United States Congress elections, 2014

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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 Dates • Voting in Primaries •
Voting on November 4, 2014 •
Poll Opening and Closing Times

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

U.S. House
Dem. 188
Rep. 247
Ind. 0
TOTAL 435
Click here for more details.
U.S. Senate
Dem. 44
Rep. 54
Ind. 2
TOTAL 100
UNDECIDED 0
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’s Affordable 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 the U.S. Senate while Republicans were the majority in the U.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 the U.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 in Georgia and Louisiana 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 Republican Bill Cassidy defeated Sen. Mary Landrieu. Interestingly, a Georgia runoff would have been held on January 6, three days after the 114th 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 (including John Walsh of Montana who was appointed to the Senate in February 2014, but decided against seeking a full-term) and 41 representatives announced they would 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 the U.S. Senate in 2015. The Democratic-controlled Senate in the 113th 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 the Louisiana seat in a runoff election on December 6, 2014.

U.S. Senate
Dem. 44
Rep. 54
Ind. 2
TOTAL 100
UNDECIDED 0
Click here for more details.
State Before After
Incumbent Party Winner Winner Party Seat Party Change?
Alaska Senate Mark Begich Democratic Party Dan Sullivan Republican Party Yes
Arkansas Senate Mark Pryor Democratic Party Tom Cotton Republican Party Yes
Colorado Senate Mark Udall Democratic Party Cory Gardner Republican Party Yes
Georgia Senate Saxby Chambliss* Republican Party David Perdue Republican Party No
Iowa Senate Tom Harkin* Democratic Party Joni Ernst Republican Party Yes
Kansas Senate Pat Roberts Republican Party Pat Roberts Republican Party No
Kentucky Senate Mitch McConnell Republican Party Mitch McConnell Republican Party No
Louisiana Senate Mary Landrieu Democratic Party Bill Cassidy Republican Party Yes
Montana Senate John Walsh* Democratic Party Steve Daines Republican Party Yes
New Hampshire Senate Jeanne Shaheen Democratic Party Jeanne Shaheen Democratic Party No
North Carolina Senate Kay Hagan Democratic Party Thom Tillis Republican Party Yes
South Dakota Senate Tim Johnson* Democratic Party Mike Rounds Republican Party Yes
Virginia Senate Mark Warner Democratic Party Mark Warner Democratic Party No
West Virginia Senate Jay Rockefeller* Democratic Party Shelley Moore Capito Republican Party Yes

"*" indicates that the incumbent retired in 2014.

U.S. Senate, Alabama General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJeff Sessions Incumbent 97.3% 795,606
     N/A Write-in 2.7% 22,484
Total Votes 818,090
Source: Alabama Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Alaska General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngDan Sullivan 48% 135,445
     Democratic Mark Begich Incumbent 45.8% 129,431
     Libertarian Mark Fish 3.7% 10,512
     Independent Ted Gianoutsos 2% 5,636
     N/A Write-in 0.5% 1,376
Total Votes 282,400
Source: Alaska Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Arkansas General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngTom Cotton 56.5% 478,819
     Democratic Mark Pryor Incumbent 39.5% 334,174
     Libertarian Nathan LaFrance 2% 17,210
     Green Mark Swaney 2% 16,797
Total Votes 847,000
Source: Arkansas Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Colorado General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngCory Gardner 48.2% 983,891
     Democratic Mark Udall Incumbent 46.3% 944,203
     Libertarian Gaylon Kent 2.6% 52,876
     Independent Steve Shogan 1.4% 29,472
     Independent Raul Acosta 1.2% 24,151
     Unity Party of Colorado Bill Hammons 0.3% 6,427
Total Votes 2,041,020
Source: Colorado Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Delaware General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngChris Coons Incumbent 55.8% 130,655
     Republican Kevin Wade 42.2% 98,823
     Green Andrew Groff 1.9% 4,560
Total Votes 234,038
Source: U.S. House Clerk "2014 Election Statistics"



U.S. Senate, Georgia General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Perdue 52.89% 1,358,088
     Democratic Michelle Nunn 45.21% 1,160,811
     Libertarian Amanda Swafford 1.90% 48,862
Total Votes 2,567,761
Source: Georgia Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Idaho General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJim Risch Incumbent 65.3% 285,596
     Democratic Nels Mitchell 34.7% 151,574
Total Votes 437,170
Source: Idaho Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Illinois General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngRichard Durbin Incumbent 53.5% 1,929,637
     Republican Jim Oberweis 42.7% 1,538,522
     Libertarian Sharon Hansen 3.8% 135,316
Total Votes 3,603,475
Source: Illinois Secretary of State Official Results



