1787 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

1787 Massachusetts gubernatorial election
	County results; Hancock: 40-50% 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% 80-90%
Governor before election; James Bowdoin; Nonpartisan	Elected Governor ; John Hancock; Nonpartisan

A gubernatorial election was held in Massachusetts on April 2, 1787. John Hancock, who had served as the first governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts from 1780 to 1785, defeated James Bowdoin, the incumbent governor.^[1]^[2]

The election took place in the aftermath of Shays's Rebellion, for which Bowdoin was sharply censured. First elected in 1785, Bowdoin once in office pursued an economic policy of austerity that dramatically increased the tax burden on lower-class citizens, leading to judicial foreclosures against those owing back taxes, including many Continental Army veterans. After backcountry farmers rose in revolt, critics of the administration, including moderate fellow conservatives, charged that Bowdoin had acted unwisely by levying taxes "heavier than the People could bear." Bowdoin's harsh response to the rebels, several thousand of whom were summarily stripped of their right to vote, hold public office, or serve as jurors, was denounced as "self-serving" and "a violation of republican principles."^[3] In the election, the voters overwhelmingly rejected Bowdoin, who lost to Hancock by 13,081 votes.^[4]

Results

Massachusetts gubernatorial election, 1787^[5]^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	John Hancock	18,475	75.09%
	Nonpartisan	James Bowdoin (incumbent)	5,394	21.92%
	Nonpartisan	Benjamin Lincoln	513	2.09%
	Nonpartisan	Nathaniel Gorham	81	0.33%
	Nonpartisan	Isaac Backus	60	0.24%
	Nonpartisan	Thomas Cushing	34	0.14%
	Nonpartisan	John Worthington	15	0.06%
	Nonpartisan	Samuel Phillips Jr.	9	0.04%
	Nonpartisan	Samuel Holten	4	0.02%
	Nonpartisan	Nathaniel Kingsley	3	0.01%
	Nonpartisan	Cotton Tufts	3	0.01%
	Nonpartisan	James Warren	3	0.01%
	Nonpartisan	George Leonard	2	0.01%
	Nonpartisan	Oliver Prescott	2	0.01%
	Nonpartisan	Caleb Strong	2	0.01%
	Nonpartisan	Samuel Adams	1	0.00%
	Nonpartisan	Daws	1	0.00%
	Nonpartisan	John Manning	1	0.00%
	Nonpartisan	Elisha May	1	0.00%
Total votes			24,604	100.00%
	Nonpartisan hold

Results by county

	John Hancock Nonpartisan		James Bowdoin Nonpartisan		Scattering		County total
County	Votes	Percent	Votes	Percent	Votes	Percent	County total
Barnstable	398	81.89	78	16.05	10^[a]	2.06	486
Berkshire	627	59.04	337	31.73	98^[b]	9.23	1,062
Bristol	1,982	87.27	287	12.64	2^[c]	0.08	2,271
Cumberland	415	75.04	92	16.63	46^[d]	8.31	553
Dukes	153	71.16	60	27.91	2^[e]	0.93	215
Essex	2,010	68.76	850	29.08	63^[f]	2.16	2,923
Hampshire	1,036	48.23	809	37.66	303^[g]	14.11	2,148
Lincoln	415	83.17	78	15.63	6^[h]	1.20	499
Middlesex	3,142	82.60	621	16.32	41^[i]	1.08	3,804
Nantucket	56	50.45	53	47.75	2^[j]	1.80	111
Plymouth	1,545	83.20	308	16.58	4^[k]	0.22	1,857
Suffolk	2,629	68.18	1,190	30.86	37^[l]	9.60	3,856
Worcester	3,472	84.42	557	13.54	84^[m]	2.04	4,113
York	586	87.20	74	11.01	12^[n]	1.78	672
TOTAL	18,475	75.09	5,394	21.92	735	2.99	24,604

References

^ Cushing 7, Backus 3
^ Lincoln 84, Cushing 13, Kingsley 1,
^ Cushing 1, May 1
^ Backus 46
^ Lincoln 2
^ Lincoln 46, Phillips 8, Cushing 4, Holten 2, Gorham 1, Manning 1, Worthington 1
^ Lincoln 247, Gorham 30, Worthington 14, Backus 5, Cushing 5, Strong 1, Warren 1
^ Lincoln 4, Kingsley 2
^ Lincoln 31, Gorham 5, Cushing 2, Prescott 2, Phillips 1
^ Lincoln 1, Cushing 1
^ Gorham 15, Lincoln 4, Tufts 3, Warren 2, Leonard 2, Adams 1, Backus 1, Cushing 1
^ Lincoln 24, Gorham 12, Daws 1
^ Lincoln 70, Gorham 6, Backus 5, Holten 2, Strong 1
^ Gorham 12

^ Dubin, Michael J. (2003). United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1776-1860: The Official Results by State and County. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland. p. 100. ISBN 0786414391.
^ Lampi, Philip J. "Massachusetts 1787 Governor". A New Nation Votes. American Antiquarian Society. Retrieved November 18, 2024.
^ Richards, Leonard L. (2003). Shays's Rebellion: The American Revolution's Final Battle. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 87–88, 38–39.
^ A New Nation Votes
^ Dubin, 100.
^ A New Nation Votes

[7] Cushing 7, Backus 3

[8] Lincoln 84, Cushing 13, Kingsley 1,

[9] Cushing 1, May 1

[10] Backus 46

[11] Lincoln 2

[12] Lincoln 46, Phillips 8, Cushing 4, Holten 2, Gorham 1, Manning 1, Worthington 1

[13] Lincoln 247, Gorham 30, Worthington 14, Backus 5, Cushing 5, Strong 1, Warren 1

[14] Lincoln 4, Kingsley 2

[15] Lincoln 31, Gorham 5, Cushing 2, Prescott 2, Phillips 1

[16] Lincoln 1, Cushing 1

[17] Gorham 15, Lincoln 4, Tufts 3, Warren 2, Leonard 2, Adams 1, Backus 1, Cushing 1

[18] Lincoln 24, Gorham 12, Daws 1

[19] Lincoln 70, Gorham 6, Backus 5, Holten 2, Strong 1

[20] Gorham 12

[1] Dubin, Michael J. (2003). United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1776-1860: The Official Results by State and County. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland. p. 100. ISBN 0786414391.

[2] Lampi, Philip J. "Massachusetts 1787 Governor". A New Nation Votes. American Antiquarian Society. Retrieved November 18, 2024.

[3] Richards, Leonard L. (2003). Shays's Rebellion: The American Revolution's Final Battle. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 87–88, 38–39.

[4] A New Nation Votes

[5] Dubin, 100.

[6] A New Nation Votes

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