United States midterm election

File:Oklahoma general election ballot for 2018.png

A 2018 Oklahoma general election ballot, listing candidates for state and local offices, as well as those for U.S. Congress

Midterm elections in the United States are the general elections that are held near the midpoint of a president's four-year term of office, on Election Day on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November. Federal offices that are up for election during the midterms include all 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives, and 33 or 34 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate.

In addition, 34 of the 50 U.S. states elect their governors for four-year terms during midterm elections, while Vermont and New Hampshire elect governors to two-year terms in both midterm and presidential elections. Thus, 36 governors are elected during midterm elections. Many states also elect officers to their state legislatures in midterm years. There are also elections held at the municipal level. On the ballot are many mayors, other local public offices, and a wide variety of citizen and legislatively referred initiatives.

Special elections are often held in conjunction with regular elections, so additional Senators, governors and other local officials may be elected to partial terms.

Midterm elections historically generate lower voter turnout than presidential elections. While the latter have had turnouts of about 50–60% over the past 60 years, only about 40% of those eligible to vote go to the polls in midterm elections. Historically, midterm elections often see the president's party lose seats in Congress, and also frequently see the president's opposite-party opponents gain control of one or both houses of Congress.

Background

While Article II, Section 1, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution sets the U.S. president's term of office to four years, Article I, Section 2, Clause 1 sets a two-year term for congressmembers elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Article I, Section 3, Clause 1 then sets a six-year term for those elected to the U.S. Senate, with Clause 2 dividing the chamber into three "classes" so that approximately one-third of those seats are up for election every two years.

The elections for many state and local government offices are held during the midterms so they are not overshadowed or influenced by the presidential election. Still, a number of state and local governments instead prefer to avoid presidential and midterm years altogether and schedule their local races during odd-numbered "off-years".

Historical record of midterm

Midterm elections are regarded as a referendum on the sitting president's and/or incumbent party's performance.

The party of the incumbent president tends to lose ground during midterm elections: since World War II, the president's party has lost an average of 26 seats in the House, and an average of four seats in the Senate.

Moreover, since direct public midterm elections were introduced, in only eight of those (under presidents Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden) has the president's party gained seats in the House or the Senate, and of those only two (1934, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and 2002, George W. Bush) have seen the president's party gain seats in both houses.

The losses suffered during a president's second midterm tend to be more pronounced than during their first midterm, in what is described as a "six-year itch".

