The 1888 United States House of Representatives elections were held for the most part on November 6, 1888, with three states holding theirs early between June and September. They occurred at the same time as the election of President Benjamin Harrison. Elections were initially held for 325 seats of the United States House of Representatives, representing 38 states, to serve in the 51st United States Congress. Six new states would later join the union and increase the House to 332 seats. Special elections were also held throughout the year. Harrison's Republican Party gained a majority in the House at the expense of the Democratic Party, even though incumbent President Grover Cleveland actually received more votes counted than Harrison. However, as in other elections in the period, widespread vote suppression and fraud was common on behalf of Democrats and against black Republicans in the South. The Republican House majority in uncontested elections unseated a number of initially reported as victorious Democratic candidates in favor of Republican candidates who contested their election loss. The issue of tariffs played a key role in this election. The Democrats, with the support of farmers and laborers, wanted to lower tariffs in order to promote free trade, while the Republicans, backed by industry and big business, believed that higher tariffs were necessary to protect American manufacturing. Especially in industrializing regions, voters chose the Republican view on tariffs, as they gave the party a slim majority in the House. Election summaries Seven seats were added, for the six new states of, in order of admission (number of House seats for each new state listed in parentheses): North Dakota (1), South Dakota (2), Montana (1), Washington (1), Idaho (1), and Wyoming (1). The previous election had 4 third-party candidates, 2 Labor, 1 Greenback, and 1 Independent. Election dates All states elected their members November 6, 1888 except, three states, with 7 seats among them: June 6: Oregon September 4: Vermont September 10: Maine Alabama Arizona Territory See Non-voting delegates, below. Arkansas |- ! | Poindexter Dunn | | Democratic | 1878 | | Incumbent retired.New member elected.Democratic hold. | nowrap | |- ! | Clifton R. Breckinridge | | Democratic | 1882 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap | |- ! | Thomas C. McRae | | Democratic | 1884 | Incumbent re-elected. | nowrap | |- ! | John H. Rogers | | Democratic | 1884 | Incumbent