List Of United States Senators Expelled Or Censured

The United States Constitution gives the Senate the power to expel any member by a two-thirds vote. This is separate from the Impeachment power the Senate has over other federal officials. The Supreme Court determined in 1797 that Senators could not be impeached, but only expelled. Expulsion is an extremely rare event. It has not actually occurred since the Civil War, although this is partly because many members resign rather than face a formal proceeding when expulsion appears possible. Censure, a lesser punishment which represents a formal statement of disapproval, has been more common in the last century. Although censure carries no formal punishment, only one Senator (Benjamin R. Tillman) of the nine to be censured has ever been re-elected.

Expelled Senators

| Year | Senator | Party | State | Details
a href="/encyclopedia/1797" title="1797">1797 William Blount Democrat-Republican Tennessee Expelled for treason and conspiracy to incite the Creek and Cherokee Indians to assist Great Britain in invading Florida
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 James M. Mason Democrat Virginia Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 Robert M.T. Hunter Democrat Virginia Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 Thomas L. Clingman Democrat North Carolina Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 Thomas Bragg Democrat North Carolina Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 James Chesnut, Jr. Democrat South Carolina Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 Alfred O.P. Nicholson Democrat Tennessee Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 William K. Sebastian Democrat Arkansas Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA. Sebastian's expulsion was reversed in 1877, after his death.
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 Charles B. Mitchel Democrat Arkansas Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 John Hemphill Democrat Texas Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 Louis T. Wigfall Democrat Texas Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1861" title="1861">1861 John C. Breckinridge Democrat Kentucky Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1862" title="1862">1862 Trusten Polk Democrat Missouri Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1862" title="1862">1862 Waldo P. Johnson Democrat Missouri Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA
a href="/encyclopedia/1862" title="1862">1862 Jesse D. Bright Democrat Indiana Expelled for supporting Confederate rebellion against USA

Expulsion proceedings not resulting in expulsion

Many expulsion proceedings have been begun by the Senate that did not lead to expulsion. In most cases the expulsion failed to secure the necessary two-thirds vote; in other cases the Senator in question resigned while proceedings were taking place, presumably because the Senator felt that the proceedings would succeed or that his political career would not survive them regardless. In a few cases the proceedings ended when a Senators died or his term expired.
| Year | Senator | Party | State | Result | Details
a href="/encyclopedia/1808" title="1808">1808 John Smith Democrat-Republican Ohio Not expelled Assisted Aaron Burr's western expedition; resigned two weeks after expulsion failed
a href="/encyclopedia/1856" title="1856">1856 Henry M. Rice Democrat Minnesota Not expelled Charged with corruption
a href="/encyclopedia/1862" title="1862">1862 Lazarus W. Powell Democrat Kentucky Not expelled Accused of supporting the Confederacy
a href="/encyclopedia/1862" title="1862">1862 James F. Simmons Republican Rhode Island Resigned Charged with corruption
a href="/encyclopedia/1873" title="1873">1873 James W. Patterson Republican New Hampshire Term expired Charged with corruption
a href="/encyclopedia/1893" title="1893">1893 William N. Roach Democrat North Dakota Not expelled Charged with embezzlement; Senate determined that charges were too far in the past
a href="/encyclopedia/1905" title="1905">1905 John H. Mitchell Republican Oregon Died during proceedings Charged with corruption
a href="/encyclopedia/1906" title="1906">1906 Joseph R. Burton Republican Kansas Resigned Convicted and upheld by the Supreme Court for receiving compensation for intervening with a federal agency
a href="/encyclopedia/1907" title="1907">1907 Reed Smoot Republican Utah Not expelled Senate committee asserted that Smoot, as a Mormon, belonged to a religion incompatible with US law; Senate found 43-27 that this was not relevant.
a href="/encyclopedia/1919" title="1919">1919 Robert M. La Follette, Sr. Republican Wisconsin Not expelled Charged with disloyalty for a speech opposing entry into World War I; Senate found 50-21 that this was not warranted
a href="/encyclopedia/1922" title="1922">1922 Truman H. Newberry Republican Michigan Resigned Convicted of election fraud, but overturned, for excessive spending in a primary election.
a href="/encyclopedia/1924" title="1924">1924 Burton K. Wheeler Democrat Montana Not expelled Indicted for conflict of interest after serving in legal cases to which the United States was a party. Exonerated by Senate 56-5
a href="/encyclopedia/1934" title="1934">1934 John H. Overton Democrat Louisiana Not expelled Investigated for election fraud
a href="/encyclopedia/1934" title="1934">1934 Huey P. Long Democrat Louisiana Not expelled Investigated for election fraud
a href="/encyclopedia/1942" title="1942">1942 William Langer Republican North Dakota Not expelled Charged with corruption and moral turpitude while Governor of North Dakota; full senate voted against expulsion 52-30
a href="/encyclopedia/1982" title="1982">1982 Harrison A. Williams Democrat New Jersey Resigned Convicted for bribery and conspiracy in the Abscam scandal; resigned before a vote by the full Senate
a href="/encyclopedia/1995" title="1995">1995 Robert W. Packwood Republican Oregon Resigned Charged with sexual misconduct and abuse of power; resigned before a Senate vote

Censured Senators

| Year | Senator | Party | State | Reason
a href="/encyclopedia/1811" title="1811">1811 Timothy Pickering Federalist Massachusetts Reading confidential documents in open Senate session before an injunction of secrecy was removed.
a href="/encyclopedia/1844" title="1844">1844 Benjamin Tappan Democrat Ohio Releasing to the New York Evening Post a copy of President John Tyler's message to the Senate regarding the treaty of annexation between the United States and the Republic of Texas.
a href="/encyclopedia/1902" title="1902">1902 Benjamin R. Tillman Democrat South Carolina Fighting on the Senate floor with John L. McLaurin.
a href="/encyclopedia/1902" title="1902">1902 John L. McLaurin Democrat South Carolina Fighting on the Senate floor with Benjamin R. Tillman.
a href="/encyclopedia/1929" title="1929">1929 Hiram Bingham Republican Connecticut Employing as a Senate staff member Charles Eyanson, who was simultaneously employed by the Manufacturers Association of Connecticut.
a href="/encyclopedia/1954" title="1954">1954 Joseph R. McCarthy Republican Wisconsin Abuse and non-cooperation with the Subcommittee on Privileges and Elections during a 1952 investigation of his conduct; for abuse of the Select Committee to Study Censure.
a href="/encyclopedia/1967" title="1967">1967 Thomas J. Dodd Democrat Connecticut Use of his office to convert campaign funds to his personal benefit. Conduct unbecoming a senator.
a href="/encyclopedia/1979" title="1979">1979 Herman E. Talmadge Democrat Georgia Improper financial conduct, accepting reimbursements for official expenses not incurred, and improper reporting of campaign receipts and expenditures.
a href="/encyclopedia/1990" title="1990">1990 David F. Durenberger Republican Minnesota Unethical conduct relating to reimbursement of Senate expenses and acceptance of outside payments and gifts.

Sources

Official Website of the U.S. Senate

 

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