Senate roll call 516 · 36th Congress · Feb 21, 1861
To open the doors and go into legislative business.
On Feb 21, 1861, the Senate voted 20–26. Result: failed. By party: Republicans 20–4, Democrats 0–21, Others 0–1. It was a split vote: the parties took opposite sides, with some members crossing over. 4 members voted against their own party.
During the 36th Congress (1859–1860), James Buchanan was president, and Republicans held the House majority and Democrats the Senate majority.
- Yes
- 20
- No
- 26
- Did not vote
- 24
- Date
- Feb 21, 1861
By party
- Democrats0 yes · 21 no · 20 didn’t vote
- Republicans20 yes · 4 no · 3 didn’t vote
- Others0 yes · 1 no · 1 didn’t vote
Who broke with their party
- James Dixon R-CT voted no
- Henry Wilson R-MA voted no
- Daniel Clark R-NH voted no
- John Parker Hale R-NH voted no
How each senator voted: Yes
- Lafayette Sabine Foster R-CT
- James Harlan R-IA
- James Wilson Grimes R-IA
- Lyman Trumbull R-IL
- Charles Sumner R-MA
- Lot Myrick Morrill R-ME
- Kinsley Scott Bingham R-MI
- Zachariah Chandler R-MI
- Morton Smith Wilkinson R-MN
- John Conover Ten Eyck R-NJ
- Preston King R-NY
- William Henry Seward R-NY
- Benjamin Franklin Wade R-OH
- Edward Dickinson Baker R-OR
- Simon Cameron R-PA
- Henry Bowen Anthony R-RI
- James Fowler Simmons R-RI
- Solomon Foot R-VT
- Charles Durkee R-WI
- James Rood Doolittle R-WI
How each senator voted: No
- Robert Ward Johnson D-AR
- William King Sebastian D-AR
- Milton Slocum Latham D-CA
- William McKendree Gwin D-CA
- James Dixon R-CT
- Stephen Arnold Douglas D-IL
- Graham Newell Fitch D-IN
- Jesse David Bright D-IN
- Lazarus Whitehead Powell D-KY
- Henry Wilson R-MA
- Anthony Kennedy O-MD
- James Alfred Pearce D-MD
- Henry Mower Rice D-MN
- Trusten Polk D-MO
- Thomas Bragg D-NC
- Thomas Lanier Clingman D-NC
- Daniel Clark R-NH
- John Parker Hale R-NH
- John Renshaw Thomson D-NJ
- Joseph Lane D-OR
- William Bigler D-PA
- Alfred Osborn Pope Nicholson D-TN
- John Hemphill D-TX
- Louis Trezevant Wigfall D-TX
- James Murray Mason D-VA
- Robert Mercer Taliaferro Hunter D-VA
Did not vote
- Benjamin Fitzpatrick D-AL
- Clement Claiborne Clay Jr. D-AL
- David Colbreth Broderick D-CA
- Henry Peter Haun D-CA
- James Asheton Bayard Jr. D-DE
- Willard Saulsbury Sr. D-DE
- David Levy Yulee D-FL
- Stephen Russell Mallory D-FL
- Alfred Iverson Sr. D-GA
- Robert Augustus Toombs D-GA
- John Jordan Crittenden O-KY
- John Slidell D-LA
- Judah Philip Benjamin D-LA
- Hannibal Hamlin R-ME
- William Pitt Fessenden R-ME
- James Stephen Green D-MO
- Albert Gallatin Brown D-MS
- Jefferson Davis D-MS
- George Ellis Pugh D-OH
- James Chesnut Jr. D-SC
- James Henry Hammond D-SC
- Andrew Johnson D-TN
- Matthias Ward D-TX
- Jacob Collamer R-VT
Other votes
From Voteview roll call records.
Cite or embed this page
Capitol Receipts, “To open the doors and go into legislative…: Senate Vote, Feb 21, 1861,” https://www.capitolreceipts.com/vote/36-S-516/to-open-the-doors-and-go-into-legislative-business (accessed 2026-10-17).