U.S. Senate, Iowa General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJoni Ernst 52.1% 588,575
     Democratic Bruce Braley 43.8% 494,370
     Independent Rick Stewart 2.4% 26,815
     Libertarian Douglas Butzier 0.7% 8,232
     Independent Ruth Smith 0.5% 5,873
     Independent Bob Quast 0.4% 4,724
     Write-in Other 0.1% 1,111
Total Votes 1,129,700
Source: Iowa Secretary of State Official Results



U.S. Senate, Kansas General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngPat Roberts Incumbent 53.1% 460,350
     Independent Greg Orman 42.5% 368,372
     Libertarian Randall Batson 4.3% 37,469
Total Votes 866,191
Source: Kansas Secretary of State Official Results



U.S. Senate, Kentucky General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngMitch McConnell Incumbent 56.2% 806,787
     Democratic Alison Lundergan Grimes 40.7% 584,698
     Libertarian David Patterson 3.1% 44,240
Total Votes 1,435,725
Source: Kentucky Secretary of State





U.S. Senate, Maine General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngSusan Collins Incumbent 67% 413,505
     Democratic Shenna Bellows 30.8% 190,254
     Other Other 0% 269
     Blank None 2.1% 12,968
Total Votes 616,996
Source: Maine Secretary of State Official Results



U.S. Senate, Massachusetts General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngEd Markey Incumbent 59% 1,289,944
     Republican Brian Herr 36.2% 791,950
     Write-in Other 0.1% 3,078
     Blank None 4.7% 101,819
Total Votes 2,186,791
Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State Official Results



U.S. Senate, Michigan General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngGary Peters 54.6% 1,704,936
     Republican Terri Lynn Land 41.3% 1,290,199
     Libertarian Jim Fulner 2% 62,897
     U.S. Taxpayers Party Richard Matkin 1.2% 37,529
     Green Chris Wahmhoff 0.8% 26,137
Total Votes 3,121,698
Source: Michigan Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Minnesota General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngAl Franken Incumbent 53.2% 1,053,205
     Republican Mike McFadden 42.9% 850,227
     Libertarian Heather Johnson 1.5% 29,685
     Independence Steve Carlson 2.4% 47,530
     N/A Write-in 0% 881
Total Votes 1,981,528
Source: Minnesota Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Mississippi General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngThad Cochran Incumbent 59.9% 378,481
     Democratic Travis Childers 37.9% 239,439
     Reform Shawn O'Hara 2.2% 13,938
Total Votes 631,858
Source: Mississippi Secretary of State Official Results



U.S. Senate, Montana General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngSteve Daines 57.8% 213,709
     Democratic Amanda Curtis 40.1% 148,184
     Libertarian Roger Roots 2.1% 7,933
Total Votes 369,826
Source: Montana Secretary of State


U.S. Senate, Nebraska General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngBen Sasse 64.4% 347,636
     Democratic Dave Domina 31.5% 170,127
     Independent Jim Jenkins 2.9% 15,868
     Independent Todd Watson 1.2% 6,260
Total Votes 539,891
Source: Nebraska Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, New Hampshire General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJeanne Shaheen Incumbent 51.5% 251,184
     Republican Scott Brown 48.2% 235,347
     N/A Scatter 0.3% 1,628
Total Votes 488,159
Source: New Hampshire Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, New Jersey General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngCory Booker Incumbent 55.8% 1,043,866
     Republican Jeff Bell 42.3% 791,297
     Libertarian Joe Baratelli 0.9% 16,721
     Independent Jeff Boss 0.2% 4,513
     Independent Antonio N. Sabas 0.2% 3,544
     Democratic-Republican Eugene Lavergne 0.2% 3,890
     Economic Growth Hank Schroeder 0.3% 5,704
Total Votes 1,869,535
Source: New Jersey Division of Elections



