1861 United States Senate election in California

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1861 United States Senate election in California
Majority vote of both houses needed to win
Senator before election; William M. Gwin; Democratic	Elected Senator ; James A. McDougall; Democratic

The 1861 United States Senate election in California was held on April 2, 1861, by the California State Legislature to elect a U.S. Senator (Class 3) to represent the State of California in the United States Senate. In a special joint session, former Democratic Congressman James A. McDougall was elected over Southern Democratic newspaper editor John Nugent.^[1] McDougall was elected with Republican support.^[2]

Results

Election in the Legislature (joint session)^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	James A. McDougall	57	54.81%
	Southern Democratic	John Nugent	39	37.50%
	Democratic	John B. Weller	4	3.85%
	Democratic	Eugene Casserly	3	2.88%
	Democratic	James Shields	1	0.96%
Total votes			104	100.00%

^ ^a ^b "News of the morning". Sacramento Daily Union. Sacramento. April 3, 1861. Retrieved November 2, 2024.
^ "The Senatorial vote". San Joaquin Republican. Stockton. April 6, 1861. Retrieved November 2, 2024.