The 1998 United States House of Representatives elections were part of the midterm elections held during President Bill Clinton's second term. They were a major disappointment to the Republicans, who were expecting to gain seats due to the embarrassment Clinton suffered during the

Monica Lewinsky scandal Monica may refer to: People *Monica (actress) (born 1987), Indian film actress *Monica (given name), a given name (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Monica (singer) (born 1980), American R&B singer, songwriter, producer, ...

, and the " six-year itch" effect observed in most second-term midterm elections. However, the Republicans lost five seats to the Democrats, but retained a narrow majority in the House. A wave of Republican discontent with Speaker

Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U ...

prompted him to resign shortly after the election; he was replaced by Congressman

Dennis Hastert John Dennis Hastert (; born January 2, 1942) is an American former politician and convicted felon who represented from 1987 to 2007 and served as the 51st speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1999 to 2007. The longest-se ...

of Illinois. The campaign was marked by Republican attacks on the morality of President Bill Clinton, with Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr having released his report on the Lewinsky scandal and House leaders having initiated an inquiry into whether impeachable offenses had occurred. However, exit polls indicated that most voters opposed impeaching Clinton, and predictions of high Republican or low Democratic turnout due to the scandal failed to materialize. Some speculate that the losses reflected a backlash against the Republicans for attacking the popular Clinton. With the Republicans having lost four House seats and failing to gain any seats in the Senate, it was the first time since

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

that the non-presidential party failed to gain congressional seats in a midterm election; this would happen again in 2002. It was also the first time since

1822 Events January–March * January 1 – The Greek Constitution of 1822 is adopted by the First National Assembly at Epidaurus. *January 3 - The famous French explorer, Aimé Bonpland, is made prisoner in Paraguay accused of being a spy. ...

that the non-presidential party had failed to gain House seats in the midterm election of a president's second term.

Overall results

Source
Election Statistics - Office of the Clerk

Incumbent retirements

Democrats

# : Vic Fazio # : Esteban Edward Torres # : Jane Harman: To run for Governor # : David Skaggs # : Barbara B. Kennelly: To run for Governor # :

Sidney R. Yates Sidney Richard Yates (August 27, 1909 – October 5, 2000) was an American politician from the state of Illinois. A native of Chicago, he graduated from Lake View High School in 1928. He received bachelor's (1931) and law (1933) degrees fro ...

# : Glenn Poshard: To run for Governor # :

Lee H. Hamilton Lee Herbert Hamilton (born April 20, 1931) is an American politician and lawyer from Indiana. He is a former member of the United States House of Representatives and a former member of the U.S. Homeland Security Advisory Council. A member of the ...

# : Scotty Baesler: To run for U.S. Senate # : Joseph P. Kennedy II # : Thomas J. Manton # : Chuck Schumer: To run for U.S. Senate # :

Bill Hefner Willie Gathrel Hefner (April 11, 1930 – September 2, 2009), was a Democratic U.S. Congressman from North Carolina, serving between 1975 and 1999. Life and career Born in Elora, Tennessee, Hefner graduated from high school in Sardis, Al ...

# : Louis Stokes # :

Elizabeth Furse Elizabeth Furse (October 13, 1936 – April 18, 2021) was a Kenya Colony-born American small business owner and former faculty member of Portland State University. She was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1993 to 1999 ...

# : Paul McHale # :

Henry B. González Henry Barbosa González (born Enrique Barbosa González; May 3, 1916 – November 28, 2000) was an American Democratic politician from the U.S. state of Texas, who represented Texas's 20th congressional district from 1961 to 1999. Early lif ...

Republicans

# : Frank Riggs: To run for U.S. Senate # : Daniel Schaefer # : Mike Crapo: To run for U.S. Senate # :

Harris W. Fawell Harris Walter Fawell (March 25, 1929 – November 11, 2021) was an American politician from Illinois who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1985 to 1999. Early life and career Fawell was a graduate of ...

# : Jim Bunning: To run for U.S. Senate # : Michael Parker: To run for Governor # :

Jon Lynn Christensen Jon Lynn Christensen (born February 20, 1963) is an American politician and corporate executive who is a former member of the United States House of Representatives. Early life Jon Lynn Christensen was born on February 20, 1963 in St. Paul, Ne ...

: To run for Governor # : John Ensign: To run for U.S. Senate # : Gerald Solomon # : Bill Paxon # : Robert Freeman Smith # :

Joseph M. McDade Joseph Michael McDade (September 29, 1931 – September 24, 2017) was an American politician who was a member of the United States House of Representatives, having represented Pennsylvania's 10th congressional district. Early life and care ...

# : Bob Inglis: To run for U.S. Senate # : Linda Smith: To run for U.S. Senate # : Mark Neumann: To run for U.S. Senate # : Scott L. Klug

Incumbents defeated

In primary elections

Republicans who lost to a Republican challenger

# :

Jay Kim Jay Chang Joon Kim (; born March 27, 1939) is a Korean-American politician and former member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California and ambassador for Korean-American relations. He was the first Korean American to be elected to the ...

lost to Gary Miller who later won the general election

In the general election

Democrats who lost to a Republican challenger

# :

Jay W. Johnson Jay Withington Johnson (September 30, 1943October 17, 2009) was an American politician and journalist who served as the 36th director of the United States Mint, and one-term member of the United States House of Representatives from Wisconsin. He ...

lost to

Mark Andrew Green Mark Andrew Green (born June 1, 1960) is an American politician and diplomat who is the president, director and CEO of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Before joining the Wilson Center on March 15, 2021, he served as the exe ...

Republicans who lost to a Democratic challenger

# :

Vince Snowbarger Vincent K. Snowbarger (born September 16, 1949) is an American lawyer and politician from Kansas. He is a former Republican Party (United States), Republican member of the United States House of Representatives. Early life Vincent K. Snowbarger ...

lost to Dennis Moore # : Michael James Pappas lost to Rush Holt Jr. # :

Bill Redmond William Thomas Redmond (born January 28, 1954) is an American politician and minister who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from New Mexico. Early life and education Redmond was born in Chicago. H ...

lost to Tom Udall # :

Jon D. Fox Jon D. Fox (April 22, 1947 – February 11, 2018) was an American Republican politician. He served as a member of Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1985 to 1992 before being elected to the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners (1992- ...

lost to Joe Hoeffel # : Rick White lost to Jay Inslee

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

Wyoming

References

* Wattenberg; Martin P. "The Democrats' Decline in the House during the Clinton Presidency: An Analysis of Partisan Swings" ''Presidential Studies Quarterly'', Vol. 29, 1999

External links

* {{United States House of Representatives elections