U.S. Senate, New Mexico General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngTom Udall Incumbent 55.6% 286,409
     Republican Allen Weh 44.4% 229,097
Total Votes 515,506
Source: New Mexico Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, North Carolina General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Kay Hagan Incumbent 47.3% 1,377,651
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngThom Tillis 48.8% 1,423,259
     Libertarian Sean Haugh 3.7% 109,100
     Write-in John Rhodes 0% 621
     Write-in David Waddell 0% 201
     Write-in Barry Gurney 0% 142
     Write-in Write-in (miscellaneous) 0.1% 4,307
Total Votes 2,915,281
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections



U.S. Senate, Oklahoma General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJim Inhofe Incumbent 68% 558,166
     Democratic Matt Silverstein 28.5% 234,307
     Independent Ray Woods 1.2% 9,913
     Independent Aaron DeLozier 0.9% 7,793
     Independent Joan Farr 1.3% 10,554
Total Votes 820,733
Source: Oklahoma State Election Board



U.S. Senate, Oregon General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJeff Merkley Incumbent 55.7% 814,537
     Republican Monica Wehby 36.9% 538,847
     Libertarian Mike Montchalin 3.1% 44,916
     Constitution James Leuenberger 1.7% 24,212
     Green Christina Jean Lugo 2.2% 32,434
     Miscellaneous Miscellaneous 0.5% 6,672
Total Votes 1,461,618
Source: Oregon Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Rhode Island General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJack Reed Incumbent 70.6% 223,675
     Republican Mark Zaccaria 29.2% 92,684
     N/A Write-in 0.2% 539
Total Votes 316,898
Source: Rhode Island Board of Elections



U.S. Senate, South Carolina General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngLindsey Graham Incumbent 55.3% 672,941
     Democratic Brad Hutto 37.6% 456,726
     Libertarian Victor Kocher 2.8% 33,839
     Independent Thomas Ravenel 3.9% 47,588
     N/A Write-in 0.4% 4,774
Total Votes 1,215,868
Source: South Carolina State Election Commission



U.S. Senate, South Dakota General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngMike Rounds 50.4% 140,741
     Democratic Rick Weiland 29.5% 82,456
     Independent Larry Pressler 17.1% 47,741
     Independent Gordon Howie 3% 8,474
Total Votes 279,412
Source: South Dakota Secretary of State



U.S. Senate, Tennessee General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngLamar Alexander Incumbent 61.9% 850,087
     Democratic Gordon Ball 31.9% 437,848
     Independent Ed Gauthier 0.2% 2,314
     Independent Bartholomew Phillips 0.2% 2,386
     Independent C. Salekin 0.1% 787
     Independent Danny Page 0.6% 7,713
     Independent Eric Schechter 0.1% 1,673
     Constitution Joe Wilmoth 2.6% 36,088
     Independent Joshua James 0.4% 5,678
     Independent Rick Tyler 0.4% 5,759
     Tea Party Tom Emerson, Jr. 0.8% 11,157
     Green Martin Pleasant 0.9% 12,570
     Write-in Erin Kent Magee 0% 5
Total Votes 1,374,065
Source: U.S. House Clerk "2014 Election Statistics"



U.S. Senate, Texas General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Cornyn Incumbent 61.6% 2,861,531
     Democratic David Alameel 34.4% 1,597,387
     Libertarian Rebecca Paddock 2.9% 133,751
     Green Emily Marie Sanchez 1.2% 54,701
     Write-in Mohammed Tahiro 0% 988
Total Votes 4,648,358
Source: U.S. House Clerk "2014 Election Statistics"



U.S. Senate, Virginia General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngMark Warner Incumbent 49.1% 1,073,667
     Republican Ed Gillespie 48.3% 1,055,940
     Libertarian Robert Sarvis 2.4% 53,102
     N/A write-in 0.1% 1,764
Total Votes 2,184,473
Source: Virginia Department of Elections



U.S. Senate, West Virginia General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngShelley Moore Capito 62.1% 281,820
     Democratic Natalie Tennant 34.5% 156,360
     Libertarian John Buckley 1.6% 7,409
     Constitution Phil Hudok 0.6% 2,566
     Mountain Bob Henry Baber 1.2% 5,504
     N/A Write-ins 0% 30
Total Votes 453,689
Source: U.S. House Clerk "2014 Election Statistics"



U.S. Senate, Wyoming General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngMike Enzi Incumbent 72.2% 121,554
     Democratic Charlie Hardy 17.4% 29,377
     Independent Curt Gottshall 7.9% 13,311
     Libertarian Joe Porambo 2.2% 3,677
     N/A Write-in 0.3% 471
Total Votes 168,390
Source: Wyoming Secretary of State



