The 1978 United States Senate elections in the middle of Democratic President Jimmy Carter's term. Thirteen seats changed hands between parties. The Democrats at first lost a net of two seats to the Republicans, and then one more in a special election. Democrats nevertheless retained a 58-41 majority.
The 1976 United States Senate elections was an election for the United States Senate that coincided with Democratic Jimmy Carter's presidential election and the United States Bicentennial celebration. Although almost half of the seats decided in this election changed parties, Carter's narrow victory did not provide coattails for the Democrats, and the balance of the chamber remained the same.
The 1966 United States Senate elections was an election on November 8, 1966 for the United States Senate which occurred midway through the second term of President Lyndon B. Johnson. With divisions in the Democratic base over the Vietnam War, and with the traditional mid-term advantage of the party not holding the presidency, the Republicans took three Democratic seats. Despite Republican gains, the balance remained overwhelmingly in favor of the Democrats, who retained a 64–36 majority. This was also the first election that occurred after the Voting Rights Act of 1965 became law.
The 1964 United States Senate elections coincided with the election of President Lyndon B. Johnson by an overwhelming majority, to a full term. His Democratic Party picked up a net two seats from the Republicans. As of 2019, this is the last time either party has had a two-thirds majority in the Senate, which would have hypothetically allowed the Senate Democrats to override a veto, convict and expel certain officials, or invoke cloture without any votes from Republicans. The Senate election coincided with Democratic gains in the House in the same year.
The 1962 United States Senate elections was an election for the United States Senate which was held in the middle of President John F. Kennedy's term. His Democratic Party made a net gain of three seats from the Republicans, increasing their control of the Senate.
The 1960 United States Senate elections coincided with the election of John F. Kennedy as president. The Republicans gained one seat at the expense of the Democrats. The Democrats nonetheless retained a commanding lead in the Senate with 64 seats to 36. As Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson was elected Vice President, Mike Mansfield became the new Majority Leader.
The 1958 United States Senate elections were elections for the United States Senate which occurred in the middle of President Dwight D. Eisenhower's second term. As is common in midterm elections, the party in the White House lost seats, but losses this year were more than usual, perhaps due to the high unemployment of the Recession of 1958. The Eisenhower Administration's position on right-to-work issues galvanized labor unions which supported Democrats. The launch of Sputnik may also have been a factor.
The 1950 United States Senate elections occurred in the middle of Harry S. Truman's second term as President. As with most 20th-century second-term mid-terms, the party out of the Presidency made significant gains. The Republican opposition made a net gain of five seats, taking advantage of the Democratic administration's declining popularity during the Cold War and the aftermath of the Recession of 1949. The Democrats held a narrow 49 to 47 seat majority after the election. This became the first time since 1932 that the Senate Majority Leader lost his seat and the only instance where the majority leader lost his seat while his party retained the majority.
The 1948 United States Senate elections were elections which coincided with the election of Democratic President Harry S. Truman for a full term. Truman had campaigned against an "obstructionist" Congress that had blocked many of his initiatives, and in addition the U.S. economy recovered from the postwar recession of 1946–47 by election day. Thus Truman was rewarded with a Democratic gain of nine seats in the Senate, enough to give them control of the chamber.
The United States Senate elections of 1940 coincided with the election of Franklin D. Roosevelt to his third term as President.
The United States Senate elections of 1938 occurred in the middle of Franklin D. Roosevelt's second term. This occurred six years after the Democratic landslide in the 1932 election, and so the opposition Republicans gained seven seats from the Democrats. However, the Democrats retained a commanding lead over the Republicans with more than two-thirds of the chamber.
The United States Senate elections of 1936 coincided with the reelection of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The Great Depression continued and voters backed progressive candidates favoring Roosevelt's New Deal in races across the country. The Democrats gained 5 net seats during the election, and in combination with Democratic and Farmer–Labor interim appointments and the defection of George W. Norris from the Republican Party to become independent, the Republicans were reduced to 16 seats, the most lopsided Senate since Reconstruction.
The United States Senate elections of 1934 occurred in the middle of Democratic President Franklin D. Roosevelt's first term. In the middle of the Great Depression, voters strongly backed Roosevelt's New Deal and his allies in the Senate. The Democrats picked up a net of nine seats, giving them a supermajority. President Harry S. Truman was first elected to the U.S. Senate in the 1934 election. Truman would serve over a decade in the U.S. Senate, before becoming President Roosevelt's third Vice President, before succeeding to the presidency upon the death of President Roosevelt.
The United States Senate elections of 1932 coincided with Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt's crushing defeat of incumbent Herbert Hoover in the presidential election. With the Hoover administration widely blamed for the Great Depression, Republicans lost twelve seats and control of the chamber.
The United States Senate elections of 1928 were elections that coincided with the presidential election of Republican Herbert Hoover. The strong economy helped the Republicans to gain seven seats from the Democrats.
The United States Senate elections of 1926 were elections for the United States Senate that occurred in the middle of Republican President Calvin Coolidge's second term. The Republican majority was reduced by six seats.
The United States Senate elections of 1920 were elections for the United States Senate that coincided with the election of Warren G. Harding as President. There was also a special election in 1921. Democrat Woodrow Wilson's unpopularity allowed Republicans to win races across the country, winning ten seats from the Democrats, providing them with an overwhelming 59 to 37 majority. The Republican landslide was so vast that the Democrats failed to win a single race outside the South.
The 1932 United States House of Representatives elections was an election for the United States House of Representatives in 1932 which coincided with the landslide election of President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
The 1942 United States elections were held on November 3, 1942, and elected the members of the 75th United States Congress. In Democratic President Franklin D. Roosevelt's unprecedented third mid-term election, the Republican Party picked up seats in both chambers. In the House of Representatives, the Democratic lost forty-five seats, mostly to Republicans. The House elections took place after the 1940 United States Census and the subsequent Congressional re-apportionment. The Democrats also lost eight seats to the Republicans in the U.S. Senate. An Independent also lost his seat to a Republican in the Senate. Despite Republican gains, the Democratic Party retained control of both chambers.
The 1930 United States elections were held on November 4, 1930, in the middle of Republican President Herbert Hoover's term. Taking place shortly after the start of the Great Depression, the Republican Party suffered substantial losses. The election was the last of the Fourth Party System, and marked the first time since 1918 that Democrats controlled either chamber of Congress.
