1862–63 United States House of Representatives elections

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The 1862–63 United States House of Representatives elections were held between June 2, 1862, and November 3, 1863, to elect the 184 members and eight non-voting delegates of the House of Representatives. The Republican–Union coalition lost seats but retained an overall majority against the backdrop of the American Civil War. In the first real test of opposition to the Lincoln administration, the Democratic Party made large gains in these and concurrent elections held in 1862 and 1863 but failed to take control of the House. Much of the campaign focussed on emancipation and Lincoln's handling of the war. Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, weeks before critical races in Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, (October 14) and New York (November 3). Democrats denounced emancipation as tyrannical and a threat to white supremacy. Democratic election propaganda charged their opponents with bloodlust and religious fanaticism and made frequent appeals to anti-Black racism...

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