The 33 Class II U.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 the 113th Congress (Hawaii, Oklahoma and South Carolina). All three of these special elections took place on November 4, 2014, for a total of 36 Senate 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 and West 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 incumbent Mark Warner (D) held on to his seat, defeating Ed Gillespie by 0.8 percent of the vote.
  • The largest margin of victory was in Alabama, where incumbent Jeff 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]


Open seats

Seven senators (including John 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) and Tom Coburn (R-OK). The deaths of Sens. Daniel Inouye (D-HI) and Frank 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.png Democratic U.S. Senator Michigan
Jay RockefellerElectiondot.png Democratic U.S. Senate West Virginia
John WalshElectiondot.png Democratic U.S. Senate Montana
Mike JohannsEnds.png Republican U.S. Senate Nebraska
Saxby ChamblissEnds.png Republican U.S. Senate Georgia
Tim JohnsonElectiondot.png Democratic U.S. Senate South Dakota
Tom HarkinElectiondot.png Democratic U.S. Senator Iowa


U.S. Senate Partisan Breakdown
Party As of 2014 Election After the 2014 Election
     Democratic Party 53 44
     Republican Party 45 54
     Independent 2 2
Total 100 100
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 the Cook Political Report released race ratings for President, U.S. Senate, U.S. House (competitive only) and Governors 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
Month Solid D Likely D Lean D Tossup Lean R Likely R Solid R Total D Total R Total races
June 27, 2013[10] 6 5 6 3 0 4 11 17 15 35
August 2, 2013[11] 7 4 6 2 3 2 11 17 16 35
October 17, 2013[12] 7 4 6 2 3 2 11 17 16 35
December 19, 2013[13] 7 5 4 3 3 1 12 16 16 35
February 7, 2014[14] 6 6 4 3 3 1 13 16 17 36
February 27, 2014[15] 6 5 5 3 3 1 13 16 17 36
March 19, 2014[16] 8 2 3 7 2 2 12 13 16 36
April 25, 2014[17] 8 2 2 8 2 2 12 12 16 36
August 15, 2014[18] 7 3 1 9 2 3 11 11 16 36
September 19, 2014[19] 7 3 1 9 1 3 12 11 16 36
October 17, 2014[20] 7 3 1 10 1 2 12 11 15 36

Campaign finance

October 2014

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

August 2014

According to OpenSecrets.org, below were the races that had the most satellite spending. They included the U.S. Senate races in North Carolina, Kentucky, Mississippi, Georgia and Arkansas.

List of the races that received the most in independent expenditures, according to OpenSecrets.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 2014 Politico report, vulnerable Democrats were being outraised by Republican challengers.[23] The candidates highlighted in the article were:

August 2013

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

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

DSCC and NRSC

Both the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) and the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) work to elect candidates from their respective parties to the U.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 435 U.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 as battleground 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
TOTAL 435
Click here for more details.
State Before After
Incumbent Party Winner Winner Party District Party Change?
Arizona's 1st District Ann Kirkpatrick Democratic Party Ann Kirkpatrick Democratic Party No
Arizona's 2nd District Ron Barber Democratic Party Martha McSally Republican Party Yes
Arizona's 9th District Kyrsten Sinema Democratic Party Kyrsten Sinema Democratic Party No
California's 7th District Ami Bera Democratic Party Ami Bera Democratic Party No
California's 21st District David Valadao Republican Party David Valadao Republican Party No
California's 36th District Raul Ruiz Democratic Party Raul Ruiz Democratic Party No
California's 52nd District Scott Peters Democratic Party Scott Peters Democratic Party No
Colorado's 6th District Mike Coffman Republican Party Mike Coffman Republican Party No
Florida's 18th District Patrick Murphy Democratic Party Patrick Murphy Democratic Party No
Florida's 26th District Joe Garcia Democratic Party Carlos Curbelo Republican Party Yes
Illinois' 12th District William Enyart Democratic Party Mike Bost Republican Party Yes
Illinois' 13th District Rodney Davis Republican Party Rodney Davis Republican Party No
Michigan's 1st District Dan Benishek Republican Party Dan Benishek Republican Party No
Minnesota's 8th District Rick Nolan Democratic Party Rick Nolan Democratic Party No
Nevada's 3rd District Joe Heck Republican Party Joe Heck Republican Party No
New Hampshire's 1st District Carol Shea-Porter Democratic Party Frank Guinta Republican Party Yes
New Jersey's 2nd District Frank LoBiondo Republican Party Frank LoBiondo Republican Party No
New Jersey's 3rd District Jon Runyan* Republican Party Tom MacArthur Republican Party No
New York's 1st District Tim Bishop Democratic Party Lee Zeldin Republican Party Yes
New York's 11th District Michael Grimm Republican Party Michael Grimm Republican Party No
New York's 18th District Sean Maloney Democratic Party Sean Maloney Democratic Party No
New York's 21st District Bill Owens* Democratic Party Elise Stefanik Republican Party Yes
New York's 23rd District Tom Reed Republican Party Tom Reed Republican Party No
Texas' 23rd District Pete Gallego Democratic Party Will Hurd Republican Party Yes
Virginia's 2nd District Scott Rigell Republican Party Scott Rigell Republican Party No
West Virginia's 3rd District Nick Rahall Democratic Party Evan Jenkins Republican Party Yes

