States held the 1852âÂÂ53 United States House of Representatives elections between August 2, 1852, and November 8, 1853. Each state set a date for its elections to the House of Representatives before the first session of the 33rd United States Congress convened on December 5, 1853.
The Democrats increased their House majority, while the Whigs underperformed. Effects of the Compromise of 1850 temporarily reduced sectional tensions. Both major parties aimed to unify around the 1852 Presidential campaign, but only the Democrats succeeded, electing compromise candidate Franklin Pierce, a Northerner favorable to Southern interests, to the Presidency.
Two small parties, the Union and Southern Rights parties, collapsed, while the Free Soil Party, opposing slavery in the Western territories, retained four seats. One Independent, Caleb Lyon, was elected from New York.
Following the 1850 census, the House was reapportioned. In the initial apportionment bill, the number of seats was unchanged, but later one seat was added to California's delegation, increasing the size of the House to 234 seats.
|- ! | John Bragg | | Democratic | 1851 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap | |- ! | James Abercrombie | | Whig | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap | |- ! | Sampson Willis Harris | | Democratic | 1847 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap | |- ! | William Russell Smith | | Union | 1851 | | Incumbent re-elected as a Democrat.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap | |- ! | George S. Houston | | Democratic | 1850 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap | |- ! | Williamson R. W. Cobb | | Democratic | 1847 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap | |- ! | Alexander White | | Whig | 1851 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | rowspan=2 | Robert W. Johnson<br/> | rowspan=2 | rowspan=2 | 1846 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap | |- ! | | New seat.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
Note: From statehood to 1864, California's representatives were elected at-large, with the top two vote-getters winning election from 1849 to 1858; in 1860 when California gained a seat in the House the top three vote-getters were elected.
|- ! rowspan=2 | <br/> | Edward C. Marshall | | Democratic | 1851 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | rowspan=2 nowrap |
|- | Joseph W. McCorkle | | Democratic | 1851 | | Incumbent lost renomination.<br/>Democratic hold.
|- ! | Charles Chapman | | Whig | 1851 | | Incumbent lost re-election.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Colin M. Ingersoll | | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | Chauncey F. Cleveland | | 1849 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | Origen S. Seymour | | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
Election was held November 8, 1852.
|- ! | George R. Riddle | | Democratic | 1850 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | Edward C. Cabell | | Whig | 1846 | | Incumbent lost re-election.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Joseph W. Jackson | | Southern Rights | 1850 | |Incumbent retired.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | James Johnson | | Constitutional Union | 1851 | |Incumbent lost re-election as a Whig.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Jack Bailey | | Southern Rights | 1851 | |Incumbent re-elected as a Democrat.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Charles Murphey | | Constitutional Union | 1851 | |Incumbent retired.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Elijah W. Chastain | | Constitutional Union | 1851 | |Incumbent re-elected as a Democrat.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Junius Hillyer | | Constitutional Union | 1851 | |Incumbent re-elected as a Democrat.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Whig gain. | nowrap |
|- ! rowspan=2 | | Alexander H. Stephens <br/>
| | Constitutional Union | 1843 | | Incumbent re-elected as a Whig.<br/>Whig gain. | rowspan=2 nowrap |
|- | Robert Toombs | | Constitutional Union | 1844 | |Incumbent retired.<br>Constitutional Union loss.
|- ! | Thompson Campbell <br/>
| | Democratic | 1850 | | Incumbent lost re-election.<br/>Whig gain. | nowrap | |- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Orlando B. Ficklin | | Democratic | 1850 | | Incumbent retired. <br/>Whig gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Richard S. Molony | | Democratic | 1850 | | Incumbent retired. <br/>Whig gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | William Alexander Richardson | | Democratic | 1847 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap |
|- ! | Richard Yates Sr. <br/>
| | Whig | 1850 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap |
|- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | William Henry Bissell <br/>
| | Democratic | 1848 | | Incumbent re-elected as an Independent Democrat.<br/>Independent Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Willis Allen <br/> | | Democratic | 1850 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap |
|- ! | James Lockhart | | Democratic | 1851 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! rowspan=2 | | Cyrus L. Dunham <br/>
| | Democratic | 1840 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap rowspan=2 | |- | John L. Robinson | | Democratic | 1847 | |Incumbent retired.<br>Democratic loss.
|- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Samuel W. Parker <br/> | | Whig | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap | |- ! rowspan=2 | | Thomas A. Hendricks <br/> | | Democratic | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap rowspan=2 |
|- | Willis A. Gorman | | Democratic | 1849 | |Incumbent retired.<br>Democratic loss.
|- ! | John G. Davis | | Democratic | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap |
|- ! | Daniel Mace | | Democratic | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap | Daniel Mace (Democratic) 54.4% Robert Gregory (Whig) 45.6%
|- ! | Graham N. Fitch | | Democratic | 1849 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | Samuel Brenton | | Whig | 1851 | | Incumbent lost re-election.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Bernhart Henn | | Democratic | 1850 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap |
|- ! | Lincoln Clark | | Democratic | 1850 | | Incumbent lost re-election.<br/>Whig gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Linn Boyd | | Democratic | 1839 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | Benjamin E. Grey | | Whig | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | Presley Ewing | | Whig | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | William Thomas Ward | | Whig | 1851 | | Incumbent retired.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | James W. Stone | | Democratic | 1851 | | Incumbent lost re-election.<br>Whig gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Addison White | | Whig | 1851 | | Incumbent retired.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | William Preston | | Whig | 1852 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | John C. Breckinridge | | Democratic | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | John Calvin Mason | | Democratic | 1849 | | Incumbent retired.<br>Whig gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Richard H. Stanton | | Democratic | 1849 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | Louis St. Martin | | Democratic | 1850 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap | |- ! | Joseph Aristide Landry | | Whig | 1850 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Whig hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | Alexander G. Penn | | Democratic | 1850 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | John Moore | | Whig | 1850 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap | Roland Jones (Democratic) 56.8%
[FNU] Smith (Whig) 43.2%
|- ! | Moses Macdonald | | Democratic | 1850 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | John Appleton | | Democratic | 1850 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | Robert Goodenow | | Whig | 1850 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Whig hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | Isaac Reed | | Whig | 1852 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Whig hold. | nowrap |
|- ! rowspan=2 | | Israel Washburn Jr. <br/> | | Whig | 1850 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap rowspan=2 |
|- | Ephraim K. Smart | | Democratic | 1850 | |Incumbent retired.<br>Democratic loss.
