Everything you need to know about ranked-choice voting in one spot.Click to learn more!

United States Congress elections, 2014

From Ballotpedia
2012
2016



CongressLogo.png

2014 Congress Elections

Election Date
November 4, 2014

U.S. Senate Elections by State
Alabama •Alaska •Arkansas •Colorado •Delaware •Georgia •Idaho •Illinois •Iowa •Kansas •Kentucky •Louisiana •Maine •Massachusetts •Michigan •Minnesota •Mississippi •Montana •Nebraska •New Hampshire •New Jersey •New Mexico •North Carolina •Oklahoma •Oregon •Rhode Island •South Carolina •South Dakota •Tennessee •Texas •Virginia •West Virginia •Wyoming

U.S. House Elections by State
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

Elections Information
Election DatesVoting in Primaries
Voting on November 4, 2014
Poll Opening and Closing Times

Contents

A total of 471 seats in theU.S. Congress (36Senate seats, including three special elections, and all 435House seats) were up for election on November 4, 2014. Additionally, three races,Louisiana's 5th and6th Districts and theSenate election in Louisiana, were Republican wins in a runoff held on December 6, 2014.

U.S. House
Dem.188
Rep.247
Ind.0
TOTAL435
Click here for more details.
U.S. Senate
Dem.44
Rep.54
Ind.2
TOTAL100
UNDECIDED0
Click here for more details.

A strong Republican showing occurred. Republicans assumed control of both chambers of the U.S. Congress.

Many believed that the November 4, 2014, general election would be a backlash against the Obama Administration’sAffordable Care Act. According to a study by the Brookings Institution, only 36 percent of 2014 Democratic candidates mentioned support of the Affordable Care Act in their platform.[1]

The GOP went into the election with a 233-199 lead in the House of Representatives. Democrats outnumbered Republicans, 53-45, in the U.S. Senate (with two Independents in the mix).[2][3][4]

Heading into the election, Democrats controlled theU.S. Senate while Republicans were the majority in theU.S. House. For Republicans to take the majority in the Senate, they needed to take six seats held by Democrats and retain control of the 15 seats held by a Republican. That was reached. For Democrats to have taken majority control of theU.S. House, a Democratic pick up of 17 seats was needed. That was not reached. Instead, Democrats lost ground in the House.[5]

There were incorrect predictions that the control of the Senate would not be decided on November 4. With races inGeorgia andLouisiana tightening up, it was possible that one or both of those races could have been the deciding seats for the majority. A runoff in Louisiana took place on December 6, however, it did not decide the control of the Senate and RepublicanBill Cassidy defeated Sen.Mary Landrieu. Interestingly, a Georgia runoff would have been held on January 6, three days after the114th Congress is sworn in.[6]

A total of 416 incumbents sought re-election in 2014, and 393, or 94.47 percent, were successful in their re-election bids. Seven incumbent senators (includingJohn Walsh of Montana who was appointed to the Senate in February 2014, but decided against seeking a full-term) and 41 representatives announced theywould not seek re-election. Additionally, three senators and 13 representatives left office early.

U.S. Senate

Election results

See also:United States Senate elections, 2014

Who ended up with majority control of the U.S. Senate?

All eyes were on which party would control theU.S. Senate in 2015. The Democratic-controlled Senate in the113th Congress had a partisan breakdown of 53-45-2, with the two Independents caucusing with the Democrats. For Republicans to take the majority in the Senate, they needed to take at least six of the 36 seats up for election that were held by Democrats, and retain control of the 15 seats held by Republicans. The section updated the seat count for each party throughout the night and the vote totals in the hotly contested races.

Rep.Bill Cassidy (R) won theLouisiana seat in arunoff election on December 6, 2014.

U.S. Senate
Dem.44
Rep.54
Ind.2
TOTAL100
UNDECIDED0
Click here for more details.
StateBeforeAfter
IncumbentPartyWinnerWinner PartySeat Party Change?
Alaska SenateMark BegichDemocratic PartyDan SullivanRepublican PartyYes
Arkansas SenateMark PryorDemocratic PartyTom CottonRepublican PartyYes
Colorado SenateMark UdallDemocratic PartyCory GardnerRepublican PartyYes
Georgia SenateSaxby Chambliss*Republican PartyDavid PerdueRepublican PartyNo
Iowa SenateTom Harkin*Democratic PartyJoni ErnstRepublican PartyYes
Kansas SenatePat RobertsRepublican PartyPat RobertsRepublican PartyNo
Kentucky SenateMitch McConnellRepublican PartyMitch McConnellRepublican PartyNo
Louisiana SenateMary LandrieuDemocratic PartyBill CassidyRepublican PartyYes
Montana SenateJohn Walsh*Democratic PartySteve DainesRepublican PartyYes
New Hampshire SenateJeanne ShaheenDemocratic PartyJeanne ShaheenDemocratic PartyNo
North Carolina SenateKay HaganDemocratic PartyThom TillisRepublican PartyYes
South Dakota SenateTim Johnson*Democratic PartyMike RoundsRepublican PartyYes
Virginia SenateMark WarnerDemocratic PartyMark WarnerDemocratic PartyNo
West Virginia SenateJay Rockefeller*Democratic PartyShelley Moore CapitoRepublican PartyYes

"*" indicates that the incumbent retired in 2014.

U.S. Senate, Alabama General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngJeff SessionsIncumbent97.3%795,606
    N/A Write-in2.7%22,484
Total Votes818,090
Source:Alabama Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Alaska General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngDan Sullivan48%135,445
    Democratic Mark BegichIncumbent45.8%129,431
    Libertarian Mark Fish3.7%10,512
    Independent Ted Gianoutsos2%5,636
    N/A Write-in0.5%1,376
Total Votes282,400
Source:Alaska Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Arkansas General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngTom Cotton56.5%478,819
    Democratic Mark PryorIncumbent39.5%334,174
    Libertarian Nathan LaFrance2%17,210
    Green Mark Swaney2%16,797
Total Votes847,000
Source:Arkansas Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Colorado General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngCory Gardner48.2%983,891
    Democratic Mark UdallIncumbent46.3%944,203
    Libertarian Gaylon Kent2.6%52,876
    Independent Steve Shogan1.4%29,472
    Independent Raul Acosta1.2%24,151
    Unity Party of Colorado Bill Hammons0.3%6,427
Total Votes2,041,020
Source:Colorado Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Delaware General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngChris CoonsIncumbent55.8%130,655
    Republican Kevin Wade42.2%98,823
    Green Andrew Groff1.9%4,560
Total Votes234,038
Source:U.S. House Clerk "2014 Election Statistics"




U.S. Senate, Georgia General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngDavid Perdue52.89%1,358,088
    Democratic Michelle Nunn45.21%1,160,811
    Libertarian Amanda Swafford1.90%48,862
Total Votes2,567,761
Source:Georgia Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Idaho General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngJim RischIncumbent65.3%285,596
    Democratic Nels Mitchell34.7%151,574
Total Votes437,170
Source:Idaho Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Illinois General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngRichard DurbinIncumbent53.5%1,929,637
    Republican Jim Oberweis42.7%1,538,522
    Libertarian Sharon Hansen3.8%135,316
Total Votes3,603,475
Source:Illinois Secretary of State Official Results




U.S. Senate, Iowa General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngJoni Ernst52.1%588,575
    Democratic Bruce Braley43.8%494,370
    Independent Rick Stewart2.4%26,815
    Libertarian Douglas Butzier0.7%8,232
    Independent Ruth Smith0.5%5,873
    Independent Bob Quast0.4%4,724
    Write-in Other0.1%1,111
Total Votes1,129,700
Source:Iowa Secretary of State Official Results




U.S. Senate, Kansas General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngPat RobertsIncumbent53.1%460,350
    Independent Greg Orman42.5%368,372
    Libertarian Randall Batson4.3%37,469
Total Votes866,191
Source:Kansas Secretary of State Official Results




U.S. Senate, Kentucky General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngMitch McConnellIncumbent56.2%806,787
    Democratic Alison Lundergan Grimes40.7%584,698
    Libertarian David Patterson3.1%44,240
Total Votes1,435,725
Source:Kentucky Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Louisiana Primary Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngMary LandrieuIncumbent42.1%619,402
    Democratic Wayne Ables0.8%11,323
    Democratic Vallian Senegal0.3%3,831
    Democratic William Waymire Jr.0.3%4,673
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngBill Cassidy41%603,084
    Republican Rob Maness13.8%202,556
    Republican Thomas Clements1%14,173
    Libertarian Brannon Lee McMorris0.9%13,034
Total Votes1,472,076
Source:Mary Landrieu andBill Cassidy headed to a runoff election on December 6, 2014.Louisiana Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Maine General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngSusan CollinsIncumbent67%413,505
    Democratic Shenna Bellows30.8%190,254
    Other Other0%269
    Blank None2.1%12,968
Total Votes616,996
Source:Maine Secretary of State Official Results




U.S. Senate, Massachusetts General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngEd MarkeyIncumbent59%1,289,944
    Republican Brian Herr36.2%791,950
    Write-in Other0.1%3,078
    Blank None4.7%101,819
Total Votes2,186,791
Source:Massachusetts Secretary of State Official Results




U.S. Senate, Michigan General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngGary Peters54.6%1,704,936
    Republican Terri Lynn Land41.3%1,290,199
    Libertarian Jim Fulner2%62,897
    U.S. Taxpayers Party Richard Matkin1.2%37,529
    Green Chris Wahmhoff0.8%26,137
Total Votes3,121,698
Source:Michigan Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Minnesota General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngAl FrankenIncumbent53.2%1,053,205
    Republican Mike McFadden42.9%850,227
    Libertarian Heather Johnson1.5%29,685
    Independence Steve Carlson2.4%47,530
    N/A Write-in0%881
Total Votes1,981,528
Source:Minnesota Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Mississippi General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngThad CochranIncumbent59.9%378,481
    Democratic Travis Childers37.9%239,439
    Reform Shawn O'Hara2.2%13,938
Total Votes631,858
Source:Mississippi Secretary of State Official Results




U.S. Senate, Montana General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngSteve Daines57.8%213,709
    Democratic Amanda Curtis40.1%148,184
    Libertarian Roger Roots2.1%7,933
Total Votes369,826
Source:Montana Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Nebraska General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngBen Sasse64.4%347,636
    Democratic Dave Domina31.5%170,127
    Independent Jim Jenkins2.9%15,868
    Independent Todd Watson1.2%6,260
Total Votes539,891
Source:Nebraska Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, New Hampshire General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngJeanne ShaheenIncumbent51.5%251,184
    Republican Scott Brown48.2%235,347
    N/A Scatter0.3%1,628
Total Votes488,159
Source:New Hampshire Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, New Jersey General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngCory BookerIncumbent55.8%1,043,866
    Republican Jeff Bell42.3%791,297
    Libertarian Joe Baratelli0.9%16,721
    Independent Jeff Boss0.2%4,513
    Independent Antonio N. Sabas0.2%3,544
    Democratic-Republican Eugene Lavergne0.2%3,890
    Economic Growth Hank Schroeder0.3%5,704
Total Votes1,869,535
Source:New Jersey Division of Elections




U.S. Senate, New Mexico General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngTom UdallIncumbent55.6%286,409
    Republican Allen Weh44.4%229,097
Total Votes515,506
Source:New Mexico Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, North Carolina General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    Democratic Kay HaganIncumbent47.3%1,377,651
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngThom Tillis48.8%1,423,259
    Libertarian Sean Haugh3.7%109,100
    Write-in John Rhodes0%621
    Write-in David Waddell0%201
    Write-in Barry Gurney0%142
    Write-in Write-in (miscellaneous)0.1%4,307
Total Votes2,915,281
Source:North Carolina State Board of Elections




U.S. Senate, Oklahoma General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngJim InhofeIncumbent68%558,166
    Democratic Matt Silverstein28.5%234,307
    Independent Ray Woods1.2%9,913
    Independent Aaron DeLozier0.9%7,793
    Independent Joan Farr1.3%10,554
Total Votes820,733
Source:Oklahoma State Election Board




U.S. Senate, Oregon General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngJeff MerkleyIncumbent55.7%814,537
    Republican Monica Wehby36.9%538,847
    Libertarian Mike Montchalin3.1%44,916
    Constitution James Leuenberger1.7%24,212
    Green Christina Jean Lugo2.2%32,434
    Miscellaneous Miscellaneous0.5%6,672
Total Votes1,461,618
Source:Oregon Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Rhode Island General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngJack ReedIncumbent70.6%223,675
    Republican Mark Zaccaria29.2%92,684
    N/A Write-in0.2%539
Total Votes316,898
Source:Rhode Island Board of Elections




U.S. Senate, South Carolina General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngLindsey GrahamIncumbent55.3%672,941
    Democratic Brad Hutto37.6%456,726
    Libertarian Victor Kocher2.8%33,839
    Independent Thomas Ravenel3.9%47,588
    N/A Write-in0.4%4,774
Total Votes1,215,868
Source:South Carolina State Election Commission




U.S. Senate, South Dakota General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngMike Rounds50.4%140,741
    Democratic Rick Weiland29.5%82,456
    Independent Larry Pressler17.1%47,741
    Independent Gordon Howie3%8,474
Total Votes279,412
Source:South Dakota Secretary of State




U.S. Senate, Tennessee General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngLamar AlexanderIncumbent61.9%850,087
    Democratic Gordon Ball31.9%437,848
    Independent Ed Gauthier0.2%2,314
    Independent Bartholomew Phillips0.2%2,386
    Independent C. Salekin0.1%787
    Independent Danny Page0.6%7,713
    Independent Eric Schechter0.1%1,673
    Constitution Joe Wilmoth2.6%36,088
    Independent Joshua James0.4%5,678
    Independent Rick Tyler0.4%5,759
    Tea Party Tom Emerson, Jr.0.8%11,157
    Green Martin Pleasant0.9%12,570
    Write-in Erin Kent Magee0%5
Total Votes1,374,065
Source:U.S. House Clerk "2014 Election Statistics"




U.S. Senate, Texas General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngJohn CornynIncumbent61.6%2,861,531
    Democratic David Alameel34.4%1,597,387
    Libertarian Rebecca Paddock2.9%133,751
    Green Emily Marie Sanchez1.2%54,701
    Write-in Mohammed Tahiro0%988
Total Votes4,648,358
Source:U.S. House Clerk "2014 Election Statistics"




U.S. Senate, Virginia General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngMark WarnerIncumbent49.1%1,073,667
    Republican Ed Gillespie48.3%1,055,940
    Libertarian Robert Sarvis2.4%53,102
    N/A write-in0.1%1,764
Total Votes2,184,473
Source:Virginia Department of Elections




U.S. Senate, West Virginia General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngShelley Moore Capito62.1%281,820
    Democratic Natalie Tennant34.5%156,360
    Libertarian John Buckley1.6%7,409
    Constitution Phil Hudok0.6%2,566
    Mountain Bob Henry Baber1.2%5,504
    N/A Write-ins0%30
Total Votes453,689
Source:U.S. House Clerk "2014 Election Statistics"




U.S. Senate, Wyoming General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngMike EnziIncumbent72.2%121,554
    Democratic Charlie Hardy17.4%29,377
    Independent Curt Gottshall7.9%13,311
    Libertarian Joe Porambo2.2%3,677
    N/A Write-in0.3%471
Total Votes168,390
Source:Wyoming Secretary of State




The 33 Class IIU.S. Senate seats were up for election. Of those 33 seats, 20 were held by Democrats and 13 by Republican senators. Additionally, three special elections took place in 2014 to fill vacancies that occurred during the113th Congress (Hawaii,Oklahoma andSouth Carolina). All three of these special elections took place on November 4, 2014, for a total of 36Senate elections.

For Republicans to gain control of the Senate, they needed to pick up at least six seats held by Democrats and maintain control of all Republican seats up for re-election. Unfortunately for Democratic incumbents, seven of their seats up in 2014 were in states carried by Republican Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election. Those states were:Alaska,Arkansas,Louisiana,Montana,North Carolina,South Dakota andWest Virginia.[7]

Margin of victory

The following table shows the margin of victory for each race winner, which is calculated by examining the percentage difference between the top-two vote getters. If the race was uncontested, the margin of victory is listed as 100%. Some general facts:

  • The average margin of victory was 22.6 percent.
  • On average, Democrats won closer races than Republicans. Average MOV for Democratic winners was 18.7 percent, while Republicans had an average margin of 24.7 percent.
  • The closest race was in Virginia, where incumbentMark Warner (D) held on to his seat, defeatingEd Gillespie by 0.8 percent of the vote.
  • The largest margin of victory was in Alabama, where incumbentJeff Sessions (R) faced no opponent in the general election. This election marked the first time in Alabama history that the Democratic Party fielded no candidates for the U.S. Senate race.[8]
Margin of Victory in 2014 United States Senate Elections
StateWinnerMargin of VictoryTotal VoteTop Opponent
AlaskaRepublican PartyDan Sullivan2.2%282,400Mark Begich
AlabamaRepublican PartyJeff Sessions94.5%818,090Write-in
ArkansasRepublican PartyTom Cotton17.0%847,000Mark Pryor
ColoradoRepublican PartyCory Gardner1.9%2,041,020Mark Udall
DelawareDemocratic PartyChris Coons13.6%234,038Kevin Wade
GeorgiaRepublican PartyDavid Perdue7.7%2,567,761Michelle Nunn
HawaiiDemocratic PartyBrian Schatz42.1%353,689Cam Cavasso
IowaRepublican PartyJoni Ernst8.3%1,129,700Bruce Braley
IdahoRepublican PartyJim Risch30.7%437,170Nels Mitchell
IllinoisDemocratic PartyRichard Durbin10.9%3,603,475Jim Oberweis
KansasRepublican PartyPat Roberts10.6%866,191Greg Orman
KentuckyRepublican PartyMitch McConnell15.5%1,435,725Alison Lundergan Grimes
Louisiana Runoff ElectionRepublican PartyBill Cassidy11.8%1,273,589Mary Landrieu
MassachusettsDemocratic PartyEd Markey22.8%2,186,791Brian Herr
MaineRepublican PartySusan Collins36.2%616,996Shenna Bellows
MichiganDemocratic PartyGary Peters13.3%3,121,698Terri Lynn Land
MinnesotaDemocratic PartyAl Franken10.2%1,981,528Mike McFadden
MississippiRepublican PartyThad Cochran22%631,858Travis Childers
MontanaRepublican PartySteve Daines17.7%369,826Amanda Curtis
North CarolinaRepublican PartyThom Tillis1.5%2,915,281Kay Hagan
NebraskaRepublican PartyBen Sasse32.9%539,891Dave Domina
New HampshireDemocratic PartyJeanne Shaheen3.2%488,159Scott Brown
New JerseyDemocratic PartyCory Booker13.5%1,869,535Jeff Bell
New MexicoDemocratic PartyTom Udall11.1%515,506Allen Weh
Oklahoma Special ElectionRepublican PartyJames Lankford38.9%820,890Constance Johnson
OklahomaRepublican PartyJim Inhofe39.5%820,733Matt Silverstein
OregonDemocratic PartyJeff Merkley18.9%1,461,618Monica Wehby
Rhode IslandDemocratic PartyJack Reed41.3%316,898Mark Zaccaria
South Carolina Special ElectionRepublican PartyTim Scott24%1,238,982Joyce Dickerson
South CarolinaRepublican PartyLindsey Graham17.8%1,215,868Brad Hutto
South DakotaRepublican PartyMike Rounds20.9%279,412Rick Weiland
TennesseeRepublican PartyLamar Alexander31.7%1,301,733Gordon Ball
TexasRepublican PartyJohn Cornyn27.2%4,647,371David Alameel
VirginiaDemocratic PartyMark Warner0.8%2,184,473Ed Gillespie
West VirginiaRepublican PartyShelley Moore Capito27.6%451,498Natalie Tennant
WyomingRepublican PartyMike Enzi54.7%168,390Charlie Hardy


Open seats

Seven senators (includingJohn Walsh of Montana who was appointed to the Senate in February 2014, but decided against seeking a full-term) announced that they would not seek re-election in 2014. In addition to the following list, four senators left office early:Max Baucus (D-MT),John Kerry (D-MA),Jim DeMint (R-SC) andTom Coburn (R-OK). The deaths of Sens.Daniel Inouye (D-HI) andFrank Lautenberg (D-NJ), and the early resignation of Coburn, necessitated three special elections held with the 33 regular elections on November 4, 2014.

  • Democratic Party 5 Democrats
  • Republican Party 2 Republicans
Name:Party:Office:
Carl LevinElectiondot.pngDemocraticU.S. Senator Michigan
Jay RockefellerElectiondot.pngDemocraticU.S. Senate West Virginia
John WalshElectiondot.pngDemocraticU.S. Senate Montana
Mike JohannsEnds.pngRepublicanU.S. Senate Nebraska
Saxby ChamblissEnds.pngRepublicanU.S. Senate Georgia
Tim JohnsonElectiondot.pngDemocraticU.S. Senate South Dakota
Tom HarkinElectiondot.pngDemocraticU.S. Senator Iowa


U.S. Senate Partisan Breakdown
PartyAs of 2014 ElectionAfter the 2014 Election
    Democratic Party5344
    Republican Party4554
    Independent22
Total100100
This map shows the Senate seats up for election in 2014. The red and blue colors indicate whether the seat was held by a Republican or a Democrat, respectively.

Race ratings

Cook Political Report

Each month theCook Political Report released race ratings for President,U.S. Senate,U.S. House (competitive only) andGovernors in 2014. There were seven possible designations:[9]

    Solid D
    Likely D
    Lean D

    Tossup

    Lean R
    Likely R
    Solid R

Cook Political Report Race Rating -- U.S. Senate
MonthSolid DLikely DLean DTossupLean RLikely RSolid RTotal DTotal RTotal races
June 27, 2013[10]65630411171535
August 2, 2013[11]74623211171635
October 17, 2013[12]74623211171635
December 19, 2013[13]75433112161635
February 7, 2014[14]66433113161736
February 27, 2014[15]65533113161736
March 19, 2014[16]82372212131636
April 25, 2014[17]82282212121636
August 15, 2014[18]73192311111636
September 19, 2014[19]73191312111636
October 17, 2014[20]731101212111536

Campaign finance

October 2014

Politico highlighted the following fundraising figures for the third quarter 2014 reports:

August 2014

According toOpenSecrets.org, below were the races that had the mostsatellite spending. They included the U.S. Senate races inNorth Carolina,Kentucky,Mississippi,Georgia andArkansas.

List of the races that received the most in independent expenditures, according toOpenSecrets.org.

July 2014

In July 2014,Politico released the highlights from the second quarter 2014 fundraising reports. They included:[22]

April 2014

According to an April 2014Politico report, vulnerable Democrats were being outraised by Republican challengers.[23] The candidates highlighted in the article were:

August 2013

An August 2013Politico report reported that the 27 incumbents running for re-election in 2014 had together raised about $125 million by the end of June 2013.[24] The report also found that 2014 may be the most expensive midterm election to date, pointing to the fact that the total amount raised for incumbents seeking re-election was $30 million more than at the same point in 2012 and on par with the amount they had raised in 2010.[24]

The incumbents highlighted in the article were:[24]

April 2013

According to an April 2013Politico report, incumbent Democrats in red states raised "millions" in the first three months of 2013.[25] The candidates highlighted in the article were:

  • Democratic PartyMary Landrieu (LA) had raised $1.2 million and had $3.5 million cash on hand
  • Democratic PartyMark Pryor (AR) had raised $1.9 million and had $3.4 million cash on hand
  • Democratic PartyKay Hagan (NC) had raised $1.6 million and had $2.7 million cash on hand
  • Democratic PartyMark Begich (AK) had raised $948,000 and had $1.5 million cash on hand[25]

DSCC and NRSC

Both theDemocratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) and theNational Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) work to elect candidates from their respective parties to theU.S. Senate.

Fundraising numbers

September 2014

The DSCC raised $16 million in September, while the NRSC was on their heels with $15.5. Both organizations had the highest September hauls in the organizations' histories.[26]

July 2014

The DSCC had its strongest second quarter in organization history, raising $21.7 million during the quarter. As of July 2014, the DSCC had raised $70.3 million in the 2014 cycle, while the NRSC had raised $68.6 million in 2014.[27]

April 2014

The DSCC outraised the NRSC, $6.3 million to $6.04 million. In April, the DSCC ended the month with $25 million on hand, while the NRSC had $21.9 million in the bank. Both organizations remained debt-free.[28]

October 2013

The DSCC outraised their GOP counterpart, the NRSC, by one million dollars in October 2013. The DSCC raised $4.8 million compared to the NRSC's $3.8 million. This was the organization's best off-year October in their history.

At that time, the DSCC had raised $14 million more than the NRSC, a total of $43.5 million raised. They reported $11.1 million cash on hand. However, the organization was also carrying $6.2 million in debt. The NRSC had $5 million cash on hand at the end of October 2013.[29]

July 2013 memo

In July 2013, NRSC president, Rob Collins, circulated a memo to top donors outlining the path to a majority in the Senate for the Republican Party.From the memo:

"Montana now joins West Virginia and South Dakota as the third red-state where Democrats have not only failed to land their top candidates, but to recruit a candidate capable of winning a general election matchup."

Collins reiterated that Republicans needed to win just three seats in states with incumbent Democratic senators.[30]


U.S. House

See also:United States House of Representatives elections, 2014

Did the Democratic Party reduce the Republican U.S. House majority?

All 435U.S. House of Representatives seats were up for election. Republicans went into the election with a 233-199 majority (with three vacancies). Democrats failed to pick up 19 seats to flip control and instead lost seats. On this page, Ballotpedia tracked the districts identified asbattleground districts. Below the battleground chart, we also tracked unexpectedly close races that developed throughout election night.

Note: The tables below were updated in real-time on election night. As races were called, we updated the partisan count totals.

U.S. House
Dem.188
Rep.247
Ind.0
TOTAL435
Click here for more details.
StateBeforeAfter
IncumbentPartyWinnerWinner PartyDistrict Party Change?
Arizona's 1st DistrictAnn KirkpatrickDemocratic PartyAnn KirkpatrickDemocratic PartyNo
Arizona's 2nd DistrictRon BarberDemocratic PartyMartha McSallyRepublican PartyYes
Arizona's 9th DistrictKyrsten SinemaDemocratic PartyKyrsten SinemaDemocratic PartyNo
California's 7th DistrictAmi BeraDemocratic PartyAmi BeraDemocratic PartyNo
California's 21st DistrictDavid ValadaoRepublican PartyDavid ValadaoRepublican PartyNo
California's 36th DistrictRaul RuizDemocratic PartyRaul RuizDemocratic PartyNo
California's 52nd DistrictScott PetersDemocratic PartyScott PetersDemocratic PartyNo
Colorado's 6th DistrictMike CoffmanRepublican PartyMike CoffmanRepublican PartyNo
Florida's 18th DistrictPatrick MurphyDemocratic PartyPatrick MurphyDemocratic PartyNo
Florida's 26th DistrictJoe GarciaDemocratic PartyCarlos CurbeloRepublican PartyYes
Illinois' 12th DistrictWilliam EnyartDemocratic PartyMike BostRepublican PartyYes
Illinois' 13th DistrictRodney DavisRepublican PartyRodney DavisRepublican PartyNo
Michigan's 1st DistrictDan BenishekRepublican PartyDan BenishekRepublican PartyNo
Minnesota's 8th DistrictRick NolanDemocratic PartyRick NolanDemocratic PartyNo
Nevada's 3rd DistrictJoe HeckRepublican PartyJoe HeckRepublican PartyNo
New Hampshire's 1st DistrictCarol Shea-PorterDemocratic PartyFrank GuintaRepublican PartyYes
New Jersey's 2nd DistrictFrank LoBiondoRepublican PartyFrank LoBiondoRepublican PartyNo
New Jersey's 3rd DistrictJon Runyan*Republican PartyTom MacArthurRepublican PartyNo
New York's 1st DistrictTim BishopDemocratic PartyLee ZeldinRepublican PartyYes
New York's 11th DistrictMichael GrimmRepublican PartyMichael GrimmRepublican PartyNo
New York's 18th DistrictSean MaloneyDemocratic PartySean MaloneyDemocratic PartyNo
New York's 21st DistrictBill Owens*Democratic PartyElise StefanikRepublican PartyYes
New York's 23rd DistrictTom ReedRepublican PartyTom ReedRepublican PartyNo
Texas' 23rd DistrictPete GallegoDemocratic PartyWill HurdRepublican PartyYes
Virginia's 2nd DistrictScott RigellRepublican PartyScott RigellRepublican PartyNo
West Virginia's 3rd DistrictNick RahallDemocratic PartyEvan JenkinsRepublican PartyYes

"*" indicates that the incumbent retired in 2014.

Expected seat changes

These are districts where a change in party was expected due to a very vulnerable incumbent. These races were not rated as battlegrounds because they were likely to flip control.

DistrictBeforeAfter
IncumbentPartyWinnerWinner Party
North Carolina's 7th DistrictMike McIntyre (Retiring)Democratic PartyDavid RouzerRepublican Party
Utah's 4th DistrictJim Matheson (Retiring)Democratic PartyMia LoveRepublican Party
West Virginia's 3rd DistrictNick RahallDemocratic PartyEvan JenkinsRepublican Party

Incumbents who lost

Partisanship of the losing incumbents:

  • Republican Party 3
  • Democratic Party 11
DistrictBeforeAfter
IncumbentPartyWinnerWinner Party
Arizona's 2nd DistrictRon BarberDemocratic PartyMartha McSallyRepublican Party
Florida's 2nd DistrictSteve SoutherlandRepublican PartyGwen GrahamDemocratic Party
Florida's 26th DistrictJoe GarciaDemocratic PartyCarlos CurbeloRepublican Party
Georgia's 12th DistrictJohn BarrowDemocratic PartyRick AllenRepublican Party
Illinois' 10th DistrictBrad SchneiderDemocratic PartyRobert DoldRepublican Party
Illinois' 12th DistrictBill EnyartDemocratic PartyMike BostRepublican Party
Louisiana's 5th DistrictVance McAllisterRepublican PartyRalph AbrahamRepublican Party
Nebraska's 2nd DistrictLee TerryRepublican PartyBrad AshfordDemocratic Party
Nevada's 4th DistrictSteven HorsfordDemocratic PartyCresent HardyRepublican Party
New Hampshire's 1st DistrictCarol Shea-PorterDemocratic PartyFrank GuintaRepublican Party
New York's 1st DistrictTim BishopDemocratic PartyLee ZeldinRepublican Party
Texas' 23rd DistrictPete GallegoDemocratic PartyWill HurdRepublican Party
New York's 24th DistrictDan MaffeiDemocratic PartyJohn KatkoRepublican Party
West Virginia's 3rd DistrictNick RahallDemocratic PartyEvan JenkinsRepublican Party

Democrats hoped to survive a possible referendum on the Obama Administration’sAffordable Care Act and not lose further ground in the Republican-dominated U.S. House of Representatives during the November 4, 2014 general election. All 435 seats of theU.S. House were up for election.

U.S. House Partisan Breakdown
PartyAs of 2014 ElectionAfter the 2014 Election
    Democratic Party201188
    Republican Party234247
    Vacancy00
Total435435

Margin of victory

The following table shows the margin of victory for each race winner, which is calculated by examining the percentage difference between the top-two vote getters. If the race was uncontested, the margin of victory is listed as 100%. Some general facts:

  • The average margin of victory was 35.8 percent.
  • On average, Republicans won slightly closer races than Republicans. Average MOV for Republican winners was 35 percent, while Democrats had an average margin of 36.9 percent.
  • The closest race was inArizona's 2nd Congressional District, whereMartha McSally (R) unseated incumbentRon Barber (D) by 0.1 percent of the vote.
Margin of Victory in 2014 United States House of Representatives Elections
DistrictWinnerMargin of VictoryTotal VoteTop Opponent
Alabama District 1Republican PartyBradley Byrne36.4%152234Burton LeFlore
Alabama District 2Republican PartyMartha Roby34.8%167952Erick Wright
Alabama District 3Republican PartyMike Rogers32.4%156,620Jesse Smith
Alabama District 4Republican PartyRobert Aderholt97.1%134752Write-in
Alabama District 5Republican PartyMo Brooks49.3%154,974Jerry Hill
Alabama District 6Republican PartyGary Palmer52.5%178449Mark Lester
Alabama District 7Democratic PartyTerri Sewell96.7%135,899Write-in
Alaska's At-Large DistrictRepublican PartyDon Young10%279,741Forrest Dunbar
Arizona District 1Democratic PartyAnn Kirkpatrick5.2%185114Andy Tobin
Arizona District 2Republican PartyMartha McSally0.1%219,351Ron Barber
Arizona District 3Democratic PartyRaul Grijalva11.5%104428Gabriela Saucedo Mercer
Arizona District 4Republican PartyPaul Gosar44.2%175,179Mikel Weisser
Arizona District 5Republican PartyMatt Salmon39.2%179,463James Woods
Arizona District 6Republican PartyDavid Schweikert29.7%199,776John Williamson
Arizona District 7Democratic PartyRuben Gallego60.1%72,454Joe Cobb
Arizona District 8Republican PartyTrent Franks51.6%169,776Stephen Dolgos
Arizona District 9Democratic PartyKyrsten Sinema12.8%162062Wendy Rogers
Arkansas District 1Republican PartyRick Crawford30.9%196256Jackie McPherson
Arkansas District 2Republican PartyFrench Hill8.3%237330Patrick Hays
Arkansas District 3Republican PartySteve Womack58.8%190,935Grant Brand
Arkansas District 4Republican PartyBruce Westerman11.2%206,131James Lee Witt
California District 10Republican PartyJeff Denham12.3%125,705Michael Eggman
California District 11Democratic PartyMark DeSaulnier34.5%174,662Tue Phan-Quang
California District 12Democratic PartyNancy Pelosi66.5%192,264John Dennis
California District 13Democratic PartyBarbara Lee77%190431Dakin Sundeen
California District 14Democratic PartyJackie Speier53.4%149146Robin Chew
California District 15Democratic PartyEric Swalwell39.6%142,906Hugh Bussell
California District 16Democratic PartyJim Costa1.5%91220Johnny Tacherra
California District 17Democratic PartyMike Honda3.5%134,408Ro Khanna
California District 18Democratic PartyAnna Eshoo35.5%196,386Richard Fox
California District 19Democratic PartyZoe Lofgren34.4%127,788Robert Murray
California District 1Republican PartyDoug La Malfa22.1%216,372Heidi Hall
California District 20Democratic PartySam Farr50.4%141,044Ronald Paul Kabat
California District 21Republican PartyDavid Valadao15.7%79,377Amanda Renteria
California District 22Republican PartyDevin Nunes44.1%133342Suzanna Aguilera-Marrero
California District 23Republican PartyKevin McCarthy49.7%134043Raul Garcia
California District 24Democratic PartyLois Capps3.9%198794Chris Mitchum
California District 25Republican PartySteve Knight6.7%114,072Tony Strickland
California District 26Democratic PartyJulia Brownley2.7%169,829Jeff Gorell
California District 27Democratic PartyJudy Chu18.7%127,580Jack Orswell
California District 28Democratic PartyAdam Schiff53%120,264Steve Stokes
California District 29Democratic PartyTony Cardenas49.2%67,141William O'Callaghan Leader
California District 2Democratic PartyJared Huffman50%217,524Dale Mensing
California District 30Democratic Party [[Brad Sherman]]31.3%131,883Mark Reed
California District 31Democratic PartyPete Aguilar3.5%99784Paul Chabot
California District 32Democratic PartyGrace Napolitano19.3%84406Art Alas
California District 33Democratic PartyTed Lieu18.4%183031Elan Carr
California District 34Democratic PartyXavier Becerra45.1%61621Adrienne Nicole Edwards
California District 35Democratic PartyNorma Torres26.9%62255Christina Gagnier
California District 36Democratic PartyRaul Ruiz8.4%134139Brian Nestande
California District 37Democratic PartyKaren Bass68.6%114,838Adam King
California District 38Democratic PartyLinda Sanchez18.2%98480Benjamin Campos
California District 39Republican PartyEdward Royce37.1%133,225Peter Anderson
California District 3Democratic PartyJohn Garamendi5.4%150260Dan Logue
California District 40Democratic PartyLucille Roybal-Allard22.4%49,379David Sanchez
California District 41Democratic PartyMark Takano13.3%82,884Steve Adams
California District 42Republican PartyKen Calvert31.5%113390Tim Sheridan
California District 43Democratic PartyMaxine Waters41.9%98202John Wood
California District 44Democratic PartyJanice Hahn73.3%68,862Adam Shbeita
California District 45Republican PartyMimi Walters30.2%162902Drew Leavens
California District 46Democratic PartyLoretta Sanchez19.4%83315Adam Nick
California District 47Democratic PartyAlan Lowenthal12%123,400Andy Whallon
California District 48Republican PartyDana Rohrabacher28.2%174795Sue Savary
California District 49Republican PartyDarrell Issa20.3%163142Dave Peiser
California District 4Republican PartyTom McClintock20.1%211,134Art Moore
California District 50Republican PartyDuncan Hunter42.4%157,299James Kimber
California District 51Democratic PartyJuan Vargas37.6%81,950Stephen Meade
California District 52Democratic PartyScott Peters3.2%191,572Carl DeMaio
California District 53Democratic PartySusan Davis17.7%148,044Larry Wilske
California District 5Democratic PartyMike Thompson51.5%171,148James Hinton
California District 6Democratic PartyDoris Matsui45.4%133,456Joseph McCray, Sr.
California District 7Democratic PartyAmi Bera0.8%183587Doug Ose
California District 8Republican PartyPaul Cook35.3%114,536Bob Conaway
California District 9Democratic PartyJerry McNerney4.7%121,204Tony Amador
Colorado District 1Democratic PartyDiana DeGette36.8%278,491Martin Walsh
Colorado District 2Democratic PartyJared Polis13.5%345,945George Leing
Colorado District 3Republican PartyScott Tipton22.3%281141Abel Tapia
Colorado District 4Republican PartyKen Buck35.4%286,507Vic Meyers
Colorado District 5Republican PartyDoug Lamborn19.6%262,855Irv Halter
Colorado District 6Republican PartyMike Coffman8.9%276,440Andrew Romanoff
Colorado District 7Democratic PartyEd Perlmutter10.1%269143Don Ytterberg
Connecticut District 1Democratic PartyJohn Larson26.3%216533Matthew Corey
Connecticut District 2Democratic PartyJoe Courtney26.7%225,916Lori Hopkins-Cavanagh
Connecticut District 3Democratic PartyRosa DeLauro33.5%204645James Brown
Connecticut District 4Democratic PartyJim Himes7.4%198770Dan Debicella
Connecticut District 5Democratic PartyElizabeth Esty6.9%203,780Mark Greenberg
Delaware's At-Large DistrictDemocratic PartyJohn C. Carney Jr.22.5%231617Rose Izzo
Florida District 10Republican PartyDaniel Webster23.1%232574Michael Patrick McKenna
Florida District 11Republican PartyRichard Nugent33.3%272294David Koller
Florida District 12Republican PartyGus Bilirakis100%0Unopposed
Florida District 13Republican PartyDavid Jolly50.5%223576Lucas Overby
Florida District 14Democratic PartyKathy Castor100%0Unopposed
Florida District 15Republican PartyDennis Ross20.6%213,582Alan Cohn
Florida District 16Republican PartyVern Buchanan23.2%274,829Henry Lawrence
Florida District 17Republican PartyTom Rooney26.5%223,756Will Bronson
Florida District 18Democratic PartyPatrick Murphy19.6%253,374Carl Domino
Florida District 19Republican PartyCurt Clawson31.8%246,861April Freeman
Florida District 1Republican PartyJeff Miller46.8%235,343James Bryan
Florida District 20Democratic PartyAlcee Hastings63.2%157,466Jay Bonner
Florida District 21Democratic PartyTed Deutch99.3%153,970W. Michael Trout
Florida District 22Democratic PartyLois Frankel16.1%216096Paul Spain
Florida District 23Democratic PartyDebbie Wasserman Schultz25.3%164,788Joe Kaufman
Florida District 24Democratic PartyFrederica Wilson76%149,918Dufirstson Julio Neree
Florida District 25Republican PartyMario Diaz-Balart100%0Unopposed
Florida District 26Republican PartyCarlos Curbelo2.9%161,337Joe Garcia
Florida District 27Republican PartyIleana Ros-Lehtinen100%0Unopposed
Florida District 2Democratic PartyGwen Graham1.1%249780Steve Southerland II
Florida District 3Republican PartyTed Yoho32.7%228,809Marihelen Wheeler
Florida District 4Republican PartyAnder Crenshaw62.6%227,253Paula Moser-Bartlett
Florida District 5Democratic PartyCorrine Brown30.9%171,577Gloreatha Scurry-Smith
Florida District 6Republican PartyRon DeSantis25.1%265817David Cox
Florida District 7Republican PartyJohn Mica31.5%227164Wesley Neuman
Florida District 8Republican PartyBill Posey31.7%274,513Gabriel Rothblatt
Florida District 9Democratic PartyAlan Grayson10.9%173,878Carol Platt
Georgia District 10Republican PartyJody Hice33%196480Ken Dious
Georgia District 11Republican PartyBarry Loudermilk100%161,532Unopposed
Georgia District 12Republican PartyRick Allen9.6%166,713John Barrow
Georgia District 13Democratic PartyDavid Scott100%159,445Unopposed
Georgia District 14Republican PartyTom Graves100%118,782Unopposed
Georgia District 1Republican PartyEarl "Buddy" Carter21.8%156512Brian Reese
Georgia District 2Democratic PartySanford Bishop18.3%162936Greg Duke
Georgia District 3Republican PartyLynn Westmoreland100%156277Unopposed
Georgia District 4Democratic PartyHank Johnson100%161,211Unopposed
Georgia District 5Democratic PartyJohn Lewis100%170,326Unopposed
Georgia District 6Republican PartyThomas Price32.1%210504Robert Montigel
Georgia District 7Republican PartyRob Woodall30.8%173,669Thomas Wight
Georgia District 8Republican PartyAustin Scott100%129,938Unopposed
Georgia District 9Republican PartyDoug Collins61.3%181047David Vogel
Hawaii District 1Democratic PartyMark Takai3.9%179,779Charles Djou
Hawaii District 2Democratic PartyTulsi Gabbard60.1%180,312Kawika Crowley
Idaho District 1Republican PartyRaul Labrador30%220857Shirley Ringo
Idaho District 2Republican PartyMichael K. Simpson22.7%214,293Richard Stallings
Illinois District 10Republican PartyBob Dold Jr.2.6%187128Brad Schneider
Illinois District 11Democratic PartyBill Foster6.9%174771Darlene Senger
Illinois District 12Republican PartyMike Bost10.6%209,738Bill Enyart
Illinois District 13Republican PartyRodney Davis17.3%210,272Ann Callis
Illinois District 14Republican PartyRandy Hultgren30.8%222230Dennis Anderson
Illinois District 15Republican PartyJohn Shimkus49.8%221,926Eric Thorsland
Illinois District 16Republican PartyAdam Kinzinger41.2%217,198Randall Olsen
Illinois District 17Democratic PartyCheri Bustos10.9%199,345Bobby Schilling
Illinois District 18Republican PartyAaron Schock49.5%247013Darrel Miller
Illinois District 1Democratic PartyBobby Rush46.2%222017Jimmy Lee Tillman
Illinois District 2Democratic PartyRobin Kelly57.1%204,266Eric Wallace
Illinois District 3Democratic PartyDan Lipinski29.1%180,855Sharon Brannigan
Illinois District 4Democratic PartyLuis Gutierrez56.3%101944Hector Concepcion
Illinois District 5Democratic PartyMike Quigley32.6%184,019Vince Kolber
Illinois District 6Republican PartyPeter Roskam34.3%238,743Michael Mason
Illinois District 7Democratic PartyDanny K. Davis70.2%182,278Robert Bumpers
Illinois District 8Democratic PartyTammy Duckworth11.5%151056Lawrence Kaifesh
Illinois District 9Democratic PartyJan Schakowsky32.1%213450Susanne Atanus
Indiana District 1Democratic PartyPeter Visclosky25%142,293Mark Leyva
Indiana District 2Republican PartyJackie Walorski20.7%145200Joe Bock
Indiana District 3Republican PartyMarlin Stutzman39.1%148793Justin Kuhnle
Indiana District 4Republican PartyTodd Rokita33.7%142054John Dale
Indiana District 5Republican PartySusan Brooks34.4%161,440Shawn Denney
Indiana District 6Republican PartyLuke Messer36.5%155071Susan Hall Heitzman
Indiana District 7Democratic PartyAndré Carson13%112,261Catherine Ping
Indiana District 8Republican PartyLarry Bucshon24.5%171315Tom Spangler
Indiana District 9Republican PartyTodd Young28.5%163,387Bill Bailey
Iowa District 1Republican PartyRod Blum2.3%289,306Pat Murphy
Iowa District 2Democratic PartyDave Loebsack5.1%273329Mariannette Miller-Meeks
Iowa District 3Republican PartyDavid Young10.5%282066Staci Appel
Iowa District 4Republican PartySteve King23.3%275,633Jim Mowrer
Kansas District 1Republican PartyTim Huelskamp35.9%204,161Jim Sherow
Kansas District 2Republican PartyLynn Jenkins18.4%225,686Margie Wakefield
Kansas District 3Republican PartyKevin Yoder20%224077Kelly Kultala
Kansas District 4Republican PartyMike Pompeo33.3%208,153Perry Schuckman
Kentucky District 1Republican PartyEd Whitfield46.2%236618Charles Kendall Hatchett
Kentucky District 2Republican PartyBrett Guthrie38.4%226,834Ron Leach
Kentucky District 3Democratic PartyJohn Yarmuth27.9%247,355Michael Macfarlane
Kentucky District 4Republican PartyThomas Massie35.5%222,158Peter Newberry
Kentucky District 5Republican PartyHal Rogers56.5%218,967Kenneth Stepp
Kentucky District 6Republican PartyAndy Barr20%245694Elisabeth Jensen
Louisiana District 1Republican PartySteve Scalise68.8%244,004Lee Dugas
Louisiana District 2Democratic PartyCedric Richmond51.6%221,570Gary Landrieu
Louisiana District 3Republican PartyCharles Boustany69.3%236,268Bryan Barrilleaux
Louisiana District 4Republican PartyJohn Fleming46.9%207,919Randall Lord
Louisiana District 5 Runoff ElectionRepublican PartyRalph Abraham28.4%209,616Jamie Mayo
Louisiana District 6 Runoff ElectionRepublican PartyGarret Graves24.9%222,967Edwin Edwards
Maine District 1Democratic PartyChellie Pingree28.5%321,987Isaac James Misiuk
Maine District 2Republican PartyBruce Poliquin5%295,009Emily Cain
Maryland District 1Republican PartyAndrew Harris41%250185Bill Tilghman
Maryland District 2Democratic PartyC.A. Dutch Ruppersberger25.5%196,354David Banach
Maryland District 3Democratic PartyJohn Sarbanes19.3%215,623Charles Long
Maryland District 4Democratic PartyDonna Edwards41.9%191837Nancy Hoyt
Maryland District 5Democratic PartySteny Hoyer28.3%226,040Chris Chaffee
Maryland District 6Democratic PartyJohn Delaney1.5%190,536Dan Bongino
Maryland District 7Democratic PartyElijah Cummings42.9%206,809Corrogan Vaughn
Maryland District 8Democratic PartyChris Van Hollen20.6%211,487Dave Wallace
Massachusetts District 1Democratic PartyRichard Neal72.3%227,075Other
Massachusetts District 2Democratic PartyJim McGovern70.6%235813Other
Massachusetts District 3Democratic PartyNiki Tsongas24.9%230,825Ann Wofford
Massachusetts District 4Democratic PartyJoe Kennedy70.6%255297Other
Massachusetts District 5Democratic PartyKatherine Clark69.8%256,486Other
Massachusetts District 6Democratic PartySeth Moulton13.5%278919Richard Tisei
Massachusetts District 7Democratic PartyMike Capuano79.4%176,077Other
Massachusetts District 8Democratic PartyStephen Lynch75.6%261,781Other
Massachusetts District 9Democratic PartyBill Keating9.6%264,554John Chapman
Michigan District 10Republican PartyCandice Miller39.3%228,692Chuck Stadler
Michigan District 11Republican PartyDave Trott15.5%249,827Bobby McKenzie
Michigan District 12Democratic PartyDebbie Dingell33.7%206,660Terry Bowman
Michigan District 13Democratic PartyJohn Conyers, Jr.63.2%166947Jeff Gorman
Michigan District 14Democratic PartyBrenda Lawrence58.1%212,438Christina Barr
Michigan District 1Republican PartyDan Benishek6.9%250,131Jerry Cannon
Michigan District 2Republican PartyBill Huizenga30.4%213072Dean Vanderstelt
Michigan District 3Republican PartyJustin Amash18.9%217,165Bob Goodrich
Michigan District 4Republican PartyJohn Moolenaar17.4%219,423Jeff Holmes
Michigan District 5Democratic PartyDan Kildee35.5%222138Allen Hardwick
Michigan District 6Republican PartyFred Upton15.5%208976Paul Clements
Michigan District 7Republican PartyTim Walberg12.3%223,685Pam Byrnes
Michigan District 8Republican PartyMike Bishop12.5%243125Eric Schertzing
Michigan District 9Democratic PartySander Levin24.3%225,757George Brikho
Minnesota District 1Democratic PartyTim Walz8.5%226,695Jim Hagedorn
Minnesota District 2Republican PartyJohn Kline17.2%245848Mike Obermueller
Minnesota District 3Republican PartyErik Paulsen24.4%269585Sharon Sund
Minnesota District 4Democratic PartyBetty McCollum28.3%241637Sharna Wahlgren
Minnesota District 5Democratic PartyKeith Ellison46.8%236010Doug Daggett
Minnesota District 6Republican PartyTom Emmer17.9%236,846Joe Perske
Minnesota District 7Democratic PartyCollin Peterson8.5%240,835Torrey Westrom
Minnesota District 8Democratic PartyRick Nolan1.4%266,083Stewart Mills
Mississippi District 1Republican PartyAlan Nunnelee39%151,111Ron Dickey
Mississippi District 2Democratic PartyBennie Thompson43.2%148,646Troy Ray
Mississippi District 3Republican PartyGregg Harper41%170946Doug Magee
Mississippi District 4Republican PartySteven Palazzo45.6%155,576Matt Moore
Missouri District 1Democratic PartyWilliam Lacy Clay51.4%163494Daniel Elder
Missouri District 2Republican PartyAnn Wagner31.5%231117Arthur Lieber
Missouri District 3Republican PartyBlaine Luetkemeyer41.2%191,620Courtney Denton
Missouri District 4Republican PartyVicky Hartzler41.7%176,286Nate Irvin
Missouri District 5Democratic PartyEmanuel Cleaver6.6%153,635Jacob Turk
Missouri District 6Republican PartySam Graves37.1%186,970Bill Hedge
Missouri District 7Republican PartyBilly Long34.6%163,957Jim Evans
Missouri District 8Republican PartyJason Smith42.3%159,224Barbara Stocker
Montana's At-Large DistrictRepublican PartyRyan Zinke15%367963John Lewis
Nebraska District 1Republican PartyJeff Fortenberry37.6%179,057Dennis Crawford
Nebraska District 2Democratic PartyBrad Ashford3.3%171050Lee Terry
Nebraska District 3Republican PartyAdrian Smith50.8%184964Mark Sullivan
Nevada District 1Democratic PartyDina Titus19%80,299Annette Teijeiro
Nevada District 2Republican PartyMark Amodei37.8%186210Kristen Spees
Nevada District 3Republican PartyJoe Heck24.6%145719Erin Bilbray
Nevada District 4Republican PartyCresent Hardy2.8%130781Steven Horsford
New Hampshire District 1Republican PartyFrank Guinta3.6%242,736Carol Shea-Porter
New Hampshire District 2Democratic PartyAnnie Kuster10%238,184Marilinda Garcia
New Jersey District 10Democratic PartyDonald Payne, Jr.72.8%112123Yolanda Dentley
New Jersey District 11Republican PartyRodney Frelinghuysen25.1%174932Mark Dunec
New Jersey District 12Democratic PartyBonnie Watson Coleman24.4%148366Alieta Eck
New Jersey District 1Democratic PartyDonald Norcross18%162,492Garry Cobb
New Jersey District 1 Special ElectionDemocratic PartyDonald Norcross17.5%149938Garry Cobb
New Jersey District 2Republican PartyFrank LoBiondo24.2%177,148Bill Hughes, Jr.
New Jersey District 3Republican PartyTom MacArthur9.6%186,103Aimee Belgard
New Jersey District 4Republican PartyChris Smith36.8%174,849Ruben Scolavino
New Jersey District 5Republican PartyScott Garrett12.1%188921Roy Cho
New Jersey District 6Democratic PartyFrank Pallone Jr.21%120457Anthony Wilkinson
New Jersey District 7Republican PartyLeonard Lance20.5%175,997Janice Kovach
New Jersey District 8Democratic PartyAlbio Sires58.3%79518Jude Anthony Tiscornia
New Jersey District 9Democratic PartyBill Pascrell38.4%120459Dierdre Paul
New Mexico District 1Democratic PartyMichelle Lujan Grisham17.2%180,032Mike Frese
New Mexico District 2Republican PartySteve Pearce28.9%147777Roxanne "Rocky" Lara
New Mexico District 3Democratic PartyBen Ray Lujan23.1%184,076Jefferson Byrd
New York District 10Democratic PartyJerrold Nadler68%113,226Ross Brady
New York District 11Republican PartyMichael Grimm12.3%110999Domenic Recchia
New York District 12Democratic PartyCarolyn Maloney57.8%117,420Nick Di Iorio
New York District 13Democratic PartyCharles Rangel63.8%91,834Daniel Vila Rivera
New York District 14Democratic PartyJoseph Crowley64.7%67372Elizabeth Perri
New York District 15Democratic PartyJose Serrano87.9%61,268Eduardo Ramirez
New York District 16Democratic PartyEliot Engel43.7%138,655Blank/Void/Scattering
New York District 17Democratic PartyNita Lowey12.3%181,674Chris Day
New York District 18Democratic PartySean Maloney1.8%186640Nan Hayworth
New York District 19Republican PartyChris Gibson28.1%210,351Sean Eldridge
New York District 1Republican PartyLee Zeldin8.7%176719Tim Bishop
New York District 20Democratic PartyPaul Tonko21.7%211,965Jim Fischer
New York District 21Republican PartyElise Stefanik20.5%181,558Aaron Woolf
New York District 22Republican PartyRichard Hanna48.1%175372Blank/Void/Scattering
New York District 23Republican PartyTom Reed21.9%195,874Martha Robertson
New York District 24Republican PartyJohn Katko18.8%203,417Dan Maffei
New York District 25Democratic PartyLouise Slaughter0.4%196516Mark Assini
New York District 26Democratic PartyBrian Higgins34.7%173,911Kathy Weppner
New York District 27Republican PartyChris Collins39.9%215,147Jim O'Donnell
New York District 2Republican PartyPeter King36.4%146617Patricia M. Maher
New York District 3Democratic PartySteve Israel9.2%171,163Grant Lally
New York District 4Democratic PartyKathleen M. Rice5.5%175,305Bruce Blakeman
New York District 5Democratic PartyGregory Meeks76.1%94400Allen Steinhardt
New York District 6Democratic PartyGrace Meng43.2%77306Blank/Void/Scattering
New York District 7Democratic PartyNydia Velazquez74.3%68,522Jose Luis Fernandez
New York District 8Democratic PartyHakeem Jeffries74.2%95113Alan Bellone
New York District 9Democratic PartyYvette Clarke71.8%101,606Daniel Cavanagh
North Carolina District 10Republican PartyPatrick T. McHenry22%218796Tate MacQueen, IV
North Carolina District 11Republican PartyMark Meadows25.8%230,024Tom Hill
North Carolina District 12Democratic PartyAlma Adams50.7%172,664Vince Coakley
North Carolina District 12 Special ElectionDemocratic PartyAlma Adams50.9%169246Vince Coakley
North Carolina District 13Republican PartyGeorge Holding14.6%268,709Brenda Cleary
North Carolina District 1Democratic PartyG.K. Butterfield46.8%210,323Arthur Rich
North Carolina District 2Republican PartyRenee Ellmers17.7%207,607Clay Aiken
North Carolina District 3Republican PartyWalter Jones35.6%205,597Marshall Adame
North Carolina District 4Democratic PartyDavid Price49.5%227,362Paul Wright
North Carolina District 5Republican PartyVirginia Foxx22%228,252Josh Brannon
North Carolina District 6Republican PartyMark Walker17.3%251070Laura Fjeld
North Carolina District 7Republican PartyDavid Rouzer22.2%226,504Jonathan Barfield, Jr.
North Carolina District 8Republican PartyRichard Hudson29.7%187422Antonio Blue
North Carolina District 9Republican PartyRobert Pittenger92.5%173,668Shawn Eckles
North Dakota's At-Large DistrictRepublican PartyKevin Cramer17.1%248,670George B. Sinner
Ohio District 10Republican PartyMike Turner33.6%200606Robert Klepinger
Ohio District 11Democratic PartyMarcia Fudge58.9%172566Mark Zetzer
Ohio District 12Republican PartyPatrick Tiberi40.4%221081David Tibbs
Ohio District 13Democratic PartyTim Ryan37%175,549Thomas Pekarek
Ohio District 14Republican PartyDavid Joyce30.2%214,580Michael Wager
Ohio District 15Republican PartySteve Stivers32%194621Richard Scott Wharton
Ohio District 16Republican PartyJim Renacci27.5%207375Pete Crossland
Ohio District 1Republican PartySteve Chabot26.4%197,383Fred Kundrata
Ohio District 2Republican PartyBrad Wenstrup31.9%201,111Marek Tyszkiewicz
Ohio District 3Democratic PartyJoyce Beatty28.1%143,261John Adams
Ohio District 4Republican PartyJim Jordan35.3%186072Janet Garrett
Ohio District 5Republican PartyBob Latta37.5%202300Robert Fry
Ohio District 6Republican PartyBill Johnson19.7%190,652Jennifer Garrison
Ohio District 7Republican PartyBob Gibbs100%143959Unopposed
Ohio District 8Republican PartyJohn Boehner39.8%188330Tom Poetter
Ohio District 9Democratic PartyMarcy Kaptur35.6%160,715Richard May
Oklahoma District 1Republican PartyJim Bridenstine100%0Unopposed
Oklahoma District 2Republican PartyMarkwayne Mullin45.4%158,407Earl Everett
Oklahoma District 3Republican PartyFrank D. Lucas57.2%169605Frankie Robbins
Oklahoma District 4Republican PartyTom Cole46.1%166268Bert Smith
Oklahoma District 5Republican PartySteve Russell23.8%159133Al McAffrey
Oregon District 1Democratic PartySuzanne Bonamici22.8%279253Jason Yates
Oregon District 2Republican PartyGreg Walden44.7%287425Aelea Christofferson
Oregon District 3Democratic PartyEarl Blumenauer52.7%292757James Buchal
Oregon District 4Democratic PartyPeter DeFazio21%310179Art Robinson
Oregon District 5Democratic PartyKurt Schrader14.4%281088Tootie Smith
Pennsylvania District 10Republican PartyTom Marino37.8%180322Scott Brion
Pennsylvania District 11Republican PartyLou Barletta32.6%184,692Andy Ostrowski
Pennsylvania District 12Republican PartyKeith Rothfus18.6%215,921Erin McClelland
Pennsylvania District 13Democratic PartyBrendan Boyle34.2%184150Dee Adcock
Pennsylvania District 14Democratic PartyMichael F. Doyle100%148351Unopposed
Pennsylvania District 15Republican PartyCharlie Dent100%128,285Unopposed
Pennsylvania District 16Republican PartyJoseph Pitts15.4%176,235Tom Houghton
Pennsylvania District 17Democratic PartyMatt Cartwright13.5%165,051David Moylan
Pennsylvania District 18Republican PartyTim Murphy100%166076Unopposed
Pennsylvania District 1Democratic PartyRobert Brady65.7%158,441Megan Rath
Pennsylvania District 2Democratic PartyChaka Fattah75.4%206,538Armond James
Pennsylvania District 3Republican PartyMike Kelly21.3%187790Dan LaVallee
Pennsylvania District 4Republican PartyScott Perry49.1%197340Linda Deliah Thompson
Pennsylvania District 5Republican PartyGlenn Thompson27.2%180,857Kerith Strano Taylor
Pennsylvania District 6Republican PartyRyan Costello12.6%212,544Manan Trivedi
Pennsylvania District 7Republican PartyPatrick Meehan24.1%235125Mary Ellen Balchunis
Pennsylvania District 8Republican PartyMichael G. Fitzpatrick23.8%222,498Kevin Strouse
Pennsylvania District 9Republican PartyBill Shuster27%173,317Alanna Hartzok
Rhode Island District 1Democratic PartyDavid Cicilline19.3%146353Cormick Lynch
Rhode Island District 2Democratic PartyJames R. Langevin24.6%169,904Rhue Reis
South Carolina District 1Republican PartyMark Sanford86.8%127,815Write-in
South Carolina District 2Republican PartyJoe Wilson27.2%194,808Phil Black
South Carolina District 3Republican PartyJeff Duncan42.4%164,009Barbara Jo Mullis
South Carolina District 4Republican PartyTrey Gowdy70.1%149049Curtis McLaughlin
South Carolina District 5Republican PartyMick Mulvaney21.3%169962Tom Adams
South Carolina District 6Democratic PartyJames Clyburn47%173,432Anthony Culler
South Carolina District 7Republican PartyTom Rice20%171524Gloria Bromell Tinubu
South Dakota's At-Large DistrictRepublican PartyKristi Noem33.1%276,319Corinna Robinson
Tennessee District 1Republican PartyPhil Roe79.9%139414Michael Salyer
Tennessee District 2Republican PartyJohn J. Duncan, Jr.49.9%166707Bob Scott
Tennessee District 3Republican PartyCharles J. Fleischmann27.8%156,050Mary Headrick
Tennessee District 4Republican PartyScott DesJarlais23%145,357Lenda Sherrell
Tennessee District 5Democratic PartyJim Cooper26.5%153,606Bob Ries
Tennessee District 6Republican PartyDiane Black48.1%162,035Amos Powers
Tennessee District 7Republican PartyMarsha Blackburn43.2%157850Dan Cramer
Tennessee District 8Republican PartyStephen Lee Fincher46.3%172,504Wes Bradley
Tennessee District 9Democratic PartySteve Cohen51.6%116,471Charlotte Bergmann
Texas District 10Republican PartyMichael McCaul28%176460Tawana Walter-Cadien
Texas District 11Republican PartyMike Conaway80.5%119574Ryan Lange
Texas District 12Republican PartyKay Granger45%158730Mark Greene
Texas District 13Republican PartyMac Thornberry71.5%131451Mike Minter
Texas District 14Republican PartyRandy Weber25.8%145,698Donald Brown
Texas District 15Democratic PartyRuben Hinojosa Sr.10.7%90,184Eddie Zamora
Texas District 16Democratic PartyBeto O'Rourke38.3%73,105Corey Roen
Texas District 17Republican PartyBill Flores32.2%132865Nick Haynes
Texas District 18Democratic PartySheila Jackson Lee47%106010Sean Seibert
Texas District 19Republican PartyRandy Neugebauer58.7%115825Neal Marchbanks
Texas District 1Republican PartyLouie Gohmert54.9%148,560Shirley McKellar
Texas District 20Democratic PartyJoaquin Castro51.3%87,964Jeffrey Blunt
Texas District 21Republican PartyLamar Smith57.1%188,996Antonio Diaz
Texas District 22Republican PartyPete Olson35%151566Frank Briscoe
Texas District 23Republican PartyWill Hurd2.1%115429Pete Gallego
Texas District 24Republican PartyKenny Marchant32.7%144073Patrick McGehearty
Texas District 25Republican PartyRoger Williams24%177883Marco Montoya
Texas District 26Republican PartyMichael Burgess65.3%141,470Mark Boler
Texas District 27Republican PartyBlake Farenthold29.9%131047Wesley Reed
Texas District 28Democratic PartyHenry Cuellar68.8%76,136Will Aikens
Texas District 29Democratic PartyGene Green79.1%46143James Stanczak
Texas District 2Republican PartyTed Poe38.3%150026Niko Letsos
Texas District 30Democratic PartyEddie Bernice Johnson81.2%105,793Max Koch, III
Texas District 31Republican PartyJohn Carter32.1%143028Louie Minor
Texas District 32Republican PartyPete Sessions26.4%156096Frank Perez
Texas District 33Democratic PartyMarc Veasey73%50,592Jason Reeves
Texas District 34Democratic PartyFilemon Vela20.9%79,877Larry Smith
Texas District 35Democratic PartyLloyd Doggett29.2%96,225Susan Narvaiz
Texas District 36Republican PartyBrian Babin53.9%133,842Michael Cole
Texas District 3Republican PartySam Johnson64%138,280Paul Blair
Texas District 4Republican PartyJohn Ratcliffe100%115,085Unopposed
Texas District 5Republican PartyJeb Hensarling70.7%104,262Ken Ashby
Texas District 6Republican PartyJoe Barton24.7%150,996David Cozad
Texas District 7Republican PartyJohn Culberson28.7%143219James Cargas
Texas District 8Republican PartyKevin Brady78.6%140013Ken Petty
Texas District 9Democratic PartyAl Green81.6%86003Johnny Johnson
Utah District 1Republican PartyRob Bishop35.3%109387Donna McAleer
Utah District 2Republican PartyChris Stewart27.1%127517Luz Robles
Utah District 3Republican PartyJason Chaffetz49.7%130717Brian Wonnacott
Utah District 4Republican PartyMia Love3.3%128687Doug Owens
Vermont's At-Large DistrictDemocratic PartyPeter Welch33.4%191504Mark Donka
Virginia District 10Republican PartyBarbara Comstock16.1%222910John Foust
Virginia District 11Democratic PartyGerald Connolly16.5%187805Suzanne Scholte
Virginia District 1Republican PartyRobert J. Wittman28.5%209621Norm Mosher
Virginia District 2Republican PartyScott Rigell17.6%173060Suzanne Patrick
Virginia District 3Democratic PartyRobert C. Scott88.9%147402Write-in
Virginia District 4Republican PartyRandy Forbes22.6%200,638Elliott Fausz
Virginia District 5Republican PartyRobert Hurt25%204945Lawrence Gaughan
Virginia District 6Republican PartyBob Goodlatte62.2%179,708Will Hammer
Virginia District 7Republican PartyDavid Brat23.9%243351Jack Trammell
Virginia District 7 Special ElectionRepublican PartyDavid Brat23.9%241313Jack Trammell
Virginia District 8Democratic PartyDon Beyer31.7%203,076Micah Edmond
Virginia District 9Republican PartyMorgan Griffith47.9%162,815William Carr
Washington District 10Democratic PartyDenny Heck9.4%181492Joyce McDonald
Washington District 1Democratic PartySuzan DelBene10.1%225,579Pedro Celis
Washington District 2Democratic PartyRick Larsen21.1%201691B.J. Guillot
Washington District 3Republican PartyJaime Herrera Beutler23.1%202814Bob Dingethal
Washington District 4Republican PartyDan Newhouse1.6%153,079Clint Didier
Washington District 5Republican PartyCathy McMorris Rodgers21.4%223242Joseph Pakootas
Washington District 6Democratic PartyDerek Kilmer26%224,290Marty McClendon
Washington District 7Democratic PartyJim McDermott61.9%251875Craig Keller
Washington District 8Republican PartyDave Reichert26.5%198,744Jason Ritchie
Washington District 9Democratic PartyAdam Smith41.7%166794Doug Basler
West Virginia District 1Republican PartyDavid McKinley27.8%143685Glen Gainer
West Virginia, District 2Republican PartyAlex Mooney3.2%153092Nick Casey
West Virginia District 3Republican PartyEvan Jenkins10.7%140,401Nick Rahall
Wisconsin District 1Republican PartyPaul Ryan26.6%288,170Rob Zerban
Wisconsin District 2Democratic PartyMark Pocan36.9%328,847Peter Theron
Wisconsin District 3Democratic PartyRon Kind13%275,161Tony Kurtz
Wisconsin District 4Democratic PartyGwen Moore43.4%254,892Dan Sebring
Wisconsin District 5Republican PartyJim Sensenbrenner39.1%332,826Chris Rockwood
Wisconsin District 6Republican PartyGlenn Grothman15.9%299,033Mark Harris
Wisconsin District 7Republican PartySean Duffy19.9%286,603Kelly Westlund
Wisconsin District 8Republican PartyReid Ribble30.1%290,048Ron Gruett
Wyoming's At-Large DistrictRepublican PartyCynthia Lummis45.6%165,100Richard Grayson


Battleground study

See also:U.S. House battleground districts, 2014
The purple districts on the Census district map were those found to be competitive in Ballotpedia's study.

Five criteria

A district must have met one or more of the following criteria:

1. If a district had all six quantifiable predictions/results highlighted (Cook, Fairvote, MOV, 2012 presidential, 2008 presidential, and incumbent years in office) and four were of the most competitive nature, purple, they automatically made the cut.

Nineteen districts fit in this category.

2. The district was considered competitive if it had all six quantifiable predictions/results highlighted (Cook, Fairvote, MOV, 2012 presidential, 2008 presidential and incumbent years in office) with three of the highlighted factors being most competitive (purple) and two being intermediate competitive (orange). The district must also have had a “special factor” (high outside spending, redistricting) to be added to the most competitive list.

Two districts fit into this category.

3.Anomalies: This included Republicans or Democrats in a district that otherwise trended heavily toward the other party. The district must also have had some other qualifying factor, such as an MOV of ten percent or less, an incumbent who had served less than ten years or a competitive 2014 candidate. BothUtah's 4th Congressional District andNorth Carolina's 7th Congressional District were examples of this before Reps.Jim Matheson andMike McIntyre announced their retirements.

One district fits into this category.

4.Presidential differences: A district that may not have had all the categories highlighted, but voted for the other party in the most recent presidential election and the numbers were tight for the incumbent (redistricting was also factored in here).

One district was considered “Most Competitive” based only on this factor.

5.Recent effects of redistricting: This was relevant to three districts (IL-12, IL-13 and MN-08). Redistricting in the past three years caused these districts to be extremely tight and had the opportunity for a very close midterm election (the first midterm cycle these new districts will be going through).

Three districts were pushed into the most competitive list because of this, just missing meeting the other criteria listed above.


The 26 most competitive

Color Key
ColorCook Partisan Voting IndexFairvote (Projected D%)Margin of Victory (MOV)2012 Presidential MOV % %2008 Presidential MOV %Incumbent years in office
Purple- most competitiveEven; R or D 0-445.1% - 54.9%0-4.90-4.90-4.90 - 4
Orange- very competitiveR or D 5-742.1% - 45.0%; 55% - 57.9%5.0-7.95.0-7.95.0-7.95 - 7
Green- competitiveR or D 8-1040.0% - 42.0%; 58% - 60%8.0-10.008.0-10.008.0-10.008 - 10
House winners labeled this color indicate the party of the House winner being different from the party of the presidential winner of the district in 2012
Districts labeled this color indicate the districts that were pushed into most competitive based on heavily redrawn congressional districts
Most competitive districts for 2014 elections
Congressional districtBattleground labelCook PVIFairvote (Projected D%)Margin of Victory (MOV) in 20122012 Presidential MOV %2008 Presidential MOV %Incumbent years in office2012 House winnerCampaign contributions differenceCost per vote for winner in 2012
Arizona's 1stBattleground DR+448%3.6-2.5-3.20Democratic61.38%$19.13
Arizona's 2ndBattleground DR+350.9%0.8-1.5-0.90Democratic65.57%$18.85
Arizona's 9thBattleground DR+151%4.1✓4.5✓3.90Democratic64.44%$17.78
California's 7thBattleground DEVEN51.4%3.4✓4✓50Democratic57.34%$25.72
California's 10thBattleground RR+143.4%5.4✓3.6✓32Republican61.05%$25.00
California's 21stBattleground RD+250.9%15.5✓11.1✓60Republican91.39%$19.59
California's 36thBattleground DR+151.2%5.9✓3.2✓30Democratic46.67%$17.94
Colorado's 6thBattleground RD+145.1%2✓5.1✓8.74Republican66.81%$20.99
Florida's 18thBattleground DR+347.7%0.6-4.1✓3.10Democratic19.70%$28.58
Florida's 26thBattleground DR+153.1%10.6✓6.7-0.40Democratic69.59%$10.28
Illinois' 12thBattleground DEVEN50.1%8.9✓1.5✓11.10Democratic46.64%$7.52
Illinois' 13thBattleground REVEN47.2%0.3-0.3✓110Republican51.38%$10.22
Michigan's 1stBattleground RR+545.1%0.5-8.3✓1.32Republican59.74%$13.30
Minnesota's 8thBattleground DD+152.4%8.9✓5.5✓8.60Democratic34.52%$6.52
Nevada's 3rdBattleground REVEN44.2%7.5✓0.8✓8.92Republican61.24%$17.66
New Hampshire's 1stBattleground DR+150.4%3.8✓1.6✓6.40Democratic47.47%$10.02
New Jersey's 2ndBattleground RD+140.2%17.4✓8.1✓7.718Republican96.60%$9.40
New Jersey's 3rdBattleground RR+144.8%8.9✓4.6✓3.42Republican66.17%$11.94
New York's 1stBattleground DR+251.3%4.6✓0.5✓310Democratic54.54%$18.81
New York's 11thBattleground RR+246.1%5✓4.3-32Republican70.91%$21.96
New York's 18thBattleground DEVEN51.5%3.7✓4.3✓50Democratic40.94%$15.69
New York's 21stBattleground DEVEN51.5%1.9✓6.1✓54Democratic50.05%$15.54
New York's 23rdBattleground RR+345.6%3.6-1.2✓13Republican71.76%$15.31
Texas' 23rdBattleground DR+348.7%4.8-2.6✓10Democratic39.93%$18.65
Virginia's 2ndBattleground RR+243.4%7.7✓1.5✓1.72Republican54.38%$14.42
West Virginia's 3rdBattleground DR+1450.4%7.1-32.2-13.420Democratic69.55%$13.26
  • Cook's PVI is Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index.[31]
  • FairVote's %D is FairVote.org's 2014 congressional election projections.[32]
  • Both the 2012 and 2008 presidential MOV have either "✓" or "-" before the number. The "✓" indicates the district went in favor of the winner, in both years this was President Obama. The "-" indicates the district favored the Republican who lost in each election, Romney in 2012 and McCain in 2008.

DCCC & NRCC fundraising

April 2014

In the month of April 2014, the NRCC reported raising $4.1 million, falling short of the $7.1 million the DCCC raised. The NRCC ended the month with $32.3 million cash in the bank, while the DCCC had $43.5 on hand.

The DCCC brought in over $20 million more than the NRCC overall during this election cycle.[33]

December 2013

As of December 2, 2013, the NRCC reported raising $52,404,530 and spending $35,697,047, leaving it with $18,242,094 cash on hand.[34] Comparatively, the DCCC reported raising $65,202,181 and spending $41,423,695, leaving it with $25,266,707 cash on hand.[35]

September 2013

TheDCCC raised $8.4 million in September compared to the $5.3 million theNRCC raised during the same period. This brought the total raised for 2013 through the third quarter to $58.2 million for the DCCC compared to the NRCC's $42.6 million. As for cash on hand, the DCCC still had an edge: $21.6 million to NRCC's $15.7 million.[36]

August 2013

According to anOpen Secrets report on FEC filings released on August 13, 2013, theDCCC had raised $40.8 million to theNRCC's $34.3 million.[37]

July 2013

As of July 2013, theDCCC had outraised theNRCC by $6.5 million.[38]

April 2013

TheDemocratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) gained an early fundraising advantage in the first quarter of 2013. It outraised theNational Republican Congressional Committee $22.6 million to $17.5 million. Party strategists attributed the edge to Democrats' advantage in internet fundraising and small-dollar donations. Additionally vulnerable Democratic incumbents lead their endangered Republican counterparts in a majority of races.[39]

Outside race ratings

Cook Political Report

Each month theCook Political Report released race ratings forU.S. Senate andU.S. House (competitive only) elections. The races detailed below were only those considered competitive. There were six possible designations.

    Likely Democratic
    Lean Democratic
    D Tossup

    R Tossup
    Lean Republican
    Likely Republican

Cook Political Report Race Rating -- 2014 U.S. House Competitive Districts
MonthLikely DLean DD TossupR TossupLean RLikely RTotal DTotal RTotal Competitive races
August 8, 2013[40]1416811117282957
September 5, 2013[41]1415911117382967
October 21, 2013[42]1415911117363470
October 30, 2013[43]12151021616373471
December 18, 2013[44]14141041515383472
January 7, 2014[45]14151041616393675
January 15, 2014[46]14141141618393877
February 13, 2014[47]14131141618383876
March 13, 2014[48]15131131618393776
April 4, 2014[49]15131131719393978
June 26, 2014[50]16141121618413677
August 8, 2014[51]1513133917412970
September 19, 2014[52]1413114818383068
October 22, 2014[53]1114135615382664

Sabato's Crystal Ball

Each month theCrystal Ball released race ratings forU.S. Senate,U.S. House (competitive only) andGovernors. There were seven possible designations:[54]

    Likely Democratic
    Lean Democratic
    D Tossup

    R Tossup
    Lean Republican
    Likely Republican

Sabato's Crystal Ball Race Rating -- U.S. House
MonthLikely DLean DD TossupR TossupLean RLikely RTotal DTotal RTotal Competitive races
October 23, 2013[55]720531512323062
December 17, 2013[56]819561414323466
January 7, 2014[57]819571414323567
March 12, 2014[58]1015751415323466
March 31, 2014[59]1015751516323668
August 6, 2014[60]9131031116323062


Party targets

DCCC Frontline

The DCCC's Frontline Program was designed to help vulnerable incumbents win re-election. The following table lists the members of the Frontline Program.

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Frontline Program
DistrictIncumbentResult
Arizona's 2nd DistrictRon BarberDefeatedd
Georgia's 12th DistrictJohn BarrowDefeatedd
California's 7th DistrictAmi BeraGreen check mark transparent.png
New York's 1st DistrictTim BishopDefeatedd
California's 26th DistrictJulia BrownleyGreen check mark transparent.png
Illinois' 17th DistrictCheri BustosGreen check mark transparent.png
California's 24th DistrictLois CappsGreen check mark transparent.png
Washington's 1st DistrictSuzan DelBeneGreen check mark transparent.png
Illinois' 12th DistrictBill EnyartDefeatedd
Connecticut's 5th DistrictElizabeth EstyGreen check mark transparent.png
Texas' 23rd DistrictPete GallegoDefeatedd
Florida's 26th DistrictJoe GarciaDefeatedd
Arizona's 1st DistrictAnn KirkpatrickGreen check mark transparent.png
New Hampshire's 2nd DistrictAnn McLane KusterGreen check mark transparent.png
New York's 18th DistrictSean Patrick MaloneyGreen check mark transparent.png
New York's 24th DistrictDan MaffeiDefeatedd
Utah's 4th DistrictJim MathesonDefeatedd
North Carolina's 7th DistrictMike McIntyreDefeatedd
Florida's 18th DistrictPatrick MurphyGreen check mark transparent.png
New York's 21st DistrictBill OwensDefeatedd
California's 52nd DistrictScott PetersGreen check mark transparent.png
California's 36th DistrictRaul RuizGreen check mark transparent.png
Illinois' 10th DistrictBrad SchneiderDefeatedd
New Hampshire's 1st DistrictCarol Shea-PorterDefeatedd
Arizona's 9th DistrictKyrsten SinemaGreen check mark transparent.png
Massachusetts' 6th DistrictJohn TierneyGreen check mark transparent.png
West Virginia's 3rd DistrictNick RahallDefeatedd
DCCC Jumpstart

The DCCC's Jumpstart Program provided early support to candidates during the beginning stages of the 2014 election cycle.[61]

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Jumpstart Program
DistrictChallengerIncumbentResult
California's 10th DistrictMichael EggmanJeff DenhamDefeatedd
California's 31st DistrictPete AguilarGary MillerGreen check mark transparent.png
Colorado's 6th DistrictAndrew RomanoffMike CoffmanDefeatedd
Florida's 2nd DistrictGwen GrahamSteve SoutherlandGreen check mark transparent.png
Illinois' 13th DistrictAnn CallisRodney DavisDefeatedd
Iowa's 3rd DistrictStaci AppelTom LathamDefeatedd
Michigan's 1st DistrictJerry CannonDan BenishekDefeatedd
Michigan's 7th DistrictPam ByrnesTim WalbergDefeatedd
Montana's at-large DistrictJohn LewisMax BaucusDefeatedd
Nevada's 3rd DistrictErin Bilbray-KohnJoe HeckDefeatedd
New Mexico's 2nd DistrictRoxanne LaraSteve PearceDefeatedd
New York's 11th DistrictDomenic RecchiaMichael GrimmDefeatedd
New York's 23rd DistrictMartha RobertsonTom ReedDefeatedd
Ohio's 6th DistrictJennifer GarrisonBill JohnsonDefeatedd
Pennsylvania's 8th DistrictKevin StrouseMichael FitzpatrickDefeatedd
Virginia's 2nd DistrictSuzanne PatrickScott RigellDefeatedd
NRCC Patriot

The NRCC's Patriot Program was the counterpart of the DCCC's Frontline Program and was designed to assist vulnerable incumbents in their re-election bids. The following table lists the members of the Patriot Program in 2014.

National Republican Congressional Committee Patriot Program, 2014
DistrictIncumbentResult
Michigan's 1st DistrictDan BenishekGreen check mark transparent.png
Colorado's 6th DistrictMike CoffmanGreen check mark transparent.png
Illinois' 13th DistrictRodney DavisGreen check mark transparent.png
California's 10th DistrictJeff DenhamGreen check mark transparent.png
Pennsylvania's 8th DistrictMichael G. FitzpatrickGreen check mark transparent.png
New York's 19th DistrictChris GibsonGreen check mark transparent.png
New York's 11th DistrictMike GrimmGreen check mark transparent.png
Nevada's 3rd DistrictJoe HeckGreen check mark transparent.png
Ohio's 6th DistrictBill JohnsonGreen check mark transparent.png
Florida's 13th DistrictDavid JollyGreen check mark transparent.png
Ohio's 14th DistrictDavid JoyceGreen check mark transparent.png
New York's 23rd DistrictTom ReedGreen check mark transparent.png
Virginia's 2nd DistrictScott RigellGreen check mark transparent.png
Florida's 2nd DistrictSteve Southerland IIDefeatedd
California's 21st DistrictDavid G. ValadaoGreen check mark transparent.png
Michigan's 7th DistrictTim WalbergGreen check mark transparent.png
Indiana's 2nd DistrictJackie WalorskiGreen check mark transparent.png
NRCC targets

The following Democratic incumbents were targeted by the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) in 2014.

National Republican Congressional Committee, Targeted incumbents
DistrictTargeted incumbentNovember 4 Results
Arizona's 1st DistrictAnn KirkpatrickAnn Kirkpatrick
Arizona's 2nd DistrictRon BarberMartha McSally
Georgia's 12th DistrictJohn BarrowRick Allen
Minnesota's 7th DistrictCollin PetersonCollin Peterson
North Carolina's 7th DistrictMike McIntyreDavid Rouzer
Utah's 4th DistrictJim MathesonMia Love
West Virginia's 3rd DistrictNick RahallEvan Jenkins

Nick Rahall
In September 2013, the NRCC issued a press release in response toRahall, one of the organization's main targets in 2014, mistaking an umbrella for a lump of coal during a press conference. The press release stated:

"But Barack Obama, the EPA, and Nick Rahall aren’t waging a war on umbrellas – they are waging a war on coal. And yesterday, Bloomberg reported a new front opening in that war – the EPA is set to issue a rule that will completely halt the development of new coal-fueled plants by requiring they meet unachievable carbon standards."[62]

Media mentions

Across the country, media and experts published stories that chronicled the incumbents that were in danger of losing their bid for re-election. Some of those incumbents mentioned included:[63]

"The Monkey Cage"

In December 2013, John Sides' column, "The Monkey Cage," a blog published byThe Washington Post, released his first predictions for the 2014 elections. Sides and Eric McGhee, a political scientist, developed a forecasting model that uses numerous factors, including: presidential popularity, economic growth and whether it is a presidential or midterm election cycle.

  • September 2014:[64]
    • Democrats would win 191 seats, for a loss of ten seats.
  • December 2013:[65]
    • Democrats would win approximately 48 percent of the popular vote for the House.
    • Democrats would win 196 seats, for a loss of five seats.

