2018 United States elections

The 2018 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2018. These midterm elections occurred during Incumbent Republican President Donald Trump's term. Although the Republican Party increased its majority in the Senate, unified Republican control of Congress and the White House was brought to an end when the Democratic Party won control of the House of Representatives in what was widely characterized as a "blue wave" election as Democrats also gained governorships, other statewide offices, and state legislative chambers.

2018 United States elections

← 2016          2017          2018          2019          2020 → Midterm elections
Election day	November 6
Incumbent president	Donald Trump (Republican)
Next Congress	116th
Senate elections
Overall control	Republican hold
Seats contested	35 of 100 seats (33 seats of Class I + 2 special elections)
Net seat change	Republican +2
<imagemap>Image:2018 United States Senate elections results map.svg|350px|center| rect 492 115 516 149 2018 United States Senate special election in Minnesota rect 583 396 607 430 2018 United States Senate special election in Mississippi poly 235 434 197 429 135 391 135 390 137 388 143 387 144 383 143 381 140 380 140 374 146 370 146 364 147 360 154 356 154 353 152 351 152 345 149 342 149 339 151 337 152 316 154 313 157 315 160 318 163 318 165 314 167 296 206 303 224 307 252 311 244 374 2018 United States Senate election in Arizona poly 28 148 51 155 71 161 92 166 76 231 148 338 147 341 150 347 151 351 153 354 152 356 149 358 146 360 145 363 144 366 144 368 139 373 139 381 142 384 140 386 123 386 92 381 93 367 82 351 76 351 74 357 76 359 76 360 74 360 73 359 71 367 72 370 73 371 71 371 70 370 70 366 71 367 73 359 71 356 72 355 74 357 76 351 77 349 76 344 73 343 70 343 69 342 66 341 65 340 53 340 47 340 45 338 46 337 48 337 51 340 53 340 51 338 51 337 53 337 55 339 57 339 57 340 65 340 66 341 66 339 63 335 62 333 60 331 56 330 53 329 50 327 45 326 42 324 42 321 44 315 45 313 45 310 43 308 43 306 39 300 37 296 35 290 34 285 30 281 31 273 33 273 35 271 35 266 33 265 31 265 28 260 27 254 28 249 29 246 29 244 23 238 24 231 17 217 16 212 18 204 19 203 19 195 17 189 16 185 14 185 14 183 16 177 22 172 26 161 27 152 2018 United States Senate election in California poly 869 166 861 168 845 171 845 176 847 180 847 195 857 186 861 184 868 182 872 180 871 172 2018 United States Senate election in Connecticut poly 822 227 819 229 819 232 820 234 821 238 823 240 823 245 824 247 825 252 826 256 836 254 836 251 835 250 834 248 830 246 826 238 823 236 822 231 2018 United States Senate election in Delaware poly 639 452 674 448 686 448 691 454 740 451 741 454 746 455 746 448 745 447 745 445 755 446 761 462 768 475 774 483 780 489 779 491 779 494 781 501 785 504 787 510 792 518 795 523 797 547 795 548 795 556 797 555 797 553 798 553 797 556 796 558 795 562 792 566 785 572 782 574 778 574 775 573 772 576 769 577 768 579 769 579 771 577 773 577 774 576 777 576 778 574 782 574 782 572 788 569 792 564 794 561 796 557 796 555 795 556 795 557 792 560 789 561 786 561 783 564 781 563 780 563 780 559 779 559 779 557 777 554 776 551 773 550 772 548 768 548 766 549 764 547 764 542 762 540 760 537 758 537 757 538 755 538 754 534 750 529 749 526 745 521 742 519 742 517 747 511 747 508 742 507 740 507 740 509 742 509 742 511 742 514 740 512 740 511 739 509 738 507 738 501 739 499 739 488 736 485 736 483 734 481 729 481 727 479 725 476 722 475 722 472 719 472 717 468 714 467 