"*" 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.

District Before After
Incumbent Party Winner Winner Party
North Carolina's 7th District Mike McIntyre (Retiring) Democratic Party David Rouzer Republican Party
Utah's 4th District Jim Matheson (Retiring) Democratic Party Mia Love Republican Party
West Virginia's 3rd District Nick Rahall Democratic Party Evan Jenkins Republican Party

Incumbents who lost

Partisanship of the losing incumbents:

  • Republican Party 3
  • Democratic Party 11
District Before After
Incumbent Party Winner Winner Party
Arizona's 2nd District Ron Barber Democratic Party Martha McSally Republican Party
Florida's 2nd District Steve Southerland Republican Party Gwen Graham Democratic Party
Florida's 26th District Joe Garcia Democratic Party Carlos Curbelo Republican Party
Georgia's 12th District John Barrow Democratic Party Rick Allen Republican Party
Illinois' 10th District Brad Schneider Democratic Party Robert Dold Republican Party
Illinois' 12th District Bill Enyart Democratic Party Mike Bost Republican Party
Louisiana's 5th District Vance McAllister Republican Party Ralph Abraham Republican Party
Nebraska's 2nd District Lee Terry Republican Party Brad Ashford Democratic Party
Nevada's 4th District Steven Horsford Democratic Party Cresent Hardy Republican Party
New Hampshire's 1st District Carol Shea-Porter Democratic Party Frank Guinta Republican Party
New York's 1st District Tim Bishop Democratic Party Lee Zeldin Republican Party
Texas' 23rd District Pete Gallego Democratic Party Will Hurd Republican Party
New York's 24th District Dan Maffei Democratic Party John Katko Republican Party
West Virginia's 3rd District Nick Rahall Democratic Party Evan Jenkins Republican Party

Democrats hoped to survive a possible referendum on the Obama Administration’s Affordable 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 the U.S. House were up for election.

U.S. House Partisan Breakdown
Party As of 2014 Election After the 2014 Election
     Democratic Party 201 188
     Republican Party 234 247
     Vacancy 0 0
Total 435 435

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 in Arizona's 2nd Congressional District, where Martha McSally (R) unseated incumbent Ron Barber (D) by 0.1 percent of the vote.


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. Both Utah's 4th Congressional District and North Carolina's 7th Congressional District were examples of this before Reps. Jim Matheson and Mike 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

  • 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

The DCCC raised $8.4 million in September compared to the $5.3 million the NRCC 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 an Open Secrets report on FEC filings released on August 13, 2013, the DCCC had raised $40.8 million to the NRCC's $34.3 million.[37]

July 2013

As of July 2013, the DCCC had outraised the NRCC by $6.5 million.[38]

