1861 New York City mayoral election

← 1859 December 3, 1861 1863 →

Nominee George Opdyke C. Godfrey Gunther Fernando Wood Party Republican Democratic Independent Democratic Alliance People's Union Tammany Hall Mozart Hall Popular vote 25,380 24,767 24,167 Percentage 34.2% 33.3% 32.5%

Ward results Opdyke:     30–40%     40–50%     50–60% Gunther:     30–40%     40–50%     50–60% Wood:     30–40%     40–50%     50–60%

Mayor before election Fernando Wood Democratic Elected mayor George Opdyke Republican

An election forMayor of New York City was held on December 3, 1861.

Incumbent mayorFernando Wood ran for re-election to a second consecutive term in office. In a close three-way race, Wood finished third behind RepublicanGeorge Opdyke and Democratic nomineeC. Godfrey Gunther. Opdyke was the first Republican elected mayor ofNew York City.

Following his defeat in the1857 election by an alliance of Republicans, Know-Nothings, and former Tammany Hall supporters, Fernando Wood was declared politically dead.^[1] However, he purchased theNew York Daily News,^[2][3] and, after an unsuccessful attempt to gain control ofTammany Hall, founded his own political society, known as Mozart Hall.^[2] In 1859, he defeatedWilliam Frederick Havemeyer and Republican nomineeGeorge Opdyke to return to office for a third non-consecutive term.^[4]

• C. Godfrey Gunther, fur merchant (Tammany Hall)
• George Opdyke, banker, former Assemblyman, and candidate for mayor in 1859 (Republican)
• Fernando Wood, incumbent mayor since 1860 (Mozart Hall)

1861 New York City mayoral election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	George Opdyke	25,380	34.15%	6.79
	Democratic	C. Godfrey Gunther	24,767	33.33%	1.06
	Independent Democratic	Fernando Wood (incumbent)	24,167	32.52%	5.73
Total votes			74,314	100.00%

• Allen, Oliver E. (1993).The Tiger: The Rise and Fall of Tammany Hall. Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. p. 52-53,63,67-76.ISBN 0-201-62463-X.
• Burrows, Edwin G.; Wallace, Mike (1999).Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898. Oxford University Press.ISBN 0-195-11634-8.
• Mushkat, Jerome (1990).Fernando Wood: A Political Biography. Kent, Ohio: Kent State University Press.ISBN 087338413X.

• Mayoral elections in New York City
• 1861 United States mayoral elections
• 1861 New York (state) elections
• Tammany Hall
• December 1861

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