713 466 711 465 709 464 705 464 704 465 702 465 702 468 703 469 699 469 697 471 694 473 688 474 686 475 685 473 682 470 671 465 665 463 659 463 651 464 644 467 643 459 639 456 2018 United States Senate election in Florida poly 215 493 215 550 250 592 354 592 354 546 301 493 2018 United States Senate election in Hawaii poly 662 210 631 213 626 216 624 217 620 216 623 243 624 274 626 276 626 283 623 288 623 289 620 294 619 300 620 300 626 298 632 298 633 300 634 300 635 297 638 296 640 296 641 298 642 298 642 295 647 292 650 294 653 294 653 289 661 281 661 277 665 277 670 274 669 272 666 240 2018 United States Senate election in Indiana poly 868 92 865 92 869 106 875 125 877 132 879 132 881 134 881 136 883 137 883 133 884 133 884 126 886 125 886 124 885 123 885 121 886 120 887 118 889 118 890 120 891 120 894 117 896 116 897 113 900 113 901 111 901 104 900 102 901 100 903 102 905 103 905 105 905 106 903 106 903 107 903 109 904 110 906 110 906 109 904 107 904 106 905 106 907 106 908 104 908 102 907 102 907 100 910 97 913 97 914 99 911 99 909 100 909 102 910 103 911 103 912 101 913 100 913 99 915 99 919 94 923 91 924 90 926 89 927 85 927 82 924 78 924 77 922 77 921 79 919 79 917 77 916 71 909 71 901 41 892 37 886 42 885 44 882 43 880 40 879 39 878 39 876 44 874 52 872 56 872 65 870 68 870 73 872 74 872 77 870 80 868 84 2018 United States Senate election in Maine poly 758 242 759 252 764 247 766 247 770 242 774 242 778 239 781 239 784 240 789 244 791 245 793 247 796 247 800 239 804 247 811 247 811 248 807 253 808 261 801 258 800 259 800 263 803 264 810 265 814 267 816 267 815 264 811 257 810 251 811 249 811 247 810 244 811 240 815 236 816 237 816 239 813 241 813 243 816 245 816 250 814 251 814 255 816 253 817 255 815 256 815 260 819 263 821 263 821 265 822 270 823 270 823 266 821 264 821 263 822 262 824 263 826 266 828 266 830 265 835 264 836 262 837 256 834 256 832 257 824 257 822 245 819 236 817 230 2018 United States Senate election in Maryland poly 844 169 844 155 857 153 876 148 877 146 879 144 881 144 883 146 883 149 881 150 881 154 883 158 884 156 886 156 893 165 896 165 900 163 900 161 899 158 895 158 895 157 898 157 900 159 902 163 902 164 901 165 897 166 894 168 893 169 892 171 892 172 894 172 895 173 902 173 903 172 904 172 904 174 902 174 902 173 896 173 895 174 893 174 893 175 891 175 891 174 892 172 889 174 889 173 891 171 891 168 890 167 887 168 887 173 885 173 882 167 877 162 859 166 2018 United States Senate election in Massachusetts poly 632 211 685 206 686 203 690 200 690 194 692 193 693 188 694 186 696 187 698 187 698 177 692 160 688 155 682 158 682 161 679 164 678 167 675 167 672 165 672 161 674 159 677 156 676 153 679 151 679 140 676 137 675 135 678 134 674 129 670 129 662 124 658 125 654 122 654 118 655 116 664 115 666 116 671 117 673 114 670 112 667 113 667 114 669 114 668 116 666 116 661 112 661 106 660 104 659 105 651 107 647 107 647 101 646 100 639 104 632 104 629 105 624 110 621 111 619 110 618 109 617 109 616 110 611 110 609 107 609 105 606 103 601 102 600 101 599 101 596 104 594 104 594 102 597 98 597 96 600 94 601 92 603 91 605 91 605 90 604 89 602 89 598 90 595 92 591 97 589 98 588 100 588 101 585 102 583 103 582 105 579 106 575 106 574 108 569 110 569 112 570 114 572 116 575 116 588 119 591 120 595 121 597 122 600 122 602 123 603 123 604 125 607 126 609 127 609 133 610 137 612 138 613 136 615 131 615 128 617 126 618 124 620 124 621 125 622 124 624 123 626 123 627 124 628 124 629 122 630 119 639 118 641 116 648 116 