1794 Pennsylvania Elections

In the 1790s, the people of a new nation that was on a journey to build a central government were worried about the new government and had considerable doubts and fears about the developing political parties. However, with events such as Philadelphia’s 1794 federal congressional election, the Federalist party was sure to die out, and eventually the government would evolve without Alexander Hamilton’s factions. The reasoning behind Democratic-Republican John Swanick’s victory over Federalist Thomas Fitzsimons is revealed through the differences in the candidates, how those differences affected and involved the qualified voters, and how the two men viewed and dealt with the issues of the time.

Fitzsimons, who held positions in the Continental Congress and strongly supported Hamilton’s policies, represented a group that “generally advocated a strong central government, a broad

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It took 4041 lives, 10 of which were “valuable physicians” (108 W/B). The physicians that fled during the rapidly spreading disease time were mostly Federalists; Benjamin Rusk, however (a Democratic-Republican), stayed to assist the sick and become one of the most prominent doctors. The Protestants would have been swayed to vote for another Protestant, giving more votes to Swanick. Out of 18 members, nine were Democratic-Republican and only one was a Federalist. Swanick, on the other hand, broke from his Tory father to support patriotism and worked his way up to become a wealthy merchant.

In the Gazette of the United States, on August 10, 1794, a pro-Federalist article complained that Democratic-Republican societies pushed a liberty that meant “bringing the laws into contempt and persuading people to resist them” (102 W/B).

Another issue during the 1790s was the Yelloe Fever epidemic. Although there was no real campaigning back then to analyze now, the candidates themselves, the votes, and the issues of the time all played equally important roles in the first step in the changeover to Democratic-Republicanism. Although few voters belonged to either candidate’s specific religion, “most of Philadelphia’s voters were Protestant, the two largest denominations were Lutheran and Quaker” (114 W/B).

Fitzsimons helped draft the legislation charting the Band of the United States in 1791, and he was a Roman Catholic. Such a representation of the Democratic-Republican party had a great impact on the votes. Swanick became an officer in Philadelphia’s Democratic Society, and he was a Protestant Episcopalian. He said on treating the many ill, “Amidst my numerous calls to the wealthy and powerful, I do not forget the poor” (110 W/B).

Approximate Word count = 592
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)

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