1956 United States House of Representatives elections in California

United States House of Representatives elections in California, 1956

←  1954 November 6, 1956 (1956-11-06) 1958  →
All 30 California seats to the United States House of Representatives
Majority party Minority party   Party Republican Democratic Last election 19 11 Seats won 17 13 Seat change 2 2 Popular vote 2,467,620 2,710,700 Percentage 47.7% 52.3%
Democratic:     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     >90% Republican:     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%

The California United States House of Representatives elections in California, 1956 was an election for California's delegation to the United States House of Representatives, which occurred as part of the general election of the House of Representatives on November 6, 1956. Democrats gained two seats from the Republicans. As of 2025, this is the last time that Republicans won a majority of congressional districts in California.

Overview

United States House of Representatives elections in California, 1956
Party		Votes	%	Before	After	+/–
	Republican	2,467,620	47.7%	19	17	-2
	Democratic	2,710,700	52.3%	11	13	+2
Totals		5,178,320	100.0%	30	30	—

Results

Final results from the Clerk of the House of Representatives:

District 1 • District 2 • District 3 • District 4 • District 5 • District 6 • District 7 • District 8 • District 9 • District 10 • District 11 • District 12 • District 13 • District 14 District 15 • District 16 • District 17 • District 18 • District 19 • District 20 • District 21 • District 22 • District 23 • District 24 • District 25 • District 26 • District 27 District 28 • District 29 • District 30

District 1

California's 1st congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Hubert B. Scudder (incumbent)	102,604	53.6
	Democratic	Clement Woodnutt Miller	88,962	46.4
Total votes			191,566	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 2

California's 2nd congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Clair Engle (incumbent)	136,544	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 3

California's 3rd congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John E. Moss (incumbent)	132,930	68.6
	Republican	Noel C. Stevenson	60,889	31.4
Total votes			193,819	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 4

California's 4th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	William S. Mailliard (incumbent)	109,188	61.9
	Democratic	James L. Quigley	67,132	38.1
Total votes			176,320	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 5

California's 5th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John F. Shelley (incumbent)	104,358	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 6

California's 6th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	John F. Baldwin, Jr. (incumbent)	98,683	53.7
	Democratic	H. Roberts Quinney	84,965	46.3
Total votes			183,648	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 7

California's 7th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	John J. Allen, Jr. (incumbent)	75,932	52.8
	Democratic	Laurance L. Cross	67,931	47.2
Total votes			143,863	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 8

California's 8th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	George P. Miller (incumbent)	136,720	65.6
	Republican	Robert Lee Watkins	71,700	34.4
Total votes			208,420	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 9

California's 9th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	J. Arthur Younger (incumbent)	96,388	60.3
	Democratic	James T. McKay	63,504	39.7
Total votes			159,892	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 10

California's 10th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Charles S. Gubser (incumbent)	128,891	60.7
	Democratic	William H. Vatcher	83,586	39.3
Total votes			212,477	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 11

California's 11th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John J. McFall	70,630	53.1
	Republican	Justin L. Johnson (incumbent)	62,448	46.9
Total votes			133,078	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic gain from Republican

District 12

California's 12th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Bernice F. Sisk (incumbent)	109,920	73
	Republican	Robert B. Moore	40,663	27
Total votes			150,583	100
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 13

California's 13th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Charles M. Teague (incumbent)	104,009	59.6
	Democratic	William Kirk Stewart	70,567	40.4
Total votes			174,576	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 14

California's 14th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Harlan Hagen (incumbent)	94,461	63
	Republican	Myron F. Tisdel	55,509	37
Total votes			149,970	100
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 15

California's 15th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Gordon L. McDonough (incumbent)	97,182	57.9
	Democratic	Emery S. Petty	70,681	42.1
Total votes			167,863	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 16

California's 16th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Donald L. Jackson (incumbent)	84,050	60.8
	Democratic	G. Robert "Bob" Fleming	53,624	39.2
Total votes			137,674	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 17

California's 17th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Cecil R. King (incumbent)	157,270	64.9
	Republican	Charles A. Franklin	84,900	35.1
Total votes			242,170	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 18

California's 18th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Craig Hosmer (incumbent)	103,108	59.3
	Democratic	Raymond C. "Ray" Simpson	70,911	40.7
Total votes			174,019	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 19

California's 19th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Chet Holifield (incumbent)	116,287	73.8
	Republican	Roy E. Reynolds	41,269	26.2
Total votes			157,556	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 20

California's 20th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	H. Allen Smith	85,459	70.8
	Democratic	Eugene Radding	35,249	29.2
Total votes			120,708	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 21

California's 21st congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Edgar W. Hiestand (incumbent)	153,679	62.6
	Democratic	W. C. "Bill" Stethem	91,683	37.4
Total votes			245,362	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 22

California's 22nd congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Joseph F. Holt (incumbent)	97,317	59.8
	Democratic	Irving Glasband	65,314	40.2
Total votes			162,631	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 23

California's 23rd congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Clyde Doyle (incumbent)	120,109	70.9
	Republican	E. Elgie "Cal" Calvin	49,198	29.1
Total votes			169,207	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 24

California's 24th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Glenard P. Lipscomb (incumbent)	84,120	61.9
	Democratic	Fay Porter	51,692	38.1
Total votes			135,812	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 25

California's 25th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Patrick J. Hillings (incumbent)	166,305	63.8
	Democratic	John S. Sobieski	94,180	36.2
Total votes			260,485	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 26

California's 26th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	James Roosevelt (incumbent)	133,036	68.8
	Republican	Edward H. Gibbons	60,230	31.2
Total votes			193,266	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 27

California's 27th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Harry R. Sheppard (incumbent)	124,662	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic hold

District 28

California's 28th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	James B. Utt (incumbent)	159,456	64.5
	Democratic	Gordon T. Shepard	87,691	35.5
Total votes			247,147	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

District 29

California's 29th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Dalip Singh Saund	54,989	51.5
	Republican	Jacqueline Cochran Odlum	51,690	48.5
Total votes			106,679	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic gain from Republican

District 30

California's 30th congressional district election, 1956

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Bob Wilson (incumbent)	142,753	66.7
	Democratic	George A. Cheney	71,112	33.3
Total votes			213,865	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

See also

• 85th United States Congress
• Political party strength in California
• Political party strength in U.S. states
• 1956 United States House of Representatives elections

References

• California Elections Page
• Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives

External links

• California Legislative District Maps (1911-Present)
• RAND California Election Returns: District Definitions