652 117 654 117 654 122 652 123 649 125 649 128 652 129 653 130 653 131 650 132 646 133 647 137 647 142 645 144 642 145 642 140 644 137 644 135 642 135 641 137 641 140 636 142 636 147 634 148 634 156 632 159 632 166 633 167 633 169 632 169 632 173 636 180 639 188 639 195 638 198 638 201 635 205 635 209 2018 United States Senate election in Michigan poly 475 180 475 141 469 137 469 135 472 132 472 118 470 113 469 106 469 101 468 99 468 88 464 82 464 68 465 65 463 63 463 61 493 61 494 53 498 55 498 62 501 67 505 67 507 69 512 69 513 71 517 71 521 68 528 71 535 74 538 74 539 73 540 76 544 78 546 80 551 80 556 76 557 76 559 79 561 79 561 78 570 78 571 81 575 79 577 80 573 83 569 84 563 87 559 89 552 95 552 98 549 100 537 110 536 123 528 130 528 134 531 138 531 141 529 143 529 155 533 158 536 158 539 161 541 161 549 169 551 170 555 174 555 179 512 180 2018 United States Senate election in Minnesota poly 603 473 607 468 610 469 614 468 614 466 617 466 619 468 624 468 624 459 619 435 621 365 602 367 584 367 584 369 579 374 579 381 577 382 573 386 573 390 570 392 569 398 570 400 570 402 569 404 571 406 571 410 570 412 570 420 572 421 572 425 574 426 574 428 572 429 573 434 570 437 568 442 564 447 564 457 598 455 599 456 599 460 598 461 598 464 602 467 2018 United States Senate election in Mississippi poly 505 335 505 284 504 281 504 277 497 270 497 268 499 266 499 264 498 262 493 261 487 252 486 247 551 245 555 249 555 257 557 261 557 264 566 272 570 275 570 280 572 281 578 281 580 283 580 286 578 288 576 296 585 305 589 305 591 307 591 310 593 312 593 314 593 316 594 320 596 322 599 323 600 327 593 333 593 339 591 340 592 343 588 345 584 344 583 342 587 339 586 335 584 333 541 335 2018 United States Senate election in Missouri poly 189 31 252 43 304 50 361 56 358 102 354 142 302 137 246 129 245 140 243 139 242 134 239 134 236 138 234 138 232 137 226 137 225 137 223 137 221 136 217 137 215 137 215 131 210 124 207 108 205 107 202 110 199 110 197 109 197 105 204 87 203 85 200 85 196 79 195 75 193 72 191 69 187 67 187 62 188 58 185 53 2018 United States Senate election in Montana poly 489 257 486 253 485 249 482 244 482 234 480 231 480 225 477 222 475 212 473 205 470 204 469 201 458 196 451 197 448 199 440 192 418 192 352 188 349 231 382 234 380 256 438 257 445 258 2018 United States Senate election in Nebraska poly 148 336 77 231 94 167 136 177 187 187 163 313 161 316 159 313 153 311 151 313 150 335 2018 United States Senate election in Nevada poly 842 195 832 192 828 190 826 192 826 197 824 198 824 200 825 201 825 204 823 206 824 208 826 209 827 211 833 215 833 218 830 220 826 226 824 227 824 232 829 236 833 238 836 238 836 244 839 240 839 235 841 235 846 224 845 211 843 207 840 208 840 206 842 204 2018 United States Senate election in New Jersey poly 237 433 249 350 254 311 331 320 357 322 356 331 355 332 348 429 320 427 281 424 281 430 264 428 253 426 252 435 2018 United States Senate election in New Mexico poly 830 107 818 111 811 112 806 114 797 126 794 131 790 134 790 138 794 138 794 141 793 142 793 144 795 145 795 148 793 150 790 150 789 153 786 156 779 158 776 160 772 160 771 158 763 158 751 163 751 165 752 165 753 168 755 169 756 172 756 175 753 177 753 179 745 186 745 192 816 177 817 180 821 180 822 182 822 185 825 188 828 188 833 190 841 193 844 194 844 204 850 203 857 200 865 194 871 189 868 187 864 191 857 195 854 195 851 194 847 198 845 200 845 198 846 196 846 194 844 193 844 191 845 190 845 181 842 168 843 151 840 140 839 138 836 137 836 