|- ! | Thomas J. D. Fuller <br/> | | Democratic | 1848 | Incumbent re-elected | nowrap |
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The elections were held November 8, 1852. However, many of the districts went to a December 13, 1852 second ballot.
|- ! | Zeno Scudder<br/> | | Whig | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected on the second ballot. | nowrap | Second ballot
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|- ! | Ebenezer J. Penniman | | Whig | 1850 | | Incumbent retired.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Charles E. Stuart | | 1847<br>1848 <br>1850 | | Incumbent retired to run for U.S. Senator.<br>Democratic hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | James L. Conger | | Whig | 1850 | | Incumbent retired.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | colspan=3 | None | | New seat.<br>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
Elections held late, from November 7 to 8, 1853
|- ! data-sort-value=0 | | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Benjamin D. Nabers | | Union | 1851 | | Incumbent lost re-election as a Whig.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | John A. Wilcox | | Union | 1851 | | Incumbent lost re-election as a Whig.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | John D. Freeman | | Union | 1851 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Albert G. Brown | | Southern Rights | 1847 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap | Wiley P. Harris (Democratic) 100%
Elections held late, on August 4, 1853.
|- ! rowspan=2 | | Andrew Johnson | | Democratic | 1842 | |Incumbent retired to run for Governor.<br/>Democratic loss. | rowspan=2 nowrap | |- | Albert G. Watkins<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | Whig | 1849 | | Incumbent lost re-election.<br/>Democratic gain.
|- ! | William M. Churchwell<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | Democratic | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap | |- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! rowspan=2 | | John H. Savage | | Democratic | 1849 | |Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic loss. | rowspan=2 nowrap | |- | William Cullom<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | Whig | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected.
|- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Whig gain. | nowrap |
|- ! rowspan=2 | | William H. Polk | | Independent<br/>Democratic | 1851 | |Incumbent retired.<br/>Independent Democratic loss. | rowspan=2 nowrap | George W. Jones (Democratic) 100%
|- | George W. Jones<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | Democratic | 1842 | Incumbent re-elected. |- ! | Meredith P. Gentry | | Whig | 1845 | |Incumbent retired.<br/>Whig hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Whig gain. | nowrap |
|- ! rowspan=2 | | Isham G. Harris | | Democratic | 1849 | |Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic loss. | rowspan=2 nowrap | |- | Christopher H. Williams<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | Whig | 1849 | | Incumbent lost re-election.<br/>Whig hold.
|- ! | Frederick P. Stanton | | Democratic | 1845 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! rowspan=2 | | James Meacham<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | Whig | 1849 <small>(special)</small> | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap rowspan=2 | |- | Ahiman Louis Miner | | Whig | 1850 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Whig loss.
|- ! | William Hebard | | Whig | 1848 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Whig hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New seat.<br/>Whig gain. | nowrap | Second ballot
|- ! ' | Thomas Bartlett Jr. | | 1850 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>District eliminated.<br/>Democratic loss. | nowrap | None
|- ! | Thomas H. Bayly<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | 1844 <small>(special)</small> | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | John Millson<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | 1849 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! rowspan=2 | | Thomas H. Averett | | 1849 | | Incumbent lost renomination.<br/>Democratic loss. | nowrap rowspan=2 |
|- | John Caskie<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected.
|- ! | Richard Kidder Meade<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | 1847 <small>(special)</small> | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | Thomas S. Bocock<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | 1847 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | Paulus Powell<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | 1849 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | James F. Strother<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | Whig | 1851 | | Incumbent lost renomination.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! rowspan=2 | | Alexander Holladay | | 1849 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic loss. | nowrap rowspan=2 |
|- | Charles J. Faulkner<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | Whig | 1851 | | Incumbent re-elected as a Democrat.<br/>Democratic gain.
|- ! | John Letcher<br/><small>Redistricted from the </small> | | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New district.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | colspan=3 | None (new district) | | New district.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Henry A. Edmundson | | 1849 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | Fayette McMullen | | 1849 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | James M. H. Beale | | 1849 | rowspan=2 | Incumbents retired.<br/>Districts eliminated.<br/>Democratic loss. | nowrap | None
|- ! | Sherrard Clemens | | 1852 <small>(special)</small> | nowrap | None
|- ! | Charles Durkee | | Free Soil | 1848 | | Incumbent lost re-election.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Ben C. Eastman | | Democratic | 1850 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |
|- ! | James Duane Doty | | Independent<br/>Democratic | 1848 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>Democratic gain. | nowrap |
|- ! | Henry Hastings Sibley | | Democratic | 1848<br/>1849 <br/>1849 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>New delegate elected.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | Richard H. Weightman | | Democratic | 1851 | | Incumbent retired.<br/>New delegate elected in 1853.<br/>Democratic hold. | nowrap |
|- ! | Joseph Lane | | Democratic | 1851 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap |