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1920 United States Senate elections

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FieldValue
election_name1920 United States Senate elections
countryUnited States
flag_year1912
typelegislative
ongoingno
previous_election1918 United States Senate elections
previous_year1918
next_election1922 United States Senate elections
next_year1922
seats_for_election34 of the 96 seats in the United States Senate
majority_seats49
election_dateNovember 2, 1920
previous_seat_election1914 United States Senate elections
previous_seat_year1914
next_seat_election1926 United States Senate elections
next_seat_year1926
seat_classClass 3
image_size160x180px
1blankSeats up
2blankRaces won
party1Republican Party (US)
image1Henry Cabot Lodge c1916.jpg
leader1Henry Cabot Lodge
leader_since1March 4, 1919
leaders_seat1Massachusetts
seats_before1**49**
seats_after1**59**
seat_change110
1data115
2data1**25**
party2Democratic Party (US)
image2Oscar W. Underwood.jpg
leader2Oscar Underwood
leader_since2April 27, 1920
leaders_seat2Alabama
seats_before247
seats_after237
seat_change210
1data2**19**
2data29
map_image[[File:1920 United States Senate elections results map.svg340px]]
map_size320px
map_caption**Results of the elections:**
titleMajority Leader
before_electionHenry Cabot Lodge
before_partyRepublican Party (US)
after_electionHenry Cabot Lodge
after_partyRepublican Party (US)

The 1920 United States Senate elections were elections for the United States Senate that coincided with the presidential election of Warren G. Harding. The 32 seats of Class 3 were contested in regular elections, and special elections were held to fill vacancies. Democrat Woodrow Wilson's unpopularity allowed Republicans to win races across the country, winning ten seats from the Democrats and providing them with an overwhelming 59-to-37 majority. The Republican landslide was so vast that Democrats lost over half of the contested seats this year and failed to win a single race outside the South. In fact, this is the most recent occasion where every race decided by under 10 points all voted for the same party, showcasing the sheer strength of Republicans' performance in this election.

Since the passage of the Seventeenth Amendment, these elections were the closest in which the winning party in almost every Senate election mirrored the winning party for their state in the presidential election, with Kentucky being the only Senate race not to mirror their presidential result. No other Senate election cycle in a presidential year would come close to repeating this feat until 2016, in which the result of every Senate race mirrored the corresponding state's result in the presidential election. Coincidentally, that election cycle involved the same class of Senate seats, Class 3. This is also one of only five occasions where 10 or more Senate seats changed party in an election, with the other occasions being in 1932, 1946, 1958, and 1980.

, the 59 seats held after this election cycle remains the highest number of seats that the Republican Party has held as the result of an election cycle. This number rose to 60, the highest number of seats the Republicans have ever held, after Democrat senator Josiah O. Wolcott of Delaware accepted an offer from Republican governor William D. Denney to become Chancellor of the Delaware Court of Chancery, allowing Denney to name Republican T. Coleman du Pont to replace Wolcott, a seat du Pont held until the next election, in which both a special election was held for the remainder of the term and a regular election was held as the seat was normally up then, both of which du Pont lost narrowly to Democrat Thomas F. Bayard Jr. In addition, the 22-seat majority is the largest majority that the Republicans have achieved in any election since.

Gains, losses, and holds

Retirements

Two Republicans and three Democrats retired instead of seeking re-election. One Democrat retired instead of seeking election to finish the unexpired term.

StateSenatorReplaced byAlabama (special)ColoradoIllinoisLouisianaOhioSouth Dakota

Defeats

Ten Democrats and one Republican sought re-election but lost in the primary or general election.

StateSenatorReplaced byArizonaArkansasCaliforniaGeorgiaIdahoKentuckyMarylandNevadaNorth DakotaOklahomaOregon

Post-election changes

StateSenatorReplaced byDelawareNew MexicoGeorgiaPennsylvania (class 1)Pennsylvania (class 1)Pennsylvania (class 3)IowaMichigan

Change in composition

Before the elections

RRRRRRRR

Election results

RRRRRRRR
RRepublican

|}

Race summary

Special elections during the 66th Congress

In these special elections, the winner was seated during 1920 or before March 4, 1921; ordered by election date.

StateIncumbentResultsCandidatesSenatorPartyElectoral historyAlabama
(Class 2)Virginia
(Class 2)
B. B. ComerDemocratic1920 (appointed)Interim appointee retired.
New senator [elected](1920-united-states-senate-special-election-in-alabama) November 2, 1920.
Democratic hold.nowrap{{Plainlist
Carter GlassDemocratic1920 (appointed)Interim appointee [elected](1920-united-states-senate-special-election-in-virginia) November 2, 1920.nowrap{{Plainlist

Elections leading to the 67th Congress

In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1921; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 3 seats.

StateIncumbentResultsCandidatesSenatorPartyElectoral historyAlabamaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutFloridaGeorgiaIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMarylandMissouriNevadaNew HampshireNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaUtahVermontWashingtonWisconsin
Oscar UnderwoodDemocratic[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-alabama)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-alabama).nowrap{{Plainlist
Marcus A. SmithDemocratic[1912 (new state)](1912-united-states-senate-elections-in-arizona)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-arizona)Incumbent [lost re-election](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-arizona).
**Republican gain.**nowrap{{Plainlist
William F. KirbyDemocratic[1916 (special)](1916-united-states-senate-special-election-in-arkansas)Incumbent [lost renomination](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-arkansas).
Democratic hold.nowrap{{Plainlist
James D. PhelanDemocratic[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-california)Incumbent [lost re-election](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-california).
**Republican gain.**nowrap{{Plainlist
Charles S. ThomasDemocratic[1913 (special)](1913-united-states-senate-special-election-in-colorado)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-colorado)Incumbent [lost re-election](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-colorado) as a Nationalist.
**Republican gain.**nowrap{{Plainlist
Frank B. BrandegeeRepublican[1905 (special)](1905-united-states-senate-special-election-in-connecticut)
[1909](1909-united-states-senate-election-in-connecticut)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-connecticut)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-connecticut).nowrap{{PlainlistEmil L. G. Hohenthal (Prohibition) 0.8%Josephine B. Bennett (Farmer–Labor) 0.6%Charles J. Backofen (Socialist Labor) 0.4%
Duncan U. FletcherDemocratic1909 (appointed)
[1909 (special)](1909-united-states-senate-special-election-in-florida)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-florida)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-florida).nowrap{{Plainlist
Hoke SmithDemocratic[1911 (special)](1911-united-states-senate-special-election-in-georgia)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-georgia)Incumbent [lost renomination](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-georgia).
Democratic hold.nowrap{{Plainlist
John F. NugentDemocratic1918 (appointed)
[1918 (special)](1918-united-states-senate-special-election-in-idaho)Incumbent [lost re-election](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-idaho).
**Republican gain.**
Incumbent resigned January 14, 1921 to give successor preferential seniority.
Winner appointed January 15, 1921.nowrap{{Plainlist
Lawrence Y. ShermanRepublican[1913 (special)](1913-united-states-senate-special-election-in-illinois)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-illinois)Incumbent [retired](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-illinois).
Republican hold.nowrap{{PlainlistJohn Fitzpatrick (Farmer–Labor) 2.4%Frank B. Vennum (Prohibition) 0.5%Joseph B. Moody (Socialist Labor) 0.15%
James E. WatsonRepublican[1916 (special)](1916-united-states-senate-special-election-in-indiana)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-indiana).nowrap{{PlainlistFrancis M. Wampler (Socialist) 1.9%Francis J. Dillon (Farmer–Labor) 1.3%Oulla Bayhinger (Prohibition) 1.1%
Albert B. CumminsRepublican[1908 (special)](1908-united-states-senate-special-election-in-iowa)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-iowa)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-iowa).nowrap{{PlainlistH. W. Cowles (Farmer–Labor) 1.0%Arthur S. Dowler (Socialist Labor) 0.1%
Charles CurtisRepublican[1907 (special)](1907-united-states-senate-special-election-in-kansas)
[1907](1907-united-states-senate-election-in-kansas)
1913 (lost)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-kansas)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-kansas).nowrap{{Plainlist
J. C. W. BeckhamDemocratic[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-kentucky)Incumbent [lost re-election](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-kentucky).
**Republican gain.**nowrap{{Plainlist
Edward J. GayDemocratic[1918 (special)](1918-united-states-senate-special-election-in-louisiana)Incumbent [retired](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-louisiana).
Democratic hold.nowrap{{Plainlist
John W. SmithDemocratic[1908 (special)](1908-united-states-senate-special-elections-in-maryland)
[1908](1908-united-states-senate-election-in-maryland)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-maryland)Incumbent [lost re-election](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-maryland).
**Republican gain.**nowrap{{PlainlistWilliam A. Toole (Socialist) 1.7%William A. Hawkins (Independent) 1.7%Frank N. H. Lang (Labor) 0.6%
Selden P. SpencerRepublican[1918 (special)](1918-united-states-senate-special-election-in-missouri)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-missouri).nowrap{{Plainlist
Charles HendersonDemocratic1918 (appointed)
[1918 (special)](1918-united-states-senate-special-election-in-nevada)Incumbent [lost re-election](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-nevada).
**Republican gain.**nowrap{{Plainlist
George H. MosesRepublican[1918 (special)](1918-united-states-senate-special-election-in-new-hampshire)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-new-hampshire).nowrap{{Plainlist
James W. Wadsworth Jr.Republican[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-new-york)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-new-york).nowrap{{Plainlist
Lee S. OvermanDemocratic[1903](1903-united-states-senate-election-in-north-carolina)
[1909](1909-united-states-senate-election-in-north-carolina)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-north-carolina)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-north-carolina).nowrap{{Plainlist
Asle GronnaRepublican[1911 (special)](1911-united-states-senate-special-election-in-north-dakota)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-north-dakota)Incumbent [lost renomination](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-north-dakota).
Republican hold.nowrap{{Plainlist
Warren G. HardingRepublican[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-ohio)Incumbent [retired](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-ohio) to [run for U.S. President](1920-united-states-presidential-election).
Republican hold.
Incumbent resigned January 13, 1921, having won the Presidency.
Winner appointed January 14, 1921.nowrap{{Plainlist
Thomas GoreDemocratic[1907 (new state)](1907-united-states-senate-elections-in-oklahoma)
[1909](1909-united-states-senate-election-in-oklahoma)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-oklahoma)Incumbent [lost renomination](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-oklahoma).
**Republican gain.**nowrap{{Plainlist
George E. ChamberlainDemocratic[1909](1909-united-states-senate-election-in-oklahoma)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-oklahoma)Incumbent [lost re-election](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-oregon).
**Republican gain.**nowrap{{Plainlist
Boies PenroseRepublican[1897](1897-united-states-senate-election-in-pennsylvania)
[1903](1903-united-states-senate-election-in-pennsylvania)
[1909](1909-united-states-senate-election-in-pennsylvania)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-pennsylvania)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-pennsylvania).nowrap{{Plainlist
Ellison D. SmithDemocratic[1909](1909-united-states-senate-election-in-south-carolina)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-south-carolina)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-south-carolina).nowrap{{Plainlist
Edwin S. JohnsonDemocratic[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-south-dakota)Incumbent [retired](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-south-dakota).
**Republican gain.**nowrap{{Plainlist
Reed SmootRepublican[1903](1903-united-states-senate-election-in-utah)
[1909](1909-united-states-senate-election-in-utah)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-utah)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-utah).nowrap{{Plainlist
William P. DillinghamRepublican[1900 (special)](1900-united-states-senate-special-election-in-vermont)
[1902](1902-united-states-senate-election-in-vermont)
[1908](1908-united-states-senate-election-in-vermont)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-vermont)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-vermont).nowrap{{Plainlist
Wesley L. JonesRepublican[1909](1909-united-states-senate-election-in-washington)
[1914](1914-united-states-senate-election-in-washington)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-washington).nowrap{{Plainlist
Irvine LenrootRepublican[1918 (special)](1918-united-states-senate-special-election-in-wisconsin)Incumbent [re-elected](1920-united-states-senate-election-in-wisconsin).nowrap{{Plainlist

Closest races

Nine races had a margin of victory under 10%:

StateParty of winnerMarginKentuckyMarylandNevadaOklahomaWisconsinOregonIdahoCaliforniaMissouri
Republican (flip)0.6%
Republican (flip)4.0%
Republican (flip)4.2%
Republican (flip)6.1%
Republican6.9%
Republican (flip)7.2%
Republican (flip)8.2%
Republican (flip)8.3%
Republican9.2%

The tipping point state was Colorado, with a margin of 15.2%.

Alabama

Alabama (regular)

Underwood:
Reynolds:

Alabama (special)

Heflin:
Lunsford:

Arizona

Cameron:
Smith:
Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Arizona

Arkansas

Caraway:
Cole:

California

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in California

Shortridge:
Phelan:

Colorado

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Colorado

Nicholson:
Scott:

Connecticut

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Connecticut

|County results |220px |Municipality results}} Lonergan:

Florida

Fletcher:

Georgia

Idaho

Gooding:
Nugent:

Illinois

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Illinois

McKinley:
Waller:

Indiana

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Indiana

Watson:
Taggart:

Iowa

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Iowa

Cummins:
Porter:

Kansas

Curtis:

Kentucky

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Kentucky

Ernst:
Beckham:

Louisiana

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Louisiana

Maryland

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Maryland

Weller:
Smith:

Missouri

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Missouri

Spencer:
Long:

Nevada

Oddie:
Henderson:

New Hampshire

Moses:

New York

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in New York

Wadsworth:

North Carolina

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in North Carolina

Overman:
Holton:

North Dakota

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in North Dakota

Ladd:
Perry:

Ohio

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Ohio

Willis:
Julian:

Oklahoma

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Oklahoma

Harreld:
Ferris:

Oregon

Stanfield:
Chamberlain:

Pennsylvania

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania

Penrose:
Farrell:

South Carolina

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in South Carolina

Warren:

Democratic Primary RunoffCandidateVotes%±%
Ellison D. Smith65,88060.7+12.0
George Warren42,73539.3+8.5

South Dakota

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in South Dakota

Norbeck:
Ayres:
Richards: No Vote:

Utah

Smoot:

Vermont

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Vermont

Virginia (special)

Main article: 1920 United States Senate special election in Virginia

Washington

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Washington

Jones:

Wisconsin

Main article: 1920 United States Senate election in Wisconsin

Lenroot:
Thompson:
Weber:

Notes

References

References

  1. Enten, Harry. (November 10, 2016). "There Were No Purple* States On Tuesday".
  2. (1922). "History of the State of New York, Political and Governmental". [[The Syracuse Press]].
  3. "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 1920". Clerk.house.gov.
  4. (1920). "Compilation of Primary Election Returns of the Democratic Party". Hamires-Jones Printing Company.
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