136 837 135 837 133 834 128 834 122 834 117 2018 United States Senate election in New York poly 357 121 361 88 363 57 385 59 424 61 460 61 463 65 462 82 463 84 464 88 466 91 467 104 468 107 468 114 470 118 471 127 417 126 2018 United States Senate election in North Dakota poly 670 267 664 211 688 208 690 211 697 210 699 213 704 213 707 211 714 210 722 201 731 196 736 224 734 225 734 230 735 230 734 246 728 253 724 253 720 258 720 263 719 264 718 263 716 263 714 266 714 273 713 274 713 277 709 277 705 274 705 272 703 271 700 272 698 274 697 274 696 273 691 273 690 274 689 274 687 272 683 273 682 272 681 269 677 266 2018 United States Senate election in Ohio poly 743 186 738 192 733 194 734 201 742 242 772 237 819 228 822 225 825 224 828 220 832 216 826 212 825 210 821 210 821 206 824 203 824 201 822 200 823 197 824 196 824 192 827 189 823 189 821 187 820 182 815 181 814 179 773 188 744 193 2018 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania poly 877 164 872 165 873 170 874 180 877 179 880 175 883 175 884 173 2018 United States Senate election in Rhode Island poly 586 366 587 360 586 359 586 357 590 355 595 334 621 332 621 328 727 318 729 316 730 316 730 320 727 323 726 327 724 326 721 327 720 330 718 330 716 329 711 334 711 336 708 337 701 343 699 343 697 345 694 346 694 349 689 352 688 357 637 362 2018 United States Senate election in Tennessee poly 350 431 353 376 357 334 410 336 408 365 408 379 414 385 418 384 422 384 421 387 424 388 428 390 432 390 436 392 437 391 440 390 445 397 448 397 450 395 452 395 455 398 460 400 464 396 469 398 475 400 477 400 479 398 482 397 485 398 487 396 489 397 493 397 495 396 503 400 506 401 510 404 512 403 515 403 516 432 516 433 517 438 519 441 520 446 524 451 525 458 525 463 522 467 522 468 523 472 523 475 522 481 521 483 521 487 514 489 509 492 505 493 503 497 499 499 486 510 477 513 467 520 463 521 458 527 454 527 453 529 455 531 451 545 451 551 453 559 454 566 455 569 457 567 456 559 454 554 454 552 453 550 453 544 455 535 460 527 464 522 465 522 465 523 461 528 458 532 455 535 453 545 454 545 454 550 455 551 455 556 457 558 458 561 458 567 457 567 453 571 450 571 446 568 442 567 436 567 432 563 426 562 419 559 417 554 417 551 415 547 413 546 413 540 412 539 412 536 413 535 410 532 407 530 402 521 396 517 396 514 391 502 391 499 389 497 389 495 380 488 380 486 378 483 372 483 371 482 362 482 361 481 358 480 355 481 350 485 349 490 345 493 345 495 342 498 340 498 338 496 332 494 329 490 325 489 317 480 315 476 315 466 312 463 312 460 308 455 304 454 295 444 294 440 288 438 288 435 285 432 283 430 283 426 316 429 2018 United States Senate election in Texas poly 168 295 189 188 235 196 231 220 264 224 262 245 253 309 2018 United States Senate election in Utah poly 854 152 855 144 854 142 854 132 855 130 855 120 854 119 854 116 856 116 860 112 860 107 858 105 858 99 844 104 832 107 833 113 835 116 836 124 835 125 835 128 838 131 838 134 839 137 841 137 843 146 844 148 844 154 2018 United States Senate election in Vermont poly 704 319 711 314 711 311 722 299 727 304 732 304 734 302 737 303 742 302 743 297 745 299 748 296 753 294 753 288 756 281 759 275 759 269 763 272 767 271 768 269 768 263 772 262 772 260 777 256 777 254 778 253 778 247 789 251 789 248 794 254 794 262 798 260 798 264 803 266 809 268 811 268 814 270 817 270 818 271 818 277 820 278 820 280 820 281 817 281 817 284 820 285 822 287 822 289 820 291 820 293 824 293 827 292 827 286 826 282 826 277 828 273 829 267 834 265 834 268 831 271 831 283 829 286 827 285 827 292 831 298 770 310 728 315 728 316 2018 United States Senate election in Virginia poly 161 91 161 82 174 28 116 13 93 7 92 8 93 10 94 13 90 12 88 12 86 13 85 12 84 12 85 15 87 16 87 15 88 15 88 18 89 18 90 16 91 12 94 13 95 16 94 18 94 26 94 28 95 30 94 31 93 31 92 28 90 26 90 23 92 22 92 20 91 20 89 21 88 23 88 25 85 24 80 22 74 21 72 19 69 18 64 12 62 12 61 13 61 17 60 18 60 21 61 23 61 37 61 38 62 39 62 42 65 44 65 45 61 45 60 46 60 48 62 49 63 51 62 52 61 54 59 55 59 58 60 59 60 60 61 60 61 59 65 59 65 60 68 60 68 63 72 63 73 65 75 67 75 77 80 80 84 80 87 78 92 80 98 81 99 83 106 83 109 84 114 84 115 83 119 83 119 84 136 84 2018 United States Senate election in Washington poly 741 244 737 226 736 226 736 246 731 252 728 255 726 255 722 260 721 262 722 263 722 265 720 266 718 265 716 267 716 274 714 275 714 278 710 279 710 285 713 286 714 288 714 290 721 297 723 297 726 302 732 302 734 300 737 301 741 300 742 295 745 296 747 294 751 294 752 292 752 290 751 288 757 274 758 267 761 267 763 269 765 269 767 261 770 260 770 258 775 254 777 251 777 245 779 245 787 249 787 245 784 242 781 240 780 240 775 244 770 244 767 248 765 248 760 254 758 254 756 242 2018 United States Senate election in West Virginia poly 538 123 538 111 541 109 544 111 545 111 551 109 557 105 559 104 561 105 559 107 558 111 558 112 560 112 561 111 563 111 564 113 567 113 571 118 574 118 599 124 601 124 604 127 607 128 608 137 612 140 607 146 606 152 607 154 611 150 611 148 620 136 620 137 620 140 614 152 613 158 614 159 614 162 612 163 612 168 613 169 613 174 612 175 611 179 610 180 610 182 611 184 611 189 613 193 613 197 598 198 566 200 565 198 562 197 559 194 559 188 561 186 557 183 557 174 553 169 550 168 544 161 542 160 540 160 538 156 534 156 532 154 531 143 533 140 533 138 530 134 530 130 535 126 2018 United States Senate election in Wisconsin poly 233 218 248 131 298 138 354 144 350 194 346 230 2018 United States Senate election in Wyoming </imagemap>
2018 Senate results (Minnesota and Mississippi each held two Senate elections)      Democratic hold      Republican hold      Democratic gain      Republican gain      Independent hold
House elections
Overall control	Democratic gain
Seats contested	All 435 voting seats +5 of 6 non-voting seats
Popular vote margin	Democratic +8.6%
Net seat change	Democratic +41
2018 House of Representatives results (territorial delegate races not shown)      Democratic hold      Republican hold      Democratic gain      Republican gain
Gubernatorial elections
Seats contested	39 (36 states, three territories)
Net seat change	Democratic +7
<imagemap>Image:2018 United States gubernatorial elections results map.svg|350px|center| poly 666 361 622 365 622 438 626 466 629 467 631 463 631 459 635 460 638 467 637 468 636 468 636 469 638 469 642 467 642 460 638 456 638 451 659 448 686 446 686 445 684 443 683 433 683 424 685 421 685 419 683 418 683 414 679 411 670 376 667 369 2018 Alabama gubernatorial election poly 160 539 160 454 154 450 152 449 149 451 145 449 142 448 140 449 134 445 128 445 125 443 125 439 122 439 119 440 119 438 115 434 113 434 111 437 104 437 99 439 96 438 92 440 92 443 88 447 78 447 77 447 76 449 78 453 82 458 82 462 83 465 85 465 85 468 87 472 87 475 83 475 78 473 77 470 79 469 78 467 74 467 72 468 72 469 70 468 61 468 61 469 62 471 65 474 65 477 64 478 64 481 68 485 74 485 77 487 80 487 80 486 84 486 85 488 83 489 83 495 80 499 76 498 76 497 71 499 68 497 65 496 63 498 63 501 55 506 54 512 57 513 