The 2014 elections gave the Republicans control of the Senate (and control of both houses of Congress) for the first time since the 109th Congress. With 248 seats in the House of Representatives and 54 seats in the Senate, this Congress began with the largest Republican majority since the 71st Congress of 1929–1931.
Senate Democrats had 26 seats up for election (including the seats of two independents who caucus with them) while Senate Republicans had nine seats up for election. Three Republican-held seats were open as a result of retirements in Tennessee, Utah and Arizona, while every Democratic incumbent ran for re-election.
| 116th United States Congress |
|---|
| Senate Majority | Republican |
| House Majority | Democratic |
| Sessions |
| 1st: January 3, 2019 – January 3, 2020 2nd: January 3, 2020 – present |
The Senate is composed of senators, each of whom represents a single state in its entirety. Each state, regardless of its population size, is equally represented by two senators who serve staggered terms of six years. There being at present 50 states in the Union, there are currently 100 senators.
Party affiliation
| Affiliation | Members |
|---|
| Republican Party | 53 |
| Democratic Party | 45 |
| Independent | 2 |
| Total | 100 |
Republicans currently hold 53 Senate seats, Democrats hold 45, and independents hold two.
The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 states.
| 116th United States Congress |
|---|
| House Speaker | Nancy Pelosi (D) |
| Members | 100 senators 435 members of the House 6 non-voting delegates |
| Senate Majority | Republican |
| House Majority | Democratic |
| United States House of Representatives |
|---|
| Seats | 435 voting members 6 non-voting members 218 for a majority |
| Political groups | Majority (233) Democratic (233) Minority (198) Republican (198) Other (1) Libertarian (1) Vacant (3) Vacant (3) |
| Length of term | 2 years |
| Elections |
All 33 Class 2 senators are up for election, and two states (Georgia and Arizona) are holding special elections for the Senate. The six non-voting congressional delegates from the District of Columbia and the inhabited U.S. territories will also be elected.
In Louisiana, Republicans expanded their control of the Louisiana Legislature, gaining a supermajority in the state Senate and falling two seats shy of a supermajority in the Louisiana House. During 2019, special elections were set or run for 77 vacated seats — 39 held by Democrats and 38 held by Republicans.
| United States Senate |
|---|
| Seats | 100 51 (or 50 plus the Vice President) for a majority |
| Political groups | Majority (53) Republican (53) Minority (47) Democratic (45) Independent (2) |
| Length of term | 6 years |
| Elections |
On Election Day, Republicans had held a House majority since January 2011. In the 2018 midterm elections, the Democrats, led by Nancy Pelosi, won control of the House. The Democrats gained a net total of 41 seats from the total number of seats they had won in the 2016 elections.
Trump won the states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Florida, Ohio, and Iowa, all of which were won by Obama in 2008 and 2012. The election is one of five presidential elections in American history in which the winner of the popular vote did not win the presidency.
The current majority whip in the House of Representatives is Jim Clyburn, who is a member of the Democratic Party. The current minority whip is Steve Scalise, who is a member of the Republican Party.
| United States Senate |
|---|
| Majority Leader | Mitch McConnell (R) since January 3, 2015 |
| Minority Leader | Chuck Schumer (D) since January 3, 2017 |
| Majority Whip | John Thune (R) since January 3, 2019 |
| Minority Whip | Dick Durbin (D) since January 3, 2015 |
The number of voting seats in the House of Representatives has been 435 since 1913, capped at that number by the Reapportionment Act of 1929—except for a temporary (1959–1962) increase to 437 when Alaska and Hawaii were admitted into the Union.
According to the Associated Press' statistical analysis, gerrymandering cost the Democrats an additional sixteen House seats from Republicans. Voter turnout in this election was 50.3%, the highest turnout in a U.S. midterm election since 1914.
Republicans defended that majority in 2016 and 2018, and now hold 53
Senate seats.
Democrats hold 45 seats, and independents caucusing with the
Democratic Party hold two seats.
