Federalist hold. Winner also elected to finish current term, see above. | ||
| Abiel Foster | Federalist | 1794 | Incumbent re-elected. |
New Jersey
In 1800, New Jersey returned to its traditional at-large district, continued to use this system to select representatives until it was abolished in 1842, with a single exception in 1813.| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| John Condit | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Aaron Kitchell | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican hold. | ||
| James Linn | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican hold. | ||
| James H. Imlay | Federalist | 1797 | Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| Franklin Davenport | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. |
New York
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| John Smith | Democratic-Republican | 1799 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Edward Livingston | Democratic-Republican | 1794 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican hold. | ||
| Philip Van Courtlandt | Democratic-Republican | 1793 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Lucas C. Elmendorf | Democratic-Republican | 1796 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Theodorus Bailey | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican hold. | ||
| John Bird | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| John Thompson | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Democratic-Republican hold. | ||
| Henry Glen | Federalist | 1793 | Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Federalist hold. | ||
| Jonas Platt | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Federalist hold. | ||
| William Cooper | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Federalist hold. |
North Carolina
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| Joseph Dickson | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| Archibald Henderson | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Robert Williams | Democratic-Republican | 1796 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Richard Stanford | Democratic-Republican | 1796 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Nathaniel Macon | Democratic-Republican | 1791 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| William H. Hill | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| William Barry Grove | Federalist | 1791 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| David Stone | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. Winner was also elected U.S. Senator, and therefore chose not to serve in the House in the next congress. A special election was held August 6, 1801, see above. | ||
| Willis Alston | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Richard Dobbs Spaight | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Federalist gain. |
Pennsylvania
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| Robert Waln | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| Michael Leib | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Richard Thomas | Federalist | 1794 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Federalist hold. | ||
| Peter Muhlenberg | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. Incumbent/winner was then elected U.S. Senator February 19, 1801, leading to a special election, see above. | ||
| Robert Brown | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Joseph Hiester | Democratic-Republican | 1797 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| John A. Hanna | Democratic-Republican | 1796 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| John W. Kittera | Federalist | 1791 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Federalist hold. | ||
| Thomas Hartley | Federalist | 1788 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. Incumbent died December 21, 1800 and winner was then elected to finish the current term, see above. | ||
| Andrew Gregg | Democratic-Republican | 1791 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Henry Woods | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| John Smilie | Democratic-Republican | 1792 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Albert Gallatin | Democratic-Republican | 1794 | Incumbent re-elected. Incumbent/winner was later appointed U.S. Treasury May 14, 1801 during the 7th Congress but before that congress formally convened, leading to a special election, see above. |
Rhode Island
Rhode Island switched to a general ticket for its two seats, instead of electing each one separately. Only one candidate received a majority in the 1800 election, requiring an 1801 run-off election to choose a Representative for the second seat.| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| John Brown | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent lost re-election. Democratic-Republican gain. | ' ' | |
| Christopher G. Champlin | Federalist | 1796 | Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican gain. | ' ' |
South Carolina
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| Thomas Pinckney | Federalist | 1797 | Incumbent retired. Federalist hold. | ||
| John Rutledge, Jr. | Federalist | 1796 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Benjamin Huger | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Thomas Sumter | Democratic-Republican | 1796 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Robert Goodloe Harper | Federalist | 1794 | Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| Abraham Nott | Federalist | 1798 | Incumbent retired. Democratic-Republican gain. |
Tennessee
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| William C. C. Claiborne | Democratic-Republican | 1797 | Incumbent re-elected. |
Claiborne did not serve in the 7th Congress as he was appointed Governor of Mississippi Territory and was replaced in a special election by William Dickson
Vermont
Vermont law required a candidate to win a majority to take office, necessitating a run-off election in the 2nd district.Virginia
| District | Incumbent | Party | First elected | Result | Candidates |
| Robert Page | Federalist | 1799 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| David Holmes | Democratic-Republican | 1797 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| George Jackson | Democratic-Republican | 1799 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Abram Trigg | Democratic-Republican | 1797 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| John J. Trigg | Democratic-Republican | 1797 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Matthew Clay | Democratic-Republican | 1797 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| John Randolph | Democratic-Republican | 1799 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Samuel Goode | Federalist | 1799 | Unknown if incumbent retired or lost re-election. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| Joseph Eggleston | Democratic-Republican | 1798 | Unknown if incumbent retired or lost re-election. New member elected. Democratic-Republican hold. | ||
| Edwin Gray | Democratic-Republican | 1799 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Josiah Parker | Federalist | 1789 | Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| Thomas Evans | Federalist | 1797 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Federalist hold. | ||
| Littleton Waller Tazewell | Democratic-Republican | 1800 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican hold. | ||
| Samuel J. Cabell | Democratic-Republican | 1795 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| John Dawson | Democratic-Republican | 1797 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Anthony New | Democratic-Republican | 1793 | Incumbent re-elected. | ||
| Leven Powell | Federalist | 1799 | Incumbent lost re-election. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. | ||
| John Nicholas | Democratic-Republican | 1793 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican hold. | ||
| Henry Lee | Federalist | 1799 | Incumbent retired. New member elected. Democratic-Republican gain. |