1872–73 United States House of Representatives elections

1872–73 United States House of Representatives elections

November 5, 1872

All 292 seats in the United States House of Representatives
147 seats needed for a majority
  Majority party Minority party
 
Leader James G. Blaine Fernando Wood
Party Republican Democratic
Leader's seat Maine 3rd New York 10th
Last election 138 seats 94 seats
Seats won 199 84
Seat change 61 9
Popular vote 3,561,090 2,813,934
Percentage 51.40% 40.62%
Swing 3.26pp 2.77pp

  Third party Fourth party
 
Party Liberal Republican Conservative
Last election 2 seats 10 seats
Seats won 4 4
Seat change 2 6
Popular vote 274,693 126,329
Percentage 3.97% 1.82%
Swing 3.07% 1.05pp

  Fifth party
 
Party Independent
Last election 1 seat
Seats won 1
Seat change
Popular vote 151,757
Percentage 2.19%
Swing 0.45pp

Results:
     Democratic hold      Democratic gain
     Republican hold      Republican gain
     Conservative hold      Conservative gain
     Liberal Republican gain
     Independent Gain

Speaker before election

James G. Blaine
Republican

Elected Speaker

James G. Blaine
Republican

The 1872–73 United States House of Representatives elections were held on various dates in various states between June 4, 1872, and April 7, 1873. Each state set its own date for its elections to the House of Representatives before the first session of the 43rd United States Congress convened on December 1, 1873. They coincided with the re-election of United States President Ulysses S. Grant. The congressional reapportionment based on the 1870 United States census increased the number of House seats to 292.

Grant's Republican Party increased its majority greatly, partly at the expense of the opposition Democratic Party and partly by adding 49 new seats to the House. The proindustry outlook of the Republicans appealed to many Northern voters, especially as the post-war economy exploded, and this allowed the party to flourish as the Industrial Revolution grew more widespread. The Republicans also benefited from a continuing association with victory in the American Civil War, as well as disarray amongst Democratic leadership.