The 1982 United States elections were held on November 2, 1982. The elections occurred in the middle of

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

's first term and after the

1980 United States census The United States census of 1980, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 226,545,805, an increase of 11.4 percent over the 203,184,772 persons enumerated during the 1970 census. It was t ...

. Neither chamber of

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

changed hands, the Democrats increased its majority 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 c ...

and gained seats in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

but failed to gain control of the chamber. The party balance in the

remained practically unchanged; Democrats only gained one seat after a Democratic-leaning Independent left the Senate. Democrats won the nationwide popular vote for the

by a margin of 11.8 points and gained 27 seats, cementing their majority in that chamber. The House elections took place after the

1980 United States Census The United States census of 1980, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 226,545,805, an increase of 11.4 percent over the 203,184,772 persons enumerated during the 1970 census. It was t ...

and the subsequent Congressional re-apportionment. In the gubernatorial elections, Democrats won a net gain of seven seats. The Democratic election gains were largely due to President

's unpopularity as a result of the deepening 1982 recession, which many voters blamed on his economic policies. The Democrats' gains put a check on Reagan's policies, as the incoming Congress (particularly the House) was significantly less open to Reagan's conservative policies. Despite the Democratic electoral gains, this election was the first time that the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...

had successfully defended a majority in either chamber of Congress since

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhano ...

References

{{United States elections

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C ...

United States midterm elections November 1982 events in the United States

See also

References