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32 of the 96 seats in the U.S. Senate (as well as special elections) 49 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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![]() Results including special elections Democratic gains Republican gains Democratic holds Republican holds | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The United States Senate elections of 1918 [1] were held November 5, 1918 coinciding with the midpoint of Woodrow Wilson's second term as President of the United States. The Republican Party gained control with a slim 2-seat majority after picking up a net six seats. The change in control was particularly important, as it meant that the Republicans were in a position to deny entry of the United States into the League of Nations, the centerpiece of Wilson's post-war foreign policy. It was the first election in which all Class 2 senators were subject to direct election following the enactment of the Seventeenth Amendment, making them the final class under the old system.
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was an American statesman and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of Princeton University and as the 34th governor of New Jersey before winning the 1912 presidential election. As president, he oversaw the passage of progressive legislative policies unparalleled until the New Deal in 1933. He also led the United States during World War I, establishing an activist foreign policy known as "Wilsonianism."
The President of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces.
The Republican Party, also referred to as the GOP, is one of the two major political parties in the United States; the other is its historic rival, the Democratic Party.
Republicans gained seven seats:
Lawrence Cowle Phipps was a United States Senator representing Colorado from 1919 until 1931.
Lewis Heisler Ball was an American physician and politician from Mill Creek Hundred, New Castle County, Delaware. He was a member of the Republican Party and served as U.S. Representative from Delaware and two terms as U.S. Senator from Delaware. He was known by his middle name.
Joseph Medill McCormick, called Medill, was part of the McCormick family of businessmen and politicians in Chicago. After working for some time and becoming part owner of the Chicago Tribune, which his maternal grandfather had owned, he entered politics.
Democrats gained one seat:
Majority Party: Republican (49 seats)
Minority Party: Democratic (47 seats)
Other Parties: 0
Total Seats: 96
Source: United States Senate Official Website
Note: These numbers represent composition as result of 1918 Senatorial Elections. Actual composition often changes during term, due to deaths, resignations or party shifting.
Before the November 5, 1918 general election.
D1 | D2 | D3 | D4 | D5 | D6 | D7 | D8 | ||
D18 | D17 | D16 | D15 | D14 | D13 | D12 | D11 | D10 | D9 |
D19 | D20 | D21 | D22 | D23 | D24 | D25 | D26 | D27 | D28 |
D38 Ran | D37 Ran | D36 Ran | D35 Ran | D34 | D33 | D32 | D31 | D30 | D29 |
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D39 Ran | D40 Ran | D41 Ran | D42 Ran | D43 Ran | D44 Ran | D45 Ran | D46 Ran | D47 Ran | D48 Ran |
Majority → | D49 Ran | ||||||||
R39 Ran | R40 Ran | R41 Ran | R42 Retired | R43 Retired | R44 Retired | D52 Retired | D51 Retired | D50 Ran | |
R38 Ran | R37 Ran | R36 Ran | R35 Ran | R34 Ran | R33 Ran | R32 Ran | R31 Ran | R30 | R29 |
R19 | R20 | R21 | R22 | R23 | R24 | R25 | R26 | R27 | R28 |
R18 | R17 | R16 | R15 | R14 | R13 | R12 | R11 | R10 | R9 |
R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | R8 |
D1 | D2 | D3 | D4 | D5 | D6 | D7 | D8 | ||
D18 | D17 | D16 | D15 | D14 | D13 | D12 | D11 | D10 | D9 |
D19 | D20 | D21 | D22 | D23 | D24 | D25 | D26 | D27 | D28 |
D38 Re-elected | D37 Re-elected | D36 Re-elected | D35 Re-elected | D34 | D33 | D32 | D31 | D30 | D29 |
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D39 Re-elected | D40 Re-elected | D41 Re-elected | D42 Re-elected | D43 Re-elected | D44 Hold | D45 Hold | D46 Hold | D47 Hold | D48 Gain |
Majority with VP vote ↑ | |||||||||
R39 Hold | R40 Hold | R41 Hold | R42 Retired | R43 Retired | R44 Retired | R45 Gain | R46 Gain | R47 Gain | R48 Gain |
R38 Re-elected | R37 Re-elected | R36 Re-elected | R35 Re-elected | R34 Re-elected | R33 Re-elected | R32 Re-elected | R31 Re-elected | R30 | R29 |
R19 | R20 | R21 | R22 | R23 | R24 | R25 | R26 | R27 | R28 |
R18 | R17 | R16 | R15 | R14 | R13 | R12 | R11 | R10 | R9 |
R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | R8 |
D1 | D2 | D3 | D4 | D5 | D6 | D7 | D8 | ||
D18 | D17 | D16 | D15 | D14 | D13 | D12 | D11 | D10 | D9 |
D19 | D20 | D21 | D22 | D23 | D24 | D25 | D26 | D27 | D28 |
D38 | D37 | D36 | D35 | D34 | D33 | D32 | D31 | D30 | D29 |
D39 | D40 | D41 | D42 | D43 | D44 Appointee elected | D45 Appointee elected | D46 Hold | D47 Hold | R49 Gain |
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Majority → | |||||||||
R39 | R40 | R41 | R42 | R43 | R44 | R45 | R46 Hold | R47 Hold | R48 Appointee elected |
R38 | R37 | R36 | R35 | R34 | R33 | R32 | R31 | R30 | R29 |
R19 | R20 | R21 | R22 | R23 | R24 | R25 | R26 | R27 | R28 |
R18 | R17 | R16 | R15 | R14 | R13 | R12 | R11 | R10 | R9 |
R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | R8 |
Key: |
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In these special elections, the winner was seated during 1918 or before March 4, 1919; ordered by election date.
