William Read

U.S. Representative
Born
December 14, 1817
Died
August 5, 1880
Age at death
62
Home state
Kentucky
Party
Democratic
On the ballot
1870–1872
Career timeline
2-0
RecordWin–Loss
Total Popular Votes
Read17,535
Opponents4,379
2
Elections run

Between 1870 and 1872, William Read ran in 2 U.S. House elections, winning all 2. Read's biggest single-election total was 9,314 votes, in the 1870 U.S. House election in Kentucky's District 4.

Browse every U.S. House race in Kentucky's District 4 or all 1872 U.S. House races.

How many votes has William Read received?

William Read has received 17,535 popular votes across 2 U.S. elections, with a career record of 2–0.

Election history

William Read’s election history
YearOfficeResultVotesOpponent(s)
1872U.S. HouseKentuckyWon8,22192.75%Hobson
1870U.S. HouseKentuckyWon9,31470.86%James M Fidler
Identity & sources. Identity verified against the Congressional Bioguide (R000094) and Wikidata (Q1257865). Election results come from official certified totals and the MIT Election Data and Science Lab; see methodology.
Cite this profile. PolitiFinder, “William Read: election history & vote totals.” https://politifinder.com/p/william-read. Accessed [date].

Compiled by PolitiFinder. Election results from official certified sources and the MIT Election Lab. See Data & sources and methodology. Data last verified July 28, 2026.