The 1962 United States elections were held on November 6 to elect the members of the

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. The election occurred in the middle of Democratic President John F. Kennedy's term. The Republican Party picked up four seats in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ca ...

, but the Democrats retained strong majorities in both houses of Congress. In the Senate, Democrats won a net gain of four seats from the Republicans, maintaining control of the Senate. In the gubernatorial elections, neither party won a net gain of seats. Notably, 1960 Republican presidential nominee

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

lost the California gubernatorial election, which many analysts, as well as Nixon himself, incorrectly predicted to be the end of his political career. This was the first time since 1914 that the president's party had a net gain in the Senate and lost seats in the House; this would occur again in 1970, 2018, and 2022. This would be the last time until

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that the Democrats achieved a net Senate gain in a midterm during which they held the Presidency, and the last time they gained Senate seats while losing House seats. After failing to pass his

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programs in the face of the powerful conservative coalition, Kennedy's victory in this election helped bolster his presidency. Republicans campaigned on Kennedy's handling of the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United ...

, and the end of the crisis shortly before the election helped the Democrats avoid the typical midterm losses. The election also saw the Republicans pick up several House seats in the South for the first time in the

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. The GOP would later build on these inroads with Nixon's

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. The ranks of liberal Democrats were bolstered in this election, allowing for the passage of the Clean Air Act, the

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, and other programs.

References

{{United States elections 1962 United States midterm elections November 1962 events in the United States

See also

References