State | Incumbent | Results | Candidates | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Senator | Party | Electoral history | |||
Wisconsin (Class 3) | Paul O. Husting | Democratic | 1914 | Incumbent died October 21, 1917. New senator elected April 2, 1918. Republican gain. | √ Irvine Lenroot (Republican) Joseph E. Davies (Democratic) |
Idaho (Class 3) | John F. Nugent | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee elected November 5, 1918. | √ John F. Nugent (Democratic), 50.5% Frank R. Gooding (Republican), 49.5% [2] |
Louisiana (Class 3) | Walter Guion | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee retired. New senator elected November 5, 1918. Democratic hold. | √ Edward James Gay Jr. (Democratic) Unopposed [3] |
Missouri (Class 3) | Xenophon P. Wilfley | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee lost nomination. New senator elected November 5, 1918. Republican gain. | √ Selden P. Spencer (Republican), 52.39% Joseph W. Folk (Democratic), 46.29% Caleb Lipscomb (Socialist), 1.16% William Wesley Cox (Socialist Labor), 0.16% [4] |
Nevada (Class 3) | Charles Henderson | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee elected November 5, 1918. | √ Charles Henderson (Democratic), 47.71% Edwin E. Roberts (Republican), 31.5% Anne Martin (Independent), 18.01% Martin Scanlan (Socialist), 2.78% [5] |
New Hampshire (Class 3) | Irving W. Drew | Republican | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee retired. New senator elected November 5, 1918. Republican hold. | √ George H. Moses (Republican), 50.76% John B. Jameson (Democratic), 49.24% [6] |
New Jersey (Class 2) | David Baird | Republican | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee elected November 5, 1918. | √ David Baird (Republican), 49.17% Charles O. Hennessy (Democratic), 44.64% James M. Reilly (Socialist), 3.82% Grafton Day (Prohibition), 2.38% [7] |
Oregon (Class 2) | Charles L. McNary | Republican | 1917 (Appointed) | Interim appointee retired. New senator elected November 5, 1918. Republican hold. Winner subsequently resigned so winner of the general election could be appointed early. | √ Frederick W. Mulkey (Republican), 84.53% Martha Bean (Socialist), 15.47% [8] |
South Carolina (Class 2) | Christie Benet | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee lost election. New senator elected November 5, 1918. Democratic hold. | √ William P. Pollock (Democratic) Unopposed |
In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1919; ordered by state.
All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.
State | Incumbent | Results | Candidates | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Senator | Party | Electoral history | |||
Alabama | John H. Bankhead | Democratic | 1907 (Appointed) 1907 (Special) 1911 (Early) | Incumbent re-elected. | √ John H. Bankhead (Democratic) Unopposed [9] |
Arkansas | Joseph Robinson | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Joseph Robinson (Democratic) Unopposed [10] |
Colorado | John F. Shafroth | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected. Republican gain. | √ Lawrence C. Phipps (Republican), 49.49% John F. Shafroth (Democratic), 47.94% P. A. Richardson (Prohibition), 2.58% [11] |
Delaware | Willard Saulsbury, Jr. | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected. Republican gain. | √ L. Heisler Ball (Republican), 51.17% Willard Saulsbury, Jr. (Democratic), 47.83% William H. Connor (Socialist), 1% [12] |
Georgia | Thomas W. Hardwick | Democratic | 1914 (Special) | Incumbent lost renomination. New senator elected. Democratic hold. | √ William J. Harris (Democratic), 88.34% G. H. Williams (Republican), 11.66% [13] |
Idaho | William Borah | Republican | 1907 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ William Borah (Republican), 67.21% Frank L. Moore (Democratic), 32.79% [14] |
Illinois | J. Hamilton Lewis | Democratic | 1913 (Special) | Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected. Republican gain. | √ Joseph M. McCormick (Republican), 50.5% J. Hamilton Lewis (Democratic), 44.92% William B. Lloyd (Socialist), 3.91% John M. Francis (Socialist Labor), 0.34% [15] |
Iowa | William S. Kenyon | Republican | 1911 (Special) 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ William S. Kenyon (Republican), 65.4% Charles Rollin Keyes (Democratic), 34.6% [16] |
Kansas | William Thompson | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected. Republican gain. | √ Arthur Capper (Republican), 63.69% William Thompson (Democratic), 33.73% Eva Harding (Socialist), 2.58% [17] |
Kentucky | George B. Martin | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Incumbent retired. New senator elected. Democratic hold. | √ Augustus O. Stanley (Democratic), 50.77% Ben Bruner (Republican), 49.23% [18] |
