United States elections, 2014

2014 United States elections

Midterm elections
Election day	November 4
Senate elections
Seats contested	33 seats of Class II and 3 mid-term vacancies
Map of the 2014 Senate races      Democratic hold      Republican hold      Republican gain Line through state means both Senate seats are up for election
House elections
Seats contested	All 435 seats to the 114th Congress
Map of the 2014 House races   Democratic hold   Democratic gain   Republican hold   Republican gain
Gubernatorial elections
Seats contested	38
Map of the 2014 gubernatorial races   Democratic hold   Democratic gain   Independent gain   Republican gain   Republican hold

General elections in the United States were held on Tuesday, November 4, 2014, and other elections were being held throughout the year. During this midterm election year, all 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives and 36 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate were contested; along with 38 state and territorial governorships, 46 state legislatures (except Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Virginia),^[1] four territorial legislatures, and numerous state and local races. This midterm election became the most expensive in history, with total spending reaching $3.7 billion, including spending by outside entities.^[2]

The elections saw sweeping gains by the Republican Party in the Senate, House, and in numerous gubernatorial, state, and local races. The Republicans will gain control of the Senate (in early January 2015) for the first time since early January 2007, and increase their majority in the House.^[3] The Republicans also gained two seats in governors' races.^[4] As of December 6, 2014, only one race in the U.S. House is still too close to call.

Overall, the elections resulted in the largest Republican majority in the entire country in nearly a century, with 54 seats in the Senate, 246 (56.55%) in the House (which could rise to 247, or 56.78%), 31 governorships (62%), and 68 state legislative chambers. Moreover, Republicans gained their largest majority in the House since 1946, the largest majority in Congress overall since 1928, and the largest majority of state legislatures since 1928.^[5][6][7]

Issues

The 2014 election lacked a "dominant national theme", with no single issue rising above all others.^[8] Some of the major issues of the election included income inequality,^[9] the effects of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (commonly referred to as "Obamacare"),^[10] and immigration.^[8]

Although it generated much debate in early 2014, the Keystone Pipeline ultimately received little attention in the election, with environmentalists instead focused on fighting global warming and supporting the EPA's proposed regulations on greenhouse gas emissions.^[11][12] Another potentially important issue, net neutrality, received little attention during the campaign.^[13]

According to political commentator Stuart Rothenberg prior to the election, foreign policy crises in the Middle East, Ukraine, and Russia were likely to hurt the Democratic Party's chances in 2014.^[14]

The environment was touted as a key issue in the elections, but the results did not show the majority of voters were influenced by environmental concerns. In one example, environmental philanthropist [15]

Turnout

Perhaps affected by the lack of a single key issue, nationwide voter turnout was just 36.4%, down from 40.9% in the 2010 midterms and the lowest since the 1942 elections, when just 33.9% of voters turned out, though that election came during the middle of World War II.^[16][17][18]

The states with the highest turnout were Maine (59.3%), Wisconsin (56.9%), Alaska (55.3%), Colorado (53%), Oregon (52.7%) Minnesota (51.3%), Iowa (50.6%), New Hampshire (48.8%), Montana (46.1%) and South Dakota (44.6%), all of which except for Iowa and Montana featured a competitive gubernatorial race and all of which except for Maine and Wisconsin also featured competitive Senate races.^[17][18] The states with the highest turnout that had no Senate or gubernatorial race this year were North Dakota (44.1%) and Washington state (38.6%).^[17][18]

The states with the lowest turnout were Indiana (28%), Texas (28.5%), Utah (28.8%), Tennessee (29.1%), New York (29.5%), Mississippi (29.7%), Oklahoma (29.8%), New Jersey (30.4%) and West Virginia and Nevada (31.8%). Indiana and Utah had no Senate or gubernatorial elections and the others all had races for at least one of the posts, but they were not considered competitive.^[17][18] Turnout in Washington, D.C. was (30.3%).^[17][18]

According to CNN Young Americans aged between 18-29 accounted for 13%, down from 19% in the presidential election two years ago.

Analysis by the [19]

The New York Times counts apathy, anger and frustration at the relentlessly negative tone of the campaigns as the reasons of low turn out and stated that, "Neither party gave voters an affirmative reason to show up at the polls."^[20]

Federal elections

Congressional elections

Senate elections

All 33 seats in Senate Class II were up for election. Additionally, three special elections were held to fill vacancies in Class III.

Of the 36 Senate races, the Republican Party won 24 (a net gain of nine seats, which represents the largest gain for a party in the Senate since 1980) and the Democratic Party won 12, thus resulting in the Republicans regaining control of the Senate for the first time since 2006. The race in Louisiana headed to a run-off on December 6, 2014, in which Rep. Bill Cassidy (R) defeated 3-term incumbent Sen. Mary Landreiu 55.9% to 44.1%.

House of Representatives elections

All 435 voting seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election. Elections were held to select the delegates for the District of Columbia and four of the five U.S. territories. The only seat in the House not up for election was the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico, who serves a four-year term. The Republican party won 246 seats (a net gain of 12 seats) and the Democratic Party, 188 seats (with 1 race still undecided as of December 7, 2014). Thus, the Republicans gained their largest majority in the House since 1946, and could gain their largest majority since 1928 if they win the final undecided race.

