1840–41 United States House of Representatives elections

The 1840–41 United States House of Representatives elections were held on various dates in various states between July 6, 1840, and November 2, 1841. Each state set its own date for its elections to the House of Representatives, before or after the first session of the 27th United States Congress convened on May 31, 1841. Elections were held for all 242 seats, representing 26 states.

1840–41 United States House of Representatives elections
July 6, 1840 – November 2, 1841
All 242 seats in the United States House of Representatives
122 seats needed for a majority
  Majority party Minority party
 
Leader John White John Jones
Party Whig Democratic
Leader's seat Kentucky 9th Virginia 3rd
Last election 116 seats 126 seats
Seats won 142 98
Seat change 26 28
Popular vote 1,089,609 1,021,051
Percentage 51.04% 47.83%
Swing 1.31% 2.18%
  Third party
 
Party Independent
Last election 0 seats
Seats won 2
Seat change 2
Popular vote 18,063
Percentage 0.85%
Swing 0.44%
Results:
     Democratic hold      Democratic gain
     Whig hold      Whig gain
     Independent gain      Independent Democrat gain
Speaker before election

Robert M. T. Hunter
Whig

 Elected Speaker

John White
Whig

In a Whig wave, voters gave the Whig Party a House majority for the first time. Most Americans experienced the Panic of 1837 as a severe economic downturn. Its perceived mishandling by Democratic President Martin Van Buren fueled new support for alternative economic policies favored by Whigs of which voters had previously been skeptical. Collapse of the Anti-Masonic Party in the late 1830s also drove some third-party incumbents into the Whig Party. Newly elected members included Robert M. T. Hunter, Independent of Virginia, and Zadok Casey, Independent Democrat of Illinois.

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