When his father was unseated in 1821 based on allegations of misappropriation of funds in Massachusetts, Bidwell presented himself as a candidate but was declared ineligible.

Bidwell ran in the byelection for Lennox & Addington to replace his father, who had been barred from taking his seat by the legislature.

Although he did not take part in the Upper Canada Rebellion, his name appeared on a banner carried by the rebels and he was forced to leave the province in December 1837.

He was admitted to the New York bar and in 1838 became a partner in George Washington Strong's law firm, which would later become Cadwalader, Wickersham and Taft.

William Lyon Mackenzie James Lesslie John RolphWilliam John O'GradyHenry John Boulton David WillsonSamuel HughesJohn McIntoshMarshall Spring Bidwell Robert BaldwinWilliam Warren Baldwin Francis Hincks Charles Duncombe Samuel Lount Peter Matthews Jesse Lloyd Anthony Van Egmond Thomas D. Morrison David GibsonJames Hervey PriceJoseph Shepard