2020 United States Senate elections.
| Party | Republican | Democratic |
| Leader since | January 3, 2007 | January 3, 2017 |
| Leader's seat | Kentucky | New York |
| Current seats | 53 | 45 |
| Seats needed | | 3–4 |
| United States House of Representatives |
|---|
| Seats | 435 voting members 6 non-voting members 218 for a majority |
| Political groups | Majority (233) Democratic (233) Minority (196) Republican (196) Other (1) Libertarian (1) Vacant (5) Vacant (5) |
| Length of term | 2 years |
| Elections |
Results summary and analysis
| Parties | Seats |
|---|
| 2018 |
|---|
| Democratic Party | 235 |
| Republican Party | 199 |
| Libertarian Party | — |
Blue Wave, a nickname for Florida Atlantic Owls baseball, U.S. Blue Wave, a nickname for the Surfers Paradise Baseball Club, Australia.
| United States House of Representatives |
|---|
| Structure |
| Seats | 435 voting members 6 non-voting members in total ≤441 members 218 for a majority |
| Political groups | Majority (232) Democratic (232) Minority (196) Republican (196) Other (1) Independent (1) Vacant (6) Vacant (6) |
| Length of term | 2 years |
In the 2014 United States Senate elections (the last regularly-scheduled elections for Class 2 Senate seats), the Republicans won a net gain of nine seats from the Democrats and gained a majority in the Senate. Republicans defended that majority in 2016 and 2018, and held 53 Senate seats following the 2018 elections.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said election day was "a very good day" for his party. The election was widely characterized as a "blue wave" election. It was third-largest midterm change of seats for either party in the House in the post-Watergate era, and the largest Democratic House gain since 1974.
Members of the House of Representatives serve two-year terms and are considered for reelection every even year. Senators however, serve six-year terms and elections to the Senate are staggered over even years so that only about 1/3 of the Senate is up for reelection during any election.
Party affiliation
| Affiliation | Members |
|---|
| Republican Party | 53 |
| Democratic Party | 45 |
| Independent | 2 |
| Total | 100 |
| 116th United States Congress |
|---|
| Senate Majority | Republican |
| House Majority | Democratic |
| Sessions |
| 1st: January 3, 2019 – January 3, 2020 2nd: January 3, 2020 – present |
| United States Senate |
|---|
| Seats | 100 51 (or 50 plus the Vice President) for a majority |
| Political groups | Majority (53) Republican (53) Minority (47) Democratic (45) Independent (2) |
| Length of term | 6 years |
| Elections |
Party affiliation
| Affiliation | Members |
|---|
| Republican Party | 53 |
| Democratic Party | 45 |
| Independent | 2 |
| Total | 100 |
| United States Senate |
|---|
| Majority Leader | Mitch McConnell (R) since January 3, 2015 |
| Minority Leader | Chuck Schumer (D) since January 3, 2017 |
| Majority Whip | John Thune (R) since January 3, 2019 |
| Minority Whip | Dick Durbin (D) since January 3, 2015 |
All 34 Class 3 senators are up for election in 2022; Class 3 currently consists of 12 Democrats and 22 Republicans. If vacancies occur in Class 1 or Class 2 Senate seats, that state might require a special election to take place during the 118th Congress, possibly concurrently with the other 2022 Senate elections.
Race/ethnicity. African Americans currently make up about 13% of the US population, but have historically been underrepresented in Congress. Currently 42 members (9.5%) of the House are black. Senator Burris of Illinois is the only current black member of the senate.
After hearing the charges, the Senate usually deliberates in private. The Constitution requires a two-thirds supermajority to convict a person being impeached. The Senate enters judgment on its decision, whether that be to convict or acquit, and a copy of the judgment is filed with the Secretary of State.
Republican Senators
- Lamar Alexander Tennessee.
- John Barrasso Wyoming.
- Marsha Blackburn Tennessee.
- Roy Blunt Missouri.
- John Boozman Arkansas.
- Mike Braun Indiana.
- Richard Burr North Carolina.
- Shelley Moore Capito West Virginia.