April 2013

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) gained an early fundraising advantage in the first quarter of 2013. It outraised the National 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 the Cook Political Report released race ratings for U.S. Senate and U.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
Month Likely D Lean D D Tossup R Tossup Lean R Likely R Total D Total R Total Competitive races
August 8, 2013[40] 14 16 8 1 11 17 28 29 57
September 5, 2013[41] 14 15 9 1 11 17 38 29 67
October 21, 2013[42] 14 15 9 1 11 17 36 34 70
October 30, 2013[43] 12 15 10 2 16 16 37 34 71
December 18, 2013[44] 14 14 10 4 15 15 38 34 72
January 7, 2014[45] 14 15 10 4 16 16 39 36 75
January 15, 2014[46] 14 14 11 4 16 18 39 38 77
February 13, 2014[47] 14 13 11 4 16 18 38 38 76
March 13, 2014[48] 15 13 11 3 16 18 39 37 76
April 4, 2014[49] 15 13 11 3 17 19 39 39 78
June 26, 2014[50] 16 14 11 2 16 18 41 36 77
August 8, 2014[51] 15 13 13 3 9 17 41 29 70
September 19, 2014[52] 14 13 11 4 8 18 38 30 68
October 22, 2014[53] 11 14 13 5 6 15 38 26 64

Sabato's Crystal Ball

Each month the Crystal Ball released race ratings for U.S. Senate, U.S. House (competitive only) and Governors. 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
Month Likely D Lean D D Tossup R Tossup Lean R Likely R Total D Total R Total Competitive races
October 23, 2013[55] 7 20 5 3 15 12 32 30 62
December 17, 2013[56] 8 19 5 6 14 14 32 34 66
January 7, 2014[57] 8 19 5 7 14 14 32 35 67
March 12, 2014[58] 10 15 7 5 14 15 32 34 66
March 31, 2014[59] 10 15 7 5 15 16 32 36 68
August 6, 2014[60] 9 13 10 3 11 16 32 30 62


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.

DCCC Jumpstart

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

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.

NRCC targets

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

National Republican Congressional Committee, Targeted incumbents
District Targeted incumbent November 4 Results
Arizona's 1st District Ann Kirkpatrick Ann Kirkpatrick
Arizona's 2nd District Ron Barber Martha McSally
Georgia's 12th District John Barrow Rick Allen
Minnesota's 7th District Collin Peterson Collin Peterson
North Carolina's 7th District Mike McIntyre David Rouzer
Utah's 4th District Jim Matheson Mia Love
West Virginia's 3rd District Nick Rahall Evan Jenkins

Nick Rahall
In September 2013, the NRCC issued a press release in response to Rahall, 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 by The 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 to OpenSecrets.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 to OpenSecrets.org.

Primary elections

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

Only four U.S. Representatives and no U.S. Senators were defeated in their primaries during the 2014 election cycle. One article from National 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 the competitiveness of U.S. House primaries further support this conclusion. According to a 2013 Ballotpedia 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 for Texas' 4th Congressional District
Years in office: 1981-present
2014 election: Texas' 4th Congressional District elections, 2014
Defeated by: John Ratcliffe

Ralph Hall was defeated by John 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 a Democrat before switching to the Republican 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 as Club for Growth and the Senate 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
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngRalph Hall Incumbent 45.4% 29,848
Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Ratcliffe 28.8% 18,917
Lou Gigliotti 16.1% 10,601
John Stacy 4.3% 2,812
Brent Lawson 3.5% 2,290
Tony Arterburn 1.9% 1,252
Total Votes 65,720
Source: Texas Secretary of State
U.S. House, Texas District 4 Runoff Republican Primary, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Ratcliffe 52.8% 22,271
Ralph Hall Incumbent 47.2% 19,899
Total Votes 42,170
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 for Virginia'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 to David Brat in the Republican primary on June 10, 2014, was the biggest and most shocking upset of the 2014 primary season, making Cantor the first-ever sitting House 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 from political 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 of Fox News, Brat explained, "The good news is dollars don't vote, people do."[76]

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


U.S. House, Virginia District 7 Republican Primary, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Brat 55.5% 36,110
Eric Cantor Incumbent 44.5% 28,898
Total Votes 65,008
Source: Results via Associated Press


Republican Party Kerry Bentivolio

Kerry Bentivolio.jpg

Name: Kerry Bentivolio (R-MI)
Office: U.S. Representative for Michigan'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 to Dave Trott in the Republican 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 incumbent Thaddeus 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
Candidate Vote % Votes
Kerry Bentivolio Incumbent 33.6% 21,254
Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Trott 66.4% 42,008
Total Votes 63,262
Source: Michigan Secretary of State


Democratic Party John Tierney

John F Tierney.jpg

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

John Tierney was the only Democratic 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 against Republican Richard 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 the Democratic primary polls, and had support from influential Democrats, such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren from Massachusetts and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi from California.[85]