Year	Sitting president	President's party	Net gain/loss of president's partyTemplate:Efn
			House seats	Senate seats
1790	George Washington	NoneTemplate:Efn	style="background:Template:Party color" | +3: (37 ► 40)	style="background:Template:Party color" | 0: (18 ► 18)
1794			-4: (51 ► 47)	+3: (16 ► 19)
1798	John Adams	Federalist	+3: (57 ► 60)	0: (22 ► 22)
1802	Thomas Jefferson	Democratic-Republican	+35: (68 ► 103)	+5: (17 ► 22)
1806			+2: (114 ► 116)	+1: (27 ► 28)
1810	James Madison	Democratic-Republican	+13: (94 ► 107)	0: (26 ► 26)
1814			+5: (114 ► 119)	-3: (26 ► 22)
1818	James Monroe	Democratic-Republican	+13: (145 ► 158)	+2: (28 ► 30)
1822			+34: (155 ► 189)	0: (44 ► 44)
1826	John Quincy Adams	Democratic-RepublicanTemplate:Efn	Template:Party shading/Pro-Jacksonian | -9: (109 ► 100)	Template:Party shading/Pro-Jacksonian | -2: (21 ► 19)
1830	Andrew Jackson	rowspan=2 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | DemocraticTemplate:Efn	Template:Party shading/Pro-Jacksonian | -10: (136 ► 126)	Template:Party shading/Pro-Jacksonian | +1: (25 ► 26)
1834		Template:Party shading/Pro-Jacksonian | 0: (143 ► 143)	+1: (21 ► 22)
1838	Martin Van Buren	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -3: (128 ► 125)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -7: (35 ► 28)
1842	John Tyler	NoneTemplate:Efn	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -69: (142 ► 73)	style="background-color:Template:Party color" | -3: (30 ► 27)
1846	James K. Polk	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="background-color:Template:Party color" | -30: (142 ► 112)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | +2: (33 ► 35)
1850	Millard Fillmore	style="background-color:Template:Party color" | Whig	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -22: (108 ► 86)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -3: (36 ► 33)
1854	Franklin Pierce	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	-75: (158 ► 83)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -3: (36 ► 33)
1858	James Buchanan	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -35: (133 ► 98)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -4: (32 ► 38)
1862	Abraham Lincoln	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -23: (108 ► 85)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | +1: (31 ► 32)
1866	Andrew Johnson	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | +9: (38 ► 47)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | 0: (10 ► 10)
1870	Ulysses S. Grant	rowspan = 2 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -32: (171 ► 139)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -5: (63 ► 58)
1874		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -93: (199 ► 106)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -10: (52 ► 42)
1878	Rutherford B. Hayes	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -4: (136 ► 132)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -7: (38 ► 31)
1882	Chester A. Arthur	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -29: (151 ► 118)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | 0: (37 ► 37)
1886	Grover Cleveland	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -16: (183 ► 167)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | +2: (34 ► 36)
1890	Benjamin Harrison	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -93: (179 ► 86)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -4: (47 ► 43)
1894	Grover Cleveland	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -127: (220 ► 93)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -4: (44 ► 40)
1898	William McKinley	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -21: (205 ► 189)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | +6: (44 ► 50)
1902	Theodore Roosevelt	rowspan = 2 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | +9: (201 ► 210)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | 0: (55 ► 55)
1906		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -27: (251 ► 224)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | +2: (58 ► 60)
1910	William Howard Taft	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -56: (219 ► 163)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -9: (59 ► 50)
1914	Woodrow Wilson	rowspan=2 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -61: (291 ► 230)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | +3: (50 ► 53)
1918		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -22: (214 ► 192)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -4: (52 ► 48)
1922	Warren G. Harding	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -77: (302 ► 225)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -7: (60 ► 53)
1926	Calvin Coolidge	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -9: (247 ► 238)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -6: (56 ► 50)
1930	Herbert Hoover	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -52: (270 ► 218)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -6: (56 ► 50)
1934	Franklin D. Roosevelt	rowspan=3 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | +9: (313 ► 322)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | +9: (60 ► 69)
1938		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -72: (334 ► 262)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -7: (75 ► 68)
1942		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -45: (267 ► 222)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -8: (65 ► 57)
1946	Harry S. Truman	rowspan=2 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -54: (242 ► 188)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -10: (56 ► 46)
1950		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -28: (263 ► 235)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -5: (54 ► 49)
1954	Dwight D. Eisenhower	rowspan=2 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -18: (221 ► 203)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -2: (49 ► 47)
1958		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -48: (201 ► 153)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -12: (47 ► 35)
1962	John F. Kennedy	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -4: (262 ► 258)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | +4: (64 ► 68)
1966	Lyndon B. Johnson	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -47: (295 ► 248)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -3: (67 ► 64)
1970	Richard Nixon	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -12: (192 ► 180)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | +2: (43 ► 45)
1974	Gerald Ford	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -48: (192 ► 144)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -4: (42 ► 38)
1978	Jimmy Carter	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -15: (292 ► 277)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -2: (61 ► 59)
1982	Ronald Reagan	rowspan=2 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -26: (192 ► 166)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | 0: (54 ► 54)
1986		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -5: (182 ► 177)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -8: (53 ► 45)
1990	George H. W. Bush	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -8: (175 ► 167)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -1: (45 ► 44)
1994	Bill Clinton	rowspan=2 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -54: (258 ► 204)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -9: (56 ► 47)
1998		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | +4: (207 ► 211)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | 0: (45 ► 45)
2002	George W. Bush	rowspan=2 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | +8: (221 ► 229)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | +2: (49 ► 51)
2006		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -32: (231 ► 199)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -6: (55 ► 49)
2010	Barack Obama	rowspan=2 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -63: (256 ► 193)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -6: (59 ► 53)
2014		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -13: (201 ► 188)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | -9: (55 ► 46)
2018	Donald Trump	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | -41: (241 ► 200)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | +2: (51 ► 53)
2022	Joe Biden	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |-9: (222 ► 213)	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | +1: (50 ► 51)
2026	Donald Trump	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	TBD	TBD