1897 United States House of Representatives elections

There were eight special elections to the United States House of Representatives in 1897 during the 55th United States Congress, which began on March 4, 1897. None of the special elections in 1897 were during the 54th United States Congress, which ended March 3, 1897.

1897 U.S. House of Representatives elections

← 1896 April 20, 1897 – November 23, 1897 1898 →
8 (out of 357) seats in the U.S. House of Representatives 179 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Thomas B. Reed Joseph Weldon Bailey Party Republican Democratic Leader's seat Maine 1st Texas 4th Last election 210 seats 124 seats Seats won 3 5 Seat change 2 2   Third party Fourth party   Party Populist Silver Last election 22 seats 1 seat Seats won 0 0 Seat change

District	Incumbent			This race
	Member	Party	First elected	Results	Candidates
Pennsylvania 25	James J. Davidson	Republican	1896	Member-elect died January 2, 1897, before the term. New member elected April 20, 1897. Republican hold. Successor seated May 3, 1897.^[1]	▌Y Joseph B. Showalter (Republican) 66.2% ▌Salem Heilman (Democratic) 33.7%
Missouri 1	Richard P. Giles	Democratic	1896	Member-elect died November 17, 1896, before the term. New member elected June 1, 1897. Democratic hold. Successor seated June 10, 1897.^[1]	▌Y James T. Lloyd (Democratic) 56.9% ▌Clark (Republican) 39.8%
Maine 3	Seth L. Milliken	Republican	1882	Member-elect died April 18, 1897. New member elected June 21, 1897. Republican hold. Successor seated July 1, 1897.^[1]	▌Y Edwin C. Burleigh (Republican) 73.9% ▌Frederick W. Plaisted (Democratic) 23.8%
South Carolina 6	John L. McLaurin	Democratic	1892 (Special)	Incumbent resigned May 31, 1897, when appointed U.S. Senator. New member elected October 12, 1897.^[1] Successor seated December 6, 1897.^[1] Democratic hold.	▌Y James Norton (Democratic) Unopposed^[2]
Massachusetts 1	Ashley B. Wright	Republican	1892	Incumbent died August 14, 1897. New member elected November 2, 1897.^[1] Republican hold. Successor seated December 6, 1897.^[1]	▌Y George P. Lawrence (Republican) 58.6% ▌Roger P. Donoghue (Democratic) 37.3%
Indiana 4	William S. Holman	Democratic	1858 1864 (Retired) 1866 1876 (Retired) 1880 1894 (Lost) 1896	Incumbent died April 22, 1897. New member elected August 10, 1897. Democratic hold. Successor seated December 6, 1897.^[1]	▌Y Francis M. Griffith (Democratic) 51.47% ▌Charles W. Lee (Republican) 46.69% ▌Uriah M. Browder (Populist) 1.84%^[3]
New York 3	Francis H. Wilson	Republican	1894	Incumbent resigned September 30, 1897, to become Postmaster of Brooklyn, New York. New member elected November 2, 1897.^[1] Democratic gain. Successor seated December 6, 1897.^[1]	▌Y Edmund H. Driggs (Democratic) 47.6% ▌William A. Prendergast (Republican) 41.4% ▌Horatio C. King (ND) 9.6%
Illinois 6	Edward D. Cooke	Republican	1894	Incumbent died June 24, 1897. New member elected November 23, 1897.^[1] Democratic gain. Successor seated December 6, 1897.^[1]	▌Y Henry S. Boutell (Republican) 51.4% ▌Vincent H. Perkins (Democratic) 47.0%

See also

• List of special elections to the United States House of Representatives

References

1. "Fifty-fifth Congress March 4, 1897, to March 3, 1899". Office of the Historian, United States House of Representatives. Retrieved June 7, 2019 – via History.house.gov.
2. "SC - District 06 Special Election". OurCampaigns.com. November 24, 2008. Retrieved November 11, 2019., citing United States Congressional Elections, 1788-1997 The Official Results Michael J. Dubin
3. "IN - District 04 Special Election". OurCampaigns.com. November 18, 2009. Retrieved November 11, 2019., citing United States Congressional Elections, 1788-1997 The Official Results Michael J. Dubin

• "Fifty-fifth Congress March 4, 1897, to March 3, 1899". Office of the Historian, United States House of Representatives. Retrieved June 7, 2019 – via History.house.gov.
• Coolidge, L.A. (1897). Official Congressional Directory ("Corrected to December 13, 1897") (First ed.). United States Government Printing Office. p. 3.