At a special judicial election on June 7, 1847, four judges of the New York Court of Appeals

New York Court of Appeals

The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the U.S. state of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six associate judges who are appointed by the Governor to 14-year terms...

, the Clerk of the Court of Appeals

Clerk of the New York Court of Appeals

The Clerk of the New York Court of Appeals was one of the statewide elected officials in New York from 1847 to 1870. He was also ex officio a clerk of the New York Supreme Court. The office was created by the New York State Constitution of 1846...

, 32 justices of the new New York Supreme Court

New York Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in thestate court system of New York, United States. There is a supreme court in each of New York State's 62 counties, although some smaller counties share judges with neighboring counties...

 district benches, county judges, surrogates, districty attorneys and all other judicial officers in the state of New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 were elected, to take office on July 5, 1847.

Background

The New York State Constitution of 1846 re-organized the State's judicial system and created the Court of Appeals. Four of the judges were elected statewide, the other four were chosen by a rotative system from the New York Supreme Court

New York Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in thestate court system of New York, United States. There is a supreme court in each of New York State's 62 counties, although some smaller counties share judges with neighboring counties...

 district benches.

The Whig state convention met on May 19 at Syracuse, New York

Syracuse, New York

Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...

, and nominated Whittlesey, Noxon, Reynolds and David Lord. Lord declined the nomination, and Jordan was substituted on the ticket.

Results

The votes are the total of Democratic and Anti-Rent votes for Gardiner and Bronson, and the total of Whig and Anti-Rent votes for Jordan, Whittlesey and Lamport. The Anti-Rent endorsement did not influence the result of this election.

The official result did not count the votes from Hamilton County

Hamilton County, New York

Hamilton County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. It is named after Alexander Hamilton, the only member of the New York State delegation who signed the United States Constitution in 1787 and later the first United States Secretary of the Treasury. Its county seat is Lake Pleasant...

, which were not returned, and 1,011 votes for Whittlesey in Herkimer County

Herkimer County, New York

Herkimer County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. It was created in 1791 north of the Mohawk River out of part of Montgomery County. As of the 2010 census, the population was 64,519. It is named after General Nicholas Herkimer, who died from battle wounds in 1777 after taking part...

, which were cast for "Frederick W. Whittlesey".

The whole Democratic ticket was elected. Those elected were then classified by drawing lots on June 22. Jewett drew the two-year term, Bronson the four-year term, Ruggles the six-year term, and Gardiner the eight-year term. The half year remaining in 1847 was added to these terms, and afterwards every two years in odd-numbered years one judge was elected to an eight-year term.

1847 judicial election results

Office	Democratic ticket		Whig ticket		Anti-Rent Anti-Rent War The Anti-Rent War was a tenants' revolt in upstate New York during the early 19th century, beginning with the death of Stephen Van Rensselaer III in 1839....  ticket
Judge of the Court of Appeals New York Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the U.S. state of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six associate judges who are appointed by the Governor to 14-year terms...	Addison Gardiner Addison Gardiner Addison Gardiner was an American lawyer and politician who was the Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals from 1854 to 1855.-Early life and career:...	145,282	Ambrose L. Jordan Ambrose L. Jordan Ambrose Latting Jordan was an American lawyer, newspaper editor and politician.-Early life:...	127,519	Addison Gardiner Addison Gardiner Addison Gardiner was an American lawyer and politician who was the Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals from 1854 to 1855.-Early life and career:...
	Greene C. Bronson Greene C. Bronson Greene Carrier Bronson was an American lawyer and politician from New York.-Life:...	144,784	Frederick Whittlesey Frederick Whittlesey Frederick Whittlesey was a U.S. Representative from New York, cousin of Elisha Whittlesey and Thomas Tucker Whittlesey.Born in New Preston, Connecticut, Whittlesey pursued academic studies....	126,844	Greene C. Bronson Greene C. Bronson Greene Carrier Bronson was an American lawyer and politician from New York.-Life:...
	Charles H. Ruggles Charles H. Ruggles Charles Herman Ruggles was an American lawyer and politician who was a U.S...	140,202	B. Davis Noxon	124,398	Ambrose L. Jordan Ambrose L. Jordan Ambrose Latting Jordan was an American lawyer, newspaper editor and politician.-Early life:...
	Freeborn G. Jewett Freeborn G. Jewett Freeborn Garrettson Jewett was an American lawyer and politician who served as a U.S. Representative from New York and was the first Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals.-Life:He moved to Skaneateles in 1815, and was appointed a Justice of the Peace in 1817...	138,313	Marcus T. Reynolds	123,933	Frederick Whittlesey Frederick Whittlesey Frederick Whittlesey was a U.S. Representative from New York, cousin of Elisha Whittlesey and Thomas Tucker Whittlesey.Born in New Preston, Connecticut, Whittlesey pursued academic studies....
Clerk of the Court of Appeals Clerk of the New York Court of Appeals The Clerk of the New York Court of Appeals was one of the statewide elected officials in New York from 1847 to 1870. He was also ex officio a clerk of the New York Supreme Court. The office was created by the New York State Constitution of 1846...	Charles S. Benton Charles S. Benton Charles Swan Benton was an American lawyer and politician from New York.-Life:...	136,312	J. T. Lamport	131,031	J. T. Lamport

Sources

• Judges of the Court of Appeals at http://www.courts.state.ny.us/history/elecbook/thereshallbe/pg90.htm Court History New York
• The Whig Almanac and United States Register (page 52)