# Michael Griffin (Wisconsin politician)

Michael Griffin (September 9, 1842 – December 29, 1899) was an Irish American immigrant, lawyer, and Republican politician. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing western Wisconsin from 1894 to 1899. He also served two years in the Wisconsin Senate and one year in the State Assembly. As a young man, he served as a Union Army officer through nearly the entire American Civil War.

## Early life

Born in County Clare on the island of Ireland (the entirety of which was then part of the U.K.), Griffin immigrated with his parents, John and Hannah Griffin, to the British Canadian colonies in 1847, and then to Ohio in 1851. He moved to Wisconsin in 1856 and settled in Newport, Sauk County. He attended the common schools of Ohio and Wisconsin.
On September 11, 1861, he enlisted as a private in the Union Army for service in the American Civil War. He was enrolled in Company E, 12th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment, and served until the close of the war, attaining the rank of first lieutenant.
He moved to Kilbourn City, Wisconsin, after the war, in 1865. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1868, commencing practice in Kilbourn City. He married Emma Irene Daniels on September 6, 1871. He was cashier of the Bank of Kilbourn from 1871 until 1876.

## Political career

He served as member of the County Board of Columbia County, Wisconsin, in 1874 and 1875. He served as member of the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1876. He moved to Eau Claire, Wisconsin, in 1876, and was City attorney of Eau Claire in 1878 and 1879. He served in the Wisconsin State Senate in 1880 and 1881.
He was the Department commander of the Grand Army of the Republic in 1887 and 1888. In 1894, he was elected as a Republican to the Fifty-third Congress to fill the vacancy in Wisconsin's 7th congressional district caused by the death of George B. Shaw. He was reelected to the following two congresses as well, serving from November 5, 1894, to March 3, 1899. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1898.
He was appointed chairman of the State tax commission by Governor Edward Scofield on May 28, 1899.

## Later life

He died of a stroke in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, on December 29, 1899. He was interred in Eau Claire's Forest Hill Cemetery. In 1972, he posthumously received a single protest vote for Vice President by a disgruntled delegate in that year's Democratic National Convention.

## Electoral history
### Wisconsin Assembly (1875)

Wisconsin Assembly, Columbia 1st District Election, 1875 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| General Election, November 2, 1875 ||||||
| | Republican | Michael Griffin | 911 | 58.36% | +7.83% |
| | Democratic | O. D. Coleman | 650 | 41.64% | |
| Plurality | Plurality | Plurality | 261 | 16.72% | +15.65% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,561 | 100.0% | -7.30% |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

### Wisconsin Senate (1879)

Wisconsin Senate, 30th District Election, 1879 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| General Election, November 4, 1879 ||||||
| | Republican | Michael Griffin | 4,374 | 68.06% | +11.38% |
| | Democratic | W. H. Smith | 1,726 | 26.86% | −16.47% |
| | Greenback | Joel Foster | 327 | 5.09% | |
| Plurality | Plurality | Plurality | 2,648 | 41.20% | +27.85% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 6,427 | 100.0% | -8.43% |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

### U.S. House of Representatives (1894, 1896)

Wisconsin's 7th Congressional District Special Election, 1894 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Special Election, November 6, 1894 ||||||
| | Republican | Michael Griffin | 17,766 | 57.77% | +9.25% |
| | Democratic | George W. Levis | 9,992 | 32.49% | −8.85% |
| | Populist | Clement H. Van Wormer | 1,619 | 5.26% | +0.29% |
| | Prohibition | Edward Berg | 1,249 | 4.06% | −1.11% |
| | Independent | William F. Button | 125 | 0.41% | |
| | | Scattering | 1 | 0.00% | |
| Plurality | Plurality | Plurality | 7,774 | 25.28% | +27.85% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 30,752 | 100.0% | -2.76% |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |
Wisconsin's 7th Congressional District Election, 1894 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| General Election, November 6, 1894 ||||||
| | Republican | Michael Griffin | 17,489 | 57.36% | −0.41% |
| | Democratic | George W. Levis | 9,996 | 32.78% | +0.29% |
| | Populist | Clement H. Van Wormer | 1,626 | 5.33% | +0.07% |
| | Prohibition | Edward Berg | 1,250 | 4.10% | +0.04% |
| | Independent | William F. Button | 128 | 0.42% | +0.01% |
| | | Scattering | 1 | 0.00% | |
| Plurality | Plurality | Plurality | 7,493 | 24.58% | -0.70% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 30,490 | 100.0% | -0.85% |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |
Wisconsin's 7th Congressional District Election, 1896 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| General Election, November 3, 1896 ||||||
| | Republican | Michael Griffin (incumbent) | 24,073 | 65.80% | +8.44% |
| | Democratic | Caleb M. Hilliard | 11,718 | 32.03% | −0.75% |
| | Prohibition | James H. Moseley | 791 | 2.16% | +0.07% |
| | | Scattering | 1 | 0.00% | |
| Plurality | Plurality | Plurality | 12,355 | 33.77% | +9.20% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 36,583 | 100.0% | +19.98% |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |