| ←1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 → Midterm elections | |
| Election day | November 3 |
|---|---|
| Incumbent president | Ulysses S. Grant (Republican) |
| Next Congress | 44th |
| Senate elections | |
| Overall control | Republican hold |
| Seats contested | 25 of 74 seats[1] |
| Net seat change | Democratic +9[2] |
 | |
| Results: Democratic gain Democratic hold Republican hold Anti-Monopoly gain | |
| House elections | |
| Overall control | Democratic gain |
| Seats contested | All 293 voting seats |
| Net seat change | Democratic +92[2] |
 | |
| Results: Democratic hold Democratic gain Republican hold Republican gain Independent hold | |
Elections occurred in the middle ofRepublican PresidentUlysses S. Grant's second term, during theThird Party System. Members of the44th United States Congress were chosen in this election. The election took place during theReconstruction Era, and many Southerners were barred from voting.Colorado joined the union during the 44th Congress.Democrats took control of a chamber of Congress for the first time since 1859, winning a huge number of seats from HouseRepublicans. However, theRepublicans retained a majority in the Senate. The election marked the first occurrence of thesix-year itch phenomenon, in which a president's party lost many Congressional seats during the president's secondmid-term election.
ThePanic of 1873, a series of scandals, and an unpopular Congressional pay raise all damaged the Republican Party's brand. With the passage of theReconstruction Amendments, the importance of the parties' roles in theCivil War also receded in the minds of many. Though Republicans won governorships in Northern states such as Pennsylvania, the election increased Democratic power in the South, which it later dominated after the end ofReconstruction.[3]
In theHouse, Democrats won massive gains when the Republicans lost a total of 92 seats (the third-largest swing in the history of the House, and the second-largest House loss by the Republican Party), turning a dominant Republican majority into a similarly dominant Democratic majority.[4]
In theSenate, Democrats picked up several seats, but Republicans retained a commanding majority.[5]
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