Louisiana | Joseph E. Ransdell | Democratic | 1912 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Joseph E. Ransdell (Democratic) Unopposed [19] |
Maine | Bert M. Fernald | Republican | 1916 (Special) | Incumbent re-elected September 9, 1918. | √ Bert M. Fernald (Republican), 55.4% Earl Newbert (Democratic), 44.6% [20] |
Massachusetts | John W. Weeks | Republican | 1913 | Incumbent lost re-election. New senator elected. Democratic gain. | √ David I. Walsh (Democratic), 49.67% John W. Weeks (Republican), 45.07% Thomas W. Lawson (Independent), 5.26% [21] |
Michigan | William Alden Smith | Republican | 1911 1913 | Incumbent retired. New senator elected. Republican hold. | √ Truman Handy Newberry (Republican), 50.19% Henry Ford (Democratic), 48.47% E. O. Foss (Socialist), 1.09% William Faull (Prohibition), 0.26% [22] |
Minnesota | Knute Nelson | Republican | 1895 1901 1907 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Knute Nelson (Republican), 60.05% Willis Calderwood (Nationalist), 39.95% [23] |
Mississippi | James K. Vardaman | Democratic | 1912 | Incumbent lost renomination. New senator elected. [24] Democratic hold. | √ Pat Harrison (Democratic), 95.04% Summer W. Rose (Socialist), 4.96% Democratic hold [25] |
Montana | Thomas J. Walsh | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Thomas J. Walsh (Democratic), 41.07% Oscar Lanstrum (Republican), 35.79% Jeannette Rankin (Nationalist), 23.14% [26] |
Nebraska | George W. Norris | Republican | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ George W. Norris (Republican), 54.52% John H. Morehead (Democratic), 45.49% [27] |
New Hampshire | Henry F. Hollis | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent retired. New senator elected. Republican gain. | √ Henry W. Keyes (Republican), 53.54% Eugene Elliott Reed (Democratic), 46.46% [28] |
New Jersey | David Baird | Republican | 1918 (Appointed) 1918 (Special) | Incumbent retired. New senator elected. Republican hold. | √ Walter Evans Edge (Republican), 50.34% George M. La Monte (Democratic), 43.23% James M. Reilly (Socialist), 4.14% Grafton Day (Prohibition), 1.62% William J. Wallace (Single Tax), 0.66% [29] |
New Mexico | Albert B. Fall | Republican | 1912 (New state) 1912 (Long term) Invalidated. 1913 (Long term) | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Albert B. Fall (Republican), 51.4% William B. Walton (Democratic), 47.48% W. P. Metcalf (Socialist), 1.12% [30] |
North Carolina | Furnifold Simmons | Democratic | 1901 1907 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Furnifold Simmons (Democratic), 60.5% John M. Morehead (Republican), 39.5% [31] |
Oklahoma | Robert L. Owen | Democratic | 1907 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Robert Latham Owen (Democratic), 55.44% W. B. Johnson (Republican), 40.73% C. M. Greenland (Socialist), 3.83% [32] |
Oregon | Charles L. McNary | Republican | 1917 (Appointed) | Interim appointee elected to the next term but not to finish the term. Winner subsequently appointed to begin next term early when winner of the special election, see above, resigned. | √ Charles L. McNary (Republican), 54.17% Oswald West (Democratic), 42.3% Albert Slaughter (Socialist), 3.53% [33] |
Rhode Island | LeBaron B. Colt | Republican | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ LeBaron B. Colt (Republican), 51.76% George F. O'Shaunessy (Democratic), 46.24% Frederick W. Hunt (Socialist), 2% [34] |
South Carolina | Christie Benet | Democratic | 1918 (Appointed) | Interim appointee lost election. New senator elected. Democratic hold. | √ Nathaniel B. Dial (Democratic) Unopposed |
South Dakota | Thomas Sterling | Republican | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Thomas Sterling (Republican), 55.07% W. T. Rinehart (Democratic), 38.95% Orville Rafferty (Independent), 5.98% [35] |
Tennessee | John K. Shields | Democratic | 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ John K. Shields (Democratic), 62.17% Henry Clay Evans (Republican), 37.83% [36] |
Texas | Morris Sheppard | Democratic | 1913 (Special) | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Morris Sheppard (Democratic), 86.69% J. Webster Flanagan (Republican), 12.41% M. A. Smith (Socialist), 0.9% [37] |
Virginia | Thomas S. Martin | Democratic | 1893 (Early) 1899 (Early) 1906 1912 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Thomas S. Martin (Democratic) Unopposed [38] |
West Virginia | Nathan Goff, Jr. | Republican | 1913 | Incumbent retired. New senator elected. Republican hold. | √ Davis Elkins (Republican), 53.53% Clarence Wayland Watson (Democratic), 45.4% D. M. S. Holt (Socialist), 1.06% [39] |
Wyoming | Francis E. Warren | Republican | 1890 1893 (Lost) 1895 1901 1907 1913 | Incumbent re-elected. | √ Francis E. Warren (Republican), 57.77% John Eugene Osborne (Democratic), 42.23% [40] |
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