Independent expenditures in 2014

According toOpenSecrets.org, three of the five organizations donating the most in independent expenditures were conservative organizations (as denoted in the chart by the L, for liberal, or C, for conservative, under the "View" column).

List of the top independent expenditure players in mid-2014 according toOpenSecrets.org.

Primary elections

See also:At least 52 new members will walk the halls of the U.S. Congress in 2015

Only fourU.S. Representatives and noU.S. Senators were defeated in their primaries during the 2014 election cycle. One article fromNational Journal suggests that, despite the small number of defeats, incumbents have been gradually losing their advantage. The article states, "Fewer and fewer incumbents are running unopposed each election, and the rate of incumbents finishing under 60 or 70 percent in their primaries has more than doubled in recent elections."[66] Studies on thecompetitiveness of U.S. House primaries further support this conclusion. According to a 2013Ballotpedia study on contested primaries, in the four congressional elections between 2004 and 2010, an average of only 26.3 percent of incumbents faced primary challengers. By 2012, this percentage had almost doubled, with 51.40 percent of incumbents facing primary challengers.

Incumbents defeated in 2014 primary elections

Republican Party Ralph Hall

Ralph Hall.jpg

Name:Ralph Hall (R-TX)
Office:U.S. Representative forTexas' 4th Congressional District
Years in office: 1981-present
2014 election:Texas' 4th Congressional District elections, 2014
Defeated by:John Ratcliffe

Ralph Hall was defeated byJohn Ratcliffe in a runoff primary on May 27, 2014, after failing to secure 50 percent of the vote in the initial Republican primary on March 4. Hall, 91, is the oldest U.S. Representative in history, and one of only two remaining World War II veterans in Congress.[67] Hall had previously run as aDemocrat before switching to theRepublican Party in 2004.[68] Ratcliffe, Hall's tea party-backed challenger, formerly served as the mayor of Heath, Texas, as a U.S. Attorney and as the Chief of Anti-Terrorism and National Security for the Eastern District of Texas.[69] Although Ratcliffe trailed by 16.6 percent in the Republican primary, he jumped ahead in the runoff, defeating Hall by a 5.6 percent margin of victory.[70] In addition to large personal loans to his campaign, Ratcliffe had support from conservative groups such asClub for Growth and theSenate Conservatives Fund.[71] Hall had promised to make 2014 his last term in office, and he stated regarding his loss, "I’m not hurt about it. I’m not really terribly surprised about it, and I’m not happy about it. I’m going to keep on doing my job and coming home and visiting people that I love."[72]


U.S. House, Texas District 4 Republican Primary, 2014
CandidateVote %Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngRalph HallIncumbent45.4%29,848
Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Ratcliffe28.8%18,917
Lou Gigliotti16.1%10,601
John Stacy4.3%2,812
Brent Lawson3.5%2,290
Tony Arterburn1.9%1,252
Total Votes65,720
Source:Texas Secretary of State
U.S. House, Texas District 4 Runoff Republican Primary, 2014
CandidateVote %Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Ratcliffe52.8%22,271
Ralph HallIncumbent47.2%19,899
Total Votes42,170
Source:Texas Secretary of State
Note: Vote totals above are unofficial and will be updated once official totals are made available.


Republican Party Eric Cantor

Eric Cantor.JPG

Name:Eric Cantor (R-VA)
Office:U.S. Representative forVirginia's 7th Congressional District
Years in office: 2001-2014
2014 election:Virginia's 7th Congressional District elections, 2014
Defeated by:David Brat

Eric Cantor's loss toDavid Brat in theRepublican primary on June 10, 2014, was the biggest and most shocking upset of the 2014 primary season, making Cantor the first-ever sittingHouse Majority Leader to lose a primary bid.[73] Leading up to the election, Cantor had a significant financial advantage, having spent around $1 million in the weeks prior to the primary. Brat, in contrast, had raised only about $100,000 during his entire primary campaign.[74] Brat, an economics professor at Randolph-Macon College, had never before run for public office, and he did not receive any donations frompolitical action committees (PACs).[75] Though he had a disadvantage in these areas, as well as name recognition, Brat attributed his success to his grassroots efforts and spending large amounts of time knocking on doors and talking with constituents. In an interview with Sean Hannity ofFox News, Brat explained, "The good news is dollars don't vote, people do."[76]

Cantor stepped down from his position asHouse Majority Leader on July 31, 2014, and resigned from theU.S. House of Representatives on August 18, 2014.Kevin McCarthy ofCalifornia took over the position of House Majority Leader after Cantor's resignation.[77]


U.S. House, Virginia District 7 Republican Primary, 2014
CandidateVote %Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Brat55.5%36,110
Eric CantorIncumbent44.5%28,898
Total Votes65,008
Source:Results via Associated Press


Republican Party Kerry Bentivolio

Kerry Bentivolio.jpg

Name:Kerry Bentivolio (R-MI)
Office:U.S. Representative forMichigan's 11th Congressional District
Years in office: 2013-present
2014 election:Michigan's 11th Congressional District elections, 2014
Defeated by:Dave Trott

Of the four incumbents who were defeated in primaries in 2014,Kerry Bentivolio lost by the widest margin. Bentivolio lost toDave Trott in theRepublican primary on August 5, 2014, by a margin of 32.6 percent.[78] While it was common in the 2014 Republican primaries to see a tea party-backed challenger taking on the Republican "establishment" incumbent, Michigan's 11th District turned this narrative on its head. Bentivolio's spokesman explained the race from the incumbent's perspective, saying, "This is really a race about the establishment versus the tea party. It just so happens that the incumbent is the member of the tea party who is being targeted by a wealthy foreclosure attorney who simply wants to be a congressman."[79] Bentivolio had received many negative headlines throughout his term. He had often been referred to as an "accidental" congressman, referring to his 2012 election, when he easily won the Republican nomination after incumbentThaddeus McCotter submitted invalid signatures and chose to resign. Bentivolio was also known for being a reindeer farmer and Santa Claus impersonator.[80]


U.S. House, Michigan District 11 Republican Primary, 2014
CandidateVote %Votes
Kerry BentivolioIncumbent33.6%21,254
Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Trott66.4%42,008
Total Votes63,262
Source:Michigan Secretary of State


Democratic Party John Tierney

John F Tierney.jpg

Name:John Tierney (D-MA)
Office:U.S. Representative forMassachusetts' 6th Congressional District
Years in office: 1997-present
2014 election:Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District elections, 2014
Defeated by:Seth Moulton

John Tierney was the onlyDemocratic congressman to lose his primary election in 2014. On September 9, 2014,Seth Moulton, a former Marine and a veteran of the Iraq War, defeated Tierney by 7.9 percent, making Tierney the fourth and final incumbent to be defeated in the 2014 primary election season.[81] Tierney was a vulnerable incumbent in 2012 and won re-election by a mere 1.1 percent margin of victory againstRepublicanRichard Tisei, who is running again in 2014.[82] In 2011, Tierney's wife was involved in a scandal, when she served time in jail for "aiding and abetting the filing of false tax returns" for her brother, Robert Eremian, who was accused of running an illegal gambling business.[83]

Both Tierney and Moulton ran well-financed campaigns, raising $1.9 million and $1.6 million, respectively.[84] Tierney led in theDemocratic primary polls, and had support from influential Democrats, such as Sen.Elizabeth Warren fromMassachusetts and House Minority LeaderNancy Pelosi fromCalifornia.[85]


The primary elections included:

See also:Contested primaries in U.S. Congressional elections, 2014 andSignature requirements and deadlines for 2014 U.S. Congress elections

Five primaries to watch

Politico published a list of the five primaries to watch in 2014. Of their five predictions, only one of the incumbents (Rep.John Tierney) was defeated.[86]

Results: Simpson defeated Smith by over 23 percentage points.
U.S. House, Idaho District 2 Republican Primary, 2014
CandidateVote %Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngMike SimpsonIncumbent61.6%48,632
Bryan Smith38.4%30,263
Total Votes78,895
Source:Idaho Secretary of State
Results: Despite the high profile endorsements, Shuster won by over 15 percentage points.
U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 9 Republican Primary, 2014
CandidateVote %Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngBill ShusterIncumbent52.8%24,106
Art Halvorson34.5%15,761
Travis Schooley12.7%5,802
Total Votes45,669
Source:Results via Associated Press
Results: The predictions were correct. The race came down to the two Democratic front runners. In California'sblanket primary system, bothRo Khanna and Rep.Mike Honda advanced to the general election.
U.S. House, California District 17 Primary, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngMike HondaIncumbent48.2%43,607
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngRo Khanna28%25,384
    Republican Vanila Singh17%15,359
    Republican Joel Vanlandingham6.8%6,154
Total Votes90,504
Source:California Secretary of State
Results: In what truly was a competitive race, DesJarlais won by just over 30 votes.
U.S. House, Tennessee District 4 Republican Primary, 2014
CandidateVote %Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngScott DesJarlaisIncumbent44.9%34,793
Jim Tracy44.8%34,755
John Anderson5.9%4,592
Steve Lane1.9%1,483
David Tate1.2%938
Michael Warden0.9%659
Oluyomi Faparusi0.4%284
Total Votes77,504
Source:Tennessee Secretary of State
Results: Tierney was defeated in the primary bySeth Moulton.
U.S. House, Massachusetts District 6 Democratic Primary, 2014
CandidateVote %Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngSeth Moulton50.8%36,575
John TierneyIncumbent40.1%28,915
Marisa DeFranco6%4,293
John Devine2.1%1,527
John Gutta1%691
All others0%36
Total Votes72,037
Source:Massachusetts Elections Division


Congressional polling

Congressional Approval Rating
PollTotal ApproveTotal DisapproveMargin of ErrorSample Size
The Economist/YouGov (December 13-15, 2014)1172+/-4.51000
The Economist/YouGov Poll (August 16-18, 2014)1171+/-4.61000
Gallup (June 5-8, 2014)1681+/-41027
The Economist/YouGov (March 29-31, 2014)876+/-4.51000
The Economist/YouGov (February 22-24, 2014)1074+/-4.5710
The Economist/YouGov (January 11-13, 2014)877+/-4.3696
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email toeditor@ballotpedia.org.

Republicans in Congress

In a September 2014 poll, 72 percent of Americans were unhappy with Republicans in the113th Congress. This is compared to 61 percent who disapproved of Democrats in Congress.[87]

Constituent approval

During the shutdown, Americans' disapproval rating of their own congressmen reached a new high, with almost as many people stating disapproval of their member (43%) to approval (44%). The Gallup poll concluded:

"While members of Congress may continue to argue that problems with the image of the body as a whole is not their fault, and that they are doing nothing more than faithfully representing their particular constituents, it is clear that even their own constituents are less positive about the job they are doing than they were in the past."

After October shutdown

United States budget debate, 2013

AUSA TODAY/Princeton Survey Research Poll, taken October 17-21, 2013, came to the following post-shutdown conclusions:

  • 54% of Americans blamed both parties, 29% blamed solely Republicans and just 12% placed the blame squarely on the Democrats' shoulders.
  • Despite only 4% of Americans' belief that Congress would change for the worse if current members were replaced by all new members, 52% of respondents said it made no difference on whether they would vote for their incumbent in the next election.[88]

Healthcare.gov polling

See also:Healthcare.gov website rollout

After the numerous problems the Healthcare.gov website dealt with after the initial rollout on October 1, 2013, approval for the Affordable Care Act remained low at the end of 2013. According to aCBS News/New York Times poll in December 2013, more Americans continued to disapprove of the 2010 legislation than approve of it: 50% to 39%, respectively.

"Haters" polling

According to a December 2013Washington Post-ABC News poll, 72 percent of voters who disapproved of both parties at the federal level said that they would vote for a Republican if the election were held today. Only 14 percent said they would vote for the Democrat.[89]

Issues in 2014

Government shutdown

Government shutdown

See alsoUnited States budget debate, 2013

Beginning in August 2013,House andSenate members began discussing the possibility of a government shutdown over the funding of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). On September 20, Republicans passed a spending bill in the House that funds the government until December, but strips funding from Obamacare. When Senate Majority LeaderHarry Reid (D-NV) announced that the Senate would hold a procedural vote on Wednesday, September 24, many senators began to announce their positions on voting against a cloture, the motion to end debate on a bill. After Sen.Ted Cruz (R-TX) gave amarathon speech, the motion for cloture was accepted and Reid was able to strip the Obamacare defunding language contained in the Republican House members' continuing resolution (CR).

Following the successful cloture vote and the Senate subsequently sending a clean continuing resolution back to the House, the two chambers began a high-stakes game of hot potato. By September 30, the House had voted and sent three resolutions to the Senate that all were struck down. The Senate then sent back a clean resolution stripped of any healthcare defunding language. With Obamacare being the issue-at-hand, Congress was unable to agree on whether a resolution would fund the landmark healthcare law.[90]

In the midst of the government shutdown in October 2013, talks began regarding the need to increase thedebt ceiling.[91][92] Sen.Susan Collins (R-ME) drafted a proposal that would have addressed both the budget shutdown, through the repeal of the medical device tax, and a plan to increase the debt ceiling through January 2014. Collins explained, "I’m hearing from many Democrats that if there were a way to deal somehow with the debt limit as well as part of this plan that that would be helpful. And obviously time is of the essence."[93] Although her plan was ultimately rejected by Senate Democrats, her framework began a bipartisan effort to draft a resolution. Ultimately, Sens.Harry Reid andMitch McConnell were able to propose a plan on October 16.[94]

A deal was reached late on October 16, just hours before the debt ceiling deadline. The government reopened.

Polling during the shutdown

Congressional approval rating
PollTotal approveTotal disapproveMargin of errorSample size
AP-GfK (October 3-7, 2013)
5%83%+/-3.41,227
Gallup (October 3-6, 2013)
11%85%+/-41,028
CNN/ORC (September 27-29, 2013)
10%87%+/-3.5803
CBS/New York Times (September 19-23, 2013)
14%80%+/-31,014
The Economist/YouGov (September 21-23, 2013)
9%72%+/-5.1690
AVERAGES 9.8% 81.4% +/-3.8 952.4
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email toeditor@ballotpedia.org.

Approval of own congressmen

During the shutdown, American's disapproval rating of their own congressmen reached new a new high, with almost as many people stating disapproval of their member (43%) to approval (44%). The Gallup poll concluded:

"While members of Congress may continue to argue that problems with the image of the body as a whole is not their fault, and that they are doing nothing more than faithfully representing their particular constituents, it is clear that even their own constituents are less positive about the job they are doing than they were in the past."

