Peter Polin (March 25, 1832November 7, 1870) was a

Swiss American Swiss Americans are Americans of Swiss descent. Swiss emigration to America predates the formation of the United States, notably in connection with the persecution of Anabaptism during the Swiss Reformation and the formation of the Amish commu ...

immigrant, merchant, and Republican politician. He died the day before his election to the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Assembly is controlled by the Republican ...

Biography

Born in Zillis,

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, Polin emigrated to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and settled in

Dubuque, Iowa Dubuque (, ) is a city in Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 59,667 at the 2020 United States census. The city lies along the Mississippi River at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a region ...

, and then moved to

Alma Alma or ALMA may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Alma'' (film), a 2009 Spanish short animated film * ''Alma'', an upcoming film by Sally Potter * ''Alma'' (Oswald de Andrade novel), 1922 * ''Alma'' (Le Clézio novel), 2017 * ''Alma'' ( ...

Buffalo County, Wisconsin Buffalo County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 13,317. Its county seat is Alma, Wisconsin, Alma. The county was created in 1853 and ...

, in 1857. Polin was a merchant. He served as postmaster of Alma, Wisconsin, and as Buffalo County Treasurer from 1862 to 1864. Polin was a Republican. In the Wisconsin General Election of November 8, 1870, Polin ran for the

against John Burt. However, on November 7, 1870, the day before election day, Polin died suddenly. However, most voters were not aware of his death and elected Polin to the Wisconsin Assembly with 444 votes to 370 for John Burt (Democrat) and 50 votes for Augustus F. Finkelnburg (Republican). Because there was no choice for the Wisconsin Assembly seat, Wisconsin Acting Governor Thaddeus Pound ordered a special election for December 31, 1870. In the December 31, 1870, Wisconsin Assembly special election Ahaz F. Allen (Republican) won the Wisconsin Assembly seat with 529 votes to 431 votes for James Burt (Democrat) and 172 votes for James L. Hallock (Independent).Members of the Wisconsin State Legislature 1848-1999
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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Polin, Peter 1832 births 1870 deaths Swiss emigrants to the United States People from Alma, Wisconsin Businesspeople from Wisconsin Republican Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Wisconsin postmasters 19th-century American legislators 19th-century American businesspeople 19th-century Wisconsin politicians