On March 11, there was a special election for Florida's 13th congressional district, won by the Republican Party.

State elections

Gubernatorial elections

Elections were held for the governorships of 36 of the 50 U.S. states and three U.S. territories. The Republican Party won 24 of the 36 state governorships (for a net gain of two seats), with the Democratic Party losing a total of three seats, and an independent candidate winning one (Bill Walker in Alaska). The final total, as a result, was 31 Republican governors, 18 Democratic governors, and one Independent governor.^[21]

State legislative elections

Elections to state legislatures were held in 46 states, with a total of 6049 seats up for election (82 percent of the total number of state legislative seats in the United States). Republicans won control of 10 legislative chambers: both chambers of the Nevada Legislature, the Minnesota House of Representatives, New Hampshire House of Representatives, the New Mexico House of Representatives, the West Virginia House of Delegates, the Colorado Senate, the Maine Senate, the New York Senate, and the Washington Senate. This increased the total number of Republican-controlled state houses from 57 to 67. The day after the election, Republicans, who achieved a 17-17 tie in the West Virginia Senate, gained control of that chamber as well thanks to the defection of State Senator Daniel Hall, thus increasing their total gains to 11, for a final total of 68 state houses won.^[22] The election left the Republicans in control of the highest amount of state legislatures in the party's history since 1928, and also left the Democrats in control of the smallest amount of state legislatures since 1860.^[6][7][23]

Local elections

Numerous elections were held for officeholders in numerous cities, counties, school boards, special districts, and others around the country.

Mayoral elections

Major cities which held mayoral elections in 2014 include:

• Louisville, Kentucky: Incumbent Greg Fischer ran for a second term.
• New Orleans, Louisiana: Incumbent Mitch Landrieu was re-elected to a second term on February 1.^[24]
• Newark, New Jersey: Acting mayor Luis A. Quintana, who took over on November 4, 2013, after Cory Booker resigned to become U.S. Senator, declined to run for a full term. Ras Baraka was elected as Newark's new mayor on May 13.
• San Diego, California: A special election was held on February 11 following the resignation of Bob Filner on August 30, 2013. Kevin Faulconer defeated David Alvarez to serve out the balance of Filner's term.^[25]
• San Jose, California: Incumbent Chuck Reed is term-limited out of office. A primary election was held on June 3, and a run-off was held on November 4. Sam Liccardo edged out opponent Dave Cortese in a razor-thin victory with 50.8% of the vote.^[26][27]
• Washington, D.C.: Incumbent Vincent C. Gray was defeated in the Democratic primary on April 1 by Muriel Bowser. The general election was held on November 4 and Bowser was elected as mayor.^[28]

Allegations of misconduct

In Chicago, election judges said they had received automated phone calls between October–November 3 with apparently false instructions about voting or required training, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. In Pontiac, Michigan, local Democrats cited reports of voter harassment and intimidation by Republicans over questioning legally-cast ballots with election workers repeatedly having had to ask them to step aside. A clerk called police for help.^[29]

Voting machine irregulaties across the country, in which a vote cast for one Republican candidate was counted for another Democrat, including Virginia,^[30] Maryland,^[31] Illinois,^[32] and North Carolina.^[33]

In Bexar County, Texas, the Republican candidate for governor, Greg Abbott, was accidentally replaced on the ballot by David Dewhurst.^[34]

Milestones

A series of milestones were set for African-Americans and women, among others, in the U.S. Congress and American politics in general. These include:

• Republican Saira Blair, elected to the West Virginia House of Delegates, became the youngest elected official to state office in American history, at age 18.^[35]

• Republican New York).^[36]

• Republican Jeb Bush, was elected Commissioner of the Texas General Land Office, becoming the first member of the Bush family to win his very first race for elected office.^[37]

• Republican Shelley Moore Capito, elected to the Senate from West Virginia, became the first female senator in West Virginia's history.^[38]

• Republican Joni Ernst, elected to the Senate from Iowa, became the first female combat veteran elected to the U.S. Senate, the first woman ever elected on a statewide level in Iowa, and the first woman ever elected to the U.S. Congress from Iowa.^[39]

• Democrat Nellie Gorbea, elected Secretary of State of Rhode Island, became the first Hispanic to be elected to a statewide office in New England.^[40]

• Democrat Maura Healey, elected Massachusetts Attorney General, became the first openly gay state attorney general elected in America.^[41]

• Republican Mia Love, elected to the House from Utah, was the first African-American woman elected to Congress as a Republican, and the first Haitian-American person elected to the U.S. Congress.^[42]

• Republican Alex Mooney, elected to the House from West Virginia, became the first Latino elected to Congress in West Virginia's history.^[43]

• Democrat Gina Raimondo, elected Governor of Rhode Island was the first woman elected Governor in Rhode Island.

• Republican Tim Scott, elected to the Senate from South Carolina, was the first African-American elected to a statewide office in a former Confederate state since 1881,^[44] and also became the first African-American to be elected to both the House and the Senate.^[45]

• Republican Elise Stefanik, elected to the House from New York, was the youngest woman elected to Congress at age 30. She beat the previous record-holder and fellow New Yorker, Elizabeth Holtzman, who was elected at age 31 in 1972.^[46]

References

External links

• United States elections, 2014 at DMOZ

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Categories

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