Affordable Care Act

For senators up for re-election in 2014, this was the first election since the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. This may have been problematic for Democratic senators who voted in favor of the bill in states where it was no longer popular. Among these senators included:

[95]

Sen. Lee letter

In July 2013, Lee authored a letter, which was signed by 14 Republican senators, which promised a government shutdown unless the Affordable Care Act was defunded. The senators up for re-election in 2014 who signed the letter were:

Healthcare.gov rollout

See also:Healthcare.gov website rollout

The open enrollment period ended on March 31, 2014. The penalty, payable to the federal government, for not being enrolled in a health insurance plan by March 31 was either $95 or 1 percent of income, whichever was greater.[96] The White House stated anyone selecting a plan before the deadline would not be subject to the penalty.[97] In March 2014, however, the administration announced that uninsured people were allowed to enroll in plans into April as long as they had a plan selected on the website by March 31.[98]


The rollout date was met with high demand for the website, both by those seeking insurance and those curious to see how the site worked. Attempts to use the website resulted in errors, including:

  • Error messages while creating an account and trying to log in
  • Data transfer problems from the exchange to healthcare providers
  • Errors in price quotes when not logged in
  • Lack of ability to sign up directly through individual insurance providers

In an October 30, 2013, hearing before theHouseEnergy and Commerce Committee, Health and Human Services SecretaryKathleen Sebelius stated, "Hold me accountable for the debacle. I’m responsible."[99]

The first official report from the Obama administration was released November 13, 2013, covering October enrollment numbers. The report stated 26,794 users completed enrollment through theHealthcare.gov federal exchange. Another 79,391 users were able to enroll in the 15 state exchanges, bringing the total enrollment to 106,185 in October. Prior to rollout, the administration estimated 500,000 would sign up in the first month.[100][101]

On November 22, 2013, the Obama administration announced an eight-day extension on completing applications for coverage starting January 1, 2014. The deadline to complete the application was moved from December 15 to December 23, 2013. Additionally, the 2014 open enrollment period was pushed back from the original October 15 start date to November 15, 2014, just after midterm elections.[102] On November 25, 2013, the administration announced the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) would be delayed by one year. The program was supposed to be rolled out in October 2013 but was delayed until November 2014. The small business program delay did not impact states with state-run exchanges.[103]

On April 10, 2014,Health and Human Services SecretaryKathleen Sebelius resigned from her post as a result of the troubled rollout of Obamacare.[104]

Senate Conservative Fund targets

The Senate Conservative Fund targeted Sens. Isakson (R-GA), Graham (R-SC), Alexander (R-TN) and Burr (R-NC) in August 2013 with two weeks of radio ads designed to push Senate Republicans to support Utah'sMike Lee's effort to defund Obamacare.[105]

ISIS

See also:ISIS insurgency in Iraq and Syria

Members ofCongress on both sides of the aisle were in disagreement over the need to pass congressional approval of the administration's air strikes in Iraq as well as any future strikes on ISIS. Sens.Lindsey Graham (R-SC),Carl Levin (D-MI) andMarco Rubio (R-FL) each stated on September 8, 2014, that gaining congressional approval was not necessary for the actions taken by PresidentBarack Obama, with Levin claiming, "I think the president has an abundant amount of authority to conduct operations. It would be good to have Congress on board. I don’t think the War Powers Act is constitutional. If Congress doesn’t like what he’s doing, we can always cut the money off." Members such asTim Kaine (D-VA),Bill Nelson (D-FL) andRand Paul (R-KY) disagreed and continued to push for a vote. Paul argued, "It would show a disregard for the Constitution and for the history of our country."[106]

Congressional leadership did not want to take quick action, bringing a vote to the floor, with oneRepublican aide stating, "We want to wait and see what he’s going to say to the four leaders and what he’s going to say to the nation. How he lays out his strategy will determine how our guys and members of Congress respond."[107] Reid backed up that sentiment, saying, "Tomorrow the president is addressing the nation. That doesn’t happen very often. On Thursday afternoon we’re having a briefing here from the administration on what’s going on in the Middle East. I’m going to wait and get the facts before I jump off into something that you read on the Internet someplace."[108]


Farm bill

See also:United States Farm Bill 2013

The vote was 66-27, with 25 of the 27 nay votes being from Republicans. The two Democratic senators to vote against the bill wereJack Reed (RI) andSheldon Whitehouse (RI)

The comprehensive bill failed in theHouse due largely in part to the votes of eightDemocraticHouse members who joined theRepublican majority to vote down the measure.[109]Reps.Collin Peterson,John Barrow,Sanford Bishop,Cheri Bustos,Sean Maloney,Mike McIntyre,Bill Owens andTim Walz were the eightDemocraticmembers who voted to reject the bill.[109] According to analysis byOpenSecrets.org, many of theseDemocratic members received significant political contributions from agricultural organizations that benefit from crop insurance subsidies.[109] Five of the eight were on theHouse Agriculture Committee--Peterson,Bustos,Maloney,McIntyre andWalz.[109][110]

See also

Footnotes

  1. The Washington Post, "Only 36 percent of Democratic candidates have expressed support for Obamacare," September 30, 2014
  2. National Journal, "Democrats Fear Obamacare Will Cost Them The Senate," accessed December 20, 2013
  3. US NEWS, "Republicans Have Chance to Take Back Senate," accessed December 20, 2013
  4. WSJ, "Democrats Face Battles in South to Hold the Senate," accessed December 20, 2013
  5. New York Times, "FiveThirtyEight," accessed December 20, 2013
  6. FiveThirtyEight, "Senate Update: A January Runoff In Georgia Is Getting More Likely," October 23, 2014
  7. New York Times, "Can Republicans Win the Senate in 2014?" accessed December 20, 2013
  8. Ballot Access News, "For First Time in History, Democrats Won’t Run Anyone for U.S. Senate in Alabama," February 17, 2014
  9. Cook Political Report, "Our Accuracy," accessed December 12, 2011(dead link)
  10. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," June 27, 2013
  11. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," August 2, 2013
  12. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," October 17, 2013
  13. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," December 19, 2013
  14. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," February 7, 2014
  15. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," February 27, 2014
  16. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," March 19, 2014
  17. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," April 25, 2014
  18. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," August 15, 2014
  19. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," September 19, 2014
  20. Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS," October 17, 2014
  21. Politico, "Notes from the FEC deadline day — Landrieu’s new microsite — Roundup of last night's debates — Mayday PAC expanding South Dakota footprint," October 16, 2014
  22. Politico, "Cotton raises almost $2.3 million — McSally raises $653k — Udall raises $3.1 million — Abbott targets movie-goers — Paul and Perry’s schoolyard brawl," July 14, 2014
  23. 23.023.1Politico, "Red-state Democrats raise millions," accessed May, 2013
  24. 24.024.124.2Politico, "Senate cash dash now a marathon," accessed August 1, 2013
  25. 25.025.1Politico, "Red-state Democrats raise millions," accessed April 18, 2013
  26. The Hill, "DSCC tops NRSC in September fundraising," October 13, 2014
  27. The Huffington Post, "Committee To Elect Senate Democrats Has Best 2nd Quarter Fundraising In Its History," July 18, 2014
  28. The Washington Post, "DSCC edges out NRSC in April fundraising," accessed May 19, 2014
  29. Politico, "DSCC outraises NRSC by $1M in October," accessed December 10, 2013
  30. MSNBC, "GOP to donors: Democratic Senate majority is in serious trouble," accessed July 22, 2013
  31. The Cook Political Report, "Introducing the 2014 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index," accessed November 5, 2013
  32. FairVote, "FairVote Releases Projections for the 2014 Congressional Elections," accessed November 5, 2013
  33. The Hill, "DCCC outraises NRCC by $3M in April," May 20, 2014
  34. OpenSecrets, "National Republican Congressional Cmte 2014 election cycle," accessed December 3, 2013
  35. OpenSecrets, "Democratic Congressional Campaign Cmte 2014 election cycle," accessed December 3, 2013
  36. The Washington Post, "Democrats sweep September fundraising," accessed October 21, 2013
  37. OpenSecrets, "Parties," accessed August 13, 2013
  38. Politico, "DCCC memo rallies Dems for 2014," August 1, 2013
  39. The Hill, "Democrats gain early fundraising edge," April 22, 2013
  40. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed August 9, 2013
  41. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed September 18, 2013
  42. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed October 21, 2013
  43. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed October 30, 2013
  44. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed December 18, 2013
  45. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed January 7, 2014
  46. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed January 15, 2014
  47. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed February 14, 2014
  48. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed March 13, 2014
  49. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed April 4, 2014
  50. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed August 14, 2014
  51. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed August 14, 2014
  52. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed October 24, 2014
  53. Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS," accessed October 24, 2014
  54. Center for Politics, "Crystal Ball," accessed November 5, 2013
  55. Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 House Ratings," accessed November 5, 2013
  56. Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 House Ratings," accessed December 17, 2013
  57. Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 House Ratings," accessed January 7, 2014
  58. Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 House Ratings," accessed March 12, 2014
  59. Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 House Ratings," accessed March 31, 2014
  60. Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 House Ratings," August 6, 2014
  61. Roll Call;, "Democrats Launch New Program for House Recruits," May 9, 2013
  62. NRCC.org, "Nick Rahall's War on Umbrellas," September 12, 2013
  63. Cite error: Invalid<ref> tag; no text was provided for refs namedlong
  64. The Washington Post, "Elections Lab 2014," accessed September 26, 2014
  65. The Washington Post, "There is no wave coming in the 2014 election," accessed December 10, 2013
  66. National Journal, "From Tactical Spending to Amazing Ads, Here Are the Lessons of the 2014 Primaries," accessed September 15, 2014
  67. The Washington Post, "Rep. Ralph Hall defeated by John Ratcliffe," accessed September 10, 2014
  68. The Washington Times, "Rep. Hall of Texas switches from Democrat to Republican," accessed September 11, 2014
  69. Ratcliffe for Congress, "John’s Story," accessed September 11, 2014
  70. Texas Secretary of State, "Election History," accessed September 11, 2014
  71. Politico, "Ralph Hall loses Texas GOP runoff," accessed September 11, 2014
  72. The Dallas Morning News, "Oldest congressman, Ralph Hall, 91, ousted by John Ratcliffe," accessed September 11, 2014
  73. Roll Call, "Eric Cantor Loses Primary in Massive Upset," accessed September 11, 2014
  74. Politico, "Cantor loses," accessed September 11, 2014
  75. Politico, "How Big Money failed to rescue Eric Cantor," accessed September 11, 2014
  76. The Huffington Post, "Dave Brat Calls Primary Win Over Eric Cantor 'A Miracle'," accessed September 11, 2014
  77. Richmond Times-Dispatch, "Cantor to resign from Congress Aug. 18," accessed September 11, 2014
  78. Associated Press, "Michigan - Summary Vote Results," accessed September 11, 2014
  79. Politico, "Dave Trott topples Bentivolio in Michigan race," accessed September 11, 2014
  80. The Huffington Post, "Kerry Bentivolio, 'Accidental Congressman,' Loses Primary To Romney-Backed David Trott," accessed September 11, 2014
  81. Politico, "2014 Massachusetts House Primaries Results," accessed September 11, 2014
  82. Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Return of Votes For Massachusetts State Election, November 6, 2012," accessed September 11, 2014
  83. Roll Call, "Tierney’s Wife Sentenced to Jail Time," accessed September 11, 2014
  84. The Huffington Post, "John Tierney Concedes Democratic Primary To Seth Moulton," accessed September 11, 2014
  85. The Washington Post, "Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass.) concedes to primary challenger," accessed September 11, 2014
  86. Politico, "5 House primaries to watch," accessed August 8, 2013
  87. The Huffington Post, "72% Of Americans Disapprove Of Republicans In Congress," September 14, 2014
  88. USA TODAY, "Poll: Nearly half say replace everyone in Congress," accessed October 22, 2013
  89. The Washington Post, "Haters gonna hate. But they plan to vote Republican," accessed December 20, 2013
  90. Reuters, "U.S. Senate Republicans start closing ranks on spending bill," accessed September 24, 2013
  91. Cite error: Invalid<ref> tag; no text was provided for refs namedcb
  92. Cite error: Invalid<ref> tag; no text was provided for refs namedgo
  93. Politico, "Susan Collins floating fiscal deal," accessed October 10, 2013
  94. Politico, "How Collins budget plan collapsed," accessed October 14, 2013
  95. Senate.gov, "U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 111th Congress - 1st Session," accessed July 15, 2013
  96. Cite error: Invalid<ref> tag; no text was provided for refs namedmccardle
  97. NBC News, "Obama administration clarifies dates related to health care rollout," October 23, 2013
  98. Fox News, "Surprise, surprise -- ObamaCare deadline extended yet again," March 26, 2014
  99. Washington Post, "Sebelius on health-care law rollout: 'Hold me accountable for the debacle. I'm responsible.'," October 31, 2013
  100. National Journal, "It's Official: Obamacare Enrollment Is Super Low," November 13, 2013
  101. Cite error: Invalid<ref> tag; no text was provided for refs namedOctofficialreport
  102. Fox News, "HHS announces small extension for ObamaCare sign-up, bigger delay next year," November 22, 2013
  103. Washington Post, "Obamacare’s online SHOP enrollment delayed by one year," November 27, 2013
  104. New York Times, "Health Secretary Resigns After Woes of HealthCare.gov," April 10, 2014
  105. The Hill, "Senate Conservatives Fund targets Isakson with latest 'defund ObamaCare' ad," August 22, 2013
  106. The Hill, "ISIS vote divides Senate," September 8, 2014
  107. The Hill, "Leadership hoping to avoid vote on ISIS," September 9, 2014
  108. The Hill, "Reid won’t ‘rush’ ISIS vote in Senate," September 9, 2014
  109. 109.0109.1109.2109.3Open Secrets, "Agribusiness and the Farm Bill: Wayward Dems Benefit from Contributions," accessed July 19, 2013
  110. USA Today, "House passes farm bill; strips out food-stamp program," accessed July 15, 2013
v  e
2013-2014 Elections to theUnited States Congress
Senate by StateCongressLogo.png
House by State
Senate Special Elections
House Special Elections
Election information
Super PACs/Organizations