The 1978 United States House of Representatives elections was an election for the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
in 1978 which occurred in the middle of
Democratic President
Jimmy Carter
James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 76th governor of Georgia from 1 ...
's term, amidst an energy crisis and rapid inflation. The Democratic Party lost a net of 15 seats to the
Republican Party, and thus lost their
two-thirds supermajority, but still maintained a large 277-seat majority.
As of , this was the last
midterm election
Apart from general elections and by-elections, midterm election
refers to a type of election where the people can elect their representatives and other subnational officeholders (e.g. governor, members of local council) in the middle of the term ...
where the Democrats managed to maintain a majority in the House of Representatives under a Democratic president and the last midterm election in which a registered
third party
Third party may refer to:
Business
* Third-party source, a supplier company not owned by the buyer or seller
* Third-party beneficiary, a person who could sue on a contract, despite not being an active party
* Third-party insurance, such as a V ...
member was elected.
Overall results
Source
Election Statistics - Office of the Clerk
Special elections
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
, -
,
,
Les Aspin
Leslie Aspin Jr. (July 21, 1938 – May 21, 1995) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the U.S. representative for Wisconsin's 1st congressional district from 1971 to 1993 and as the 18th United States Secretary of Defe ...
, , Democratic
,
1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...
, Incumbent re-elected.
, nowrap ,
, -
,
,
Robert Kastenmeier
, , Democratic
,
1958
Events
January
* January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being.
* January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed.
* January 4
** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third ...
, Incumbent re-elected.
, nowrap ,
, -
,
,
Alvin Baldus
, , Democratic
,
1974
, Incumbent re-elected.
, nowrap ,
, -
,
,
Clement J. Zablocki
, , Democratic
,
1948
, Incumbent re-elected.
, nowrap ,
, -
,
,
Henry S. Reuss
Henry Schoellkopf Reuss (February 22, 1912 – January 12, 2002) was a Democratic U.S. Representative from Wisconsin.
Early life
Henry Schoellkopf Reuss was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was the son of Gustav A. Reuss (pronounced ''Royce' ...
, , Democratic
,
1954
, Incumbent re-elected.
, nowrap ,
, -
,
,
William A. Steiger
, , Republican
,
1966
, Incumbent re-elected.
, nowrap ,
, -
,
,
Dave Obey
David Ross Obey ( ; born October 3, 1938) is an American lobbyist and former politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for from 1969 to 2011. The district includes much of the northwestern portion of the st ...
, , Democratic
,
1969
, Incumbent re-elected.
, nowrap ,
, -
,
,
Robert John Cornell
, , Democratic
,
1974
, , Incumbent lost re-election.
New member elected.
Republican gain.
, nowrap ,
, -
,
,
Bob Kasten
, , Republican
,
1974
, , Incumbent retired to
run for Governor of Wisconsin.
New member elected.
Republican hold.
, nowrap ,
Wyoming
Notes
References
See also
*
1978 United States elections
The 1978 United States elections were held on November 7, 1978, to elect the members of the 96th United States Congress. The election occurred in the middle of Democratic President Jimmy Carter's term. Democrats retained control of both houses o ...
**
1978 United States gubernatorial elections
United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 7, 1978, in 36 states and two territories. The Republicans had a net gain of six seats, Democrats sustained a net loss of five seats, and there would be no governors of any other partie ...
**
1978 United States Senate elections
The 1978 United States Senate elections in the middle of Democratic President Jimmy Carter's term. Thirteen seats changed hands between parties, resulting in a net gain of three seats for the Republicans. Democrats nevertheless retained a 58&nd ...
*
95th United States Congress
The 95th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1977, ...
*
96th United States Congress
The 96th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 197 ...
{{Elections to the United States House of Representatives, state=expanded