The 1423 Venetian doge election took place on 15 April 1423, to elect the new Doge of Venice following the death of Tommaso Mocenigo. The election resulted in the victory of Francesco Foscari over Pietro Loredan. Foscari would go on to serve as Doge for 34 years, marking the longest reign in Venetian history.
Background Prior to the election, Francesco Foscari had emerged as one of the leading statesmen of the Republic of Venice. A member of the patrician Foscari family, he served the republic in numerous official capacities, including ambassador, president of the Council of Forty, member of the Council of Ten, inquisitor, Procurator of St Mark's,The posts of procuratori di San Marco appointed by the Maggior Consiglio, were, beneath the Doge, the most prestigious administrative posts of the Venetian Republic; the offices of the procuratori, the Procuratie are the long low buildings that enfold Piazza San Marco. and avogador de comùn.
By the time of Doge Tommaso Mocenigo's death in 1423, Foscari was widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in Venetian politics and a leading candidate for the dogeship.
Election Following the death of Doge Tommaso Mocenigo, the electoral assembly of 41 members convened to elect his successor. Foscari's chief competitor in the election was Pietro Loredan. On 15 April 1423, Francesco Foscari was elected Doge on the tenth ballot, securing 26 out of the 41 votes.
The 1423 election marked a significant constitutional shift: in proclaiming the new doge, the customary formula which recognized the people's share in the appointment and asked for their approval—the last vestige of popular government—was finally dropped. Electors The following 41 electors were selected to elect the new doge:
+ Electors # Elector 1 Leonardo Mocenigo, procurator 2 Caroso da Pesaro 3 Piero Loredan, procurator 4 Bernardo Pisani 5 Francesco Foscari, procurator 6 Marco da Molin, avogador 7 Zuan di Garzoni "the Great" 8 Marin Caravello, procurator 9 Antonio Contarini 10 Bartolomeo Barbarigo 11 Zuan Navager, avogador 12 Bartolomeo Donado, knight 13 Antonio Moro, procurator 14 Marco Bragadin 15 Bertucci Querini, procurator 16 Fantin Pizamano, knight 17 Andrea Priuli 18 Michel Trivisan, knight 19 Polo Tron 20 Bulgaro Vitturi "the Great" 21 Francesco Girardo 22 Andrea Barbaro 23 Giacomo Cabriel 24 Alban Badoer 25 Rosso Marin "the Great" 26 Piero Duodo "the Great" 27 Cristoforo Soranzo 28 Ruberto Morosini, knight 29 Francesco Bernardo, knight 30 Giacomo Venier, patron at the Arsenal 31 Marco Dandolo 32 Piero Minotto "the Great" 33 Marco Polani 34 Polo Orio, knight 35 Polo Correr, procurator 36 Zanotto Tagliapietra 37 Zuan Zane "the Great" 38 Andrea Zullian 39 Homobon Gritti 40 Bartolomeo Storlado, knight 41 Vettor Marcello, knight
Voting summary + Recorded ballot totals Candidate 1st ballot 8th ballot 9th ballot 10th ballot Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % Francesco Foscari 11 26.8% 16 39.0% 12 29.3% 26 63.4% Others 30 73.2% 25 61.0% 29 70.7% 15 36.6%
Aftermath Following his election, Foscari's task as doge was to lead Venice in a long and protracted series of wars against Milan, governed by the Visconti, who were attempting to dominate all of northern Italy.See Wars in Lombardy.
In 1457, news of his son Jacopo's death caused Foscari to withdraw from his government duties, and in October, the Council of Ten forced him to abdicate. He was deposed from office on 27 October 1457 and died five days after. Pasquale Malipiero was elected as his successor.
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