The primary elections included:

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

September 9, 2014

August 26, 2014

August 19, 2014

August 12, 2014

August 9, 2014

August 7, 2014

August 5, 2014

June 24, 2014

June 10, 2014

June 3, 2014

May 20, 2014

May 6, 2014

March 18, 2014

March 4, 2014

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
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngMike Simpson Incumbent 61.6% 48,632
Bryan Smith 38.4% 30,263
Total Votes 78,895
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
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngBill Shuster Incumbent 52.8% 24,106
Art Halvorson 34.5% 15,761
Travis Schooley 12.7% 5,802
Total Votes 45,669
Source: Results via Associated Press
Results: The predictions were correct. The race came down to the two Democratic front runners. In California's blanket primary system, both Ro Khanna and Rep. Mike Honda advanced to the general election.
U.S. House, California District 17 Primary, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngMike Honda Incumbent 48.2% 43,607
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngRo Khanna 28% 25,384
     Republican Vanila Singh 17% 15,359
     Republican Joel Vanlandingham 6.8% 6,154
Total Votes 90,504
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
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngScott DesJarlais Incumbent 44.9% 34,793
Jim Tracy 44.8% 34,755
John Anderson 5.9% 4,592
Steve Lane 1.9% 1,483
David Tate 1.2% 938
Michael Warden 0.9% 659
Oluyomi Faparusi 0.4% 284
Total Votes 77,504
Source: Tennessee Secretary of State
Results: Tierney was defeated in the primary by Seth Moulton.
U.S. House, Massachusetts District 6 Democratic Primary, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngSeth Moulton 50.8% 36,575
John Tierney Incumbent 40.1% 28,915
Marisa DeFranco 6% 4,293
John Devine 2.1% 1,527
John Gutta 1% 691
All others 0% 36
Total Votes 72,037
Source: Massachusetts Elections Division


Congressional polling

Congressional Approval Rating
Poll Total Approve Total Disapprove Margin of Error Sample Size
The Economist/YouGov (December 13-15, 2014) 11 72 +/-4.5 1000
The Economist/YouGov Poll (August 16-18, 2014) 11 71 +/-4.6 1000
Gallup (June 5-8, 2014) 16 81 +/-4 1027
The Economist/YouGov (March 29-31, 2014) 8 76 +/-4.5 1000
The Economist/YouGov (February 22-24, 2014) 10 74 +/-4.5 710
The Economist/YouGov (January 11-13, 2014) 8 77 +/-4.3 696
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 to [email protected].

Republicans in Congress

In a September 2014 poll, 72 percent of Americans were unhappy with Republicans in the 113th 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

A USA 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 a CBS 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 2013 Washington 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 also United States budget debate, 2013

Beginning in August 2013, House and Senate 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 Leader Harry 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 a marathon 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 the debt 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 and Mitch 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
Poll Total approve Total 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 to [email protected].

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 the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen 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 the Healthcare.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 Secretary Kathleen 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's Mike Lee (Utah)'s effort to defund Obamacare.[105]

ISIS

See also: ISIS insurgency in Iraq and Syria

Members of Congress 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) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) each stated on September 8, 2014, that gaining congressional approval was not necessary for the actions taken by President Barack 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 as Tim Kaine (D-VA), Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Rand 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 one Republican 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 were Jack Reed (RI) and Sheldon Whitehouse (RI)

The comprehensive bill failed in the House due largely in part to the votes of eight Democratic House members who joined the Republican majority to vote down the measure.[109] Reps. Collin Peterson, John Barrow, Sanford Bishop, Cheri Bustos, Sean Maloney, Mike McIntyre, Bill Owens and Tim Walz were the eight Democratic members who voted to reject the bill.[109] According to analysis by OpenSecrets.org, many of these Democratic members received significant political contributions from agricultural organizations that benefit from crop insurance subsidies.[109] Five of the eight were on the House Agriculture Committee--Peterson, Bustos, Maloney, McIntyre and Walz.[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. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Politico, "Red-state Democrats raise millions," accessed May, 2013
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 Politico, "Senate cash dash now a marathon," accessed August 1, 2013
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 Politico, "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 named long
  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 named cb
  92. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named go
  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 named mccardle
  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 named Octofficialreport
  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. ↑ 109.0 109.1 109.2 109.3 Open 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
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