56 516 54 517 55 520 57 522 58 526 64 527 65 526 67 527 67 533 64 533 65 537 64 539 66 540 67 539 72 539 72 541 74 540 75 541 75 546 76 546 77 543 78 542 80 542 80 545 85 543 85 545 81 550 80 555 75 557 74 559 74 561 68 561 63 563 62 565 58 564 53 565 49 567 45 569 42 568 39 568 37 569 37 571 38 572 40 571 43 570 45 571 47 571 50 570 53 569 55 568 58 568 58 569 62 568 65 567 66 568 67 568 68 567 72 567 73 568 75 566 73 565 74 564 78 561 83 560 94 555 103 548 100 545 100 543 104 539 106 539 108 537 108 536 114 530 116 529 117 527 122 527 122 529 123 531 120 532 119 531 116 532 114 535 112 538 112 539 111 541 114 541 114 543 110 543 110 545 115 545 122 539 124 539 125 541 126 541 127 540 129 540 129 543 130 543 134 538 134 537 131 540 130 539 132 536 131 535 129 537 129 533 132 531 136 531 138 535 139 536 141 538 143 538 146 541 156 541 162 544 166 543 167 541 168 542 168 545 167 546 167 547 170 548 176 552 178 554 181 556 184 556 184 557 183 559 183 561 185 563 186 568 188 569 193 575 193 569 195 571 195 575 196 576 197 573 199 574 199 578 201 580 200 581 199 581 200 583 201 582 202 585 205 590 205 589 204 586 204 585 207 586 208 587 208 582 207 581 207 579 209 580 212 582 214 585 216 586 218 582 218 578 217 574 209 571 206 570 206 568 202 562 198 556 197 554 192 551 192 549 189 549 189 545 186 544 182 546 182 549 177 552 177 549 170 543 170 540 169 539 167 539 166 540 162 540 2018 Alaska gubernatorial election poly 235 434 197 429 135 391 135 390 137 388 143 387 144 383 143 381 140 380 140 374 146 370 146 364 147 360 154 356 154 353 152 351 152 345 149 342 149 339 151 337 152 316 154 313 157 315 160 318 163 318 165 314 167 296 206 303 224 307 252 311 244 374 2018 Arizona gubernatorial election poly 569 412 517 412 517 404 514 401 511 402 509 402 508 401 508 361 507 356 507 342 505 338 505 337 538 336 584 335 585 338 584 340 581 342 580 344 580 346 590 346 590 348 589 349 589 353 584 356 584 359 585 360 584 365 582 366 582 369 578 372 578 374 577 376 577 378 574 382 571 385 571 387 572 387 572 389 568 391 568 395 567 397 567 399 568 401 567 402 567 404 569 406 2018 Arkansas gubernatorial election poly 28 148 51 155 71 161 92 166 76 231 148 338 147 341 150 347 151 351 153 354 152 356 149 358 146 360 145 363 144 366 144 368 139 373 139 381 142 384 140 386 123 386 92 381 93 367 82 351 76 351 74 357 76 359 76 360 74 360 73 359 71 367 72 370 73 371 71 371 70 370 70 366 71 367 73 359 71 356 72 355 74 357 76 351 77 349 76 344 73 343 70 343 69 342 66 341 65 340 53 340 47 340 45 338 46 337 48 337 51 340 53 340 51 338 51 337 53 337 55 339 57 339 57 340 65 340 66 341 66 339 63 335 62 333 60 331 56 330 53 329 50 327 45 326 42 324 42 321 44 315 45 313 45 310 43 308 43 306 39 300 37 296 35 290 34 285 30 281 31 273 33 273 35 271 35 266 33 265 31 265 28 260 27 254 28 249 29 246 29 244 23 238 24 231 17 217 16 212 18 204 19 203 19 195 17 189 16 185 14 185 14 183 16 177 22 172 26 161 27 152 2018 California gubernatorial election poly 254 309 261 259 265 223 324 230 380 235 374 321 316 316 2018 Colorado gubernatorial election poly 869 166 861 168 845 171 845 176 847 180 847 195 857 186 861 184 868 182 872 180 871 172 2018 Connecticut gubernatorial election poly 639 452 674 448 686 448 691 454 740 451 741 454 746 455 746 448 745 447 745 445 755 446 761 462 768 475 774 483 780 489 779 491 779 494 781 501 785 504 787 510 792 518 795 523 797 547 795 548 795 556 797 555 797 553 798 553 797 556 796 558 795 562 792 566 785 572 782 574 778 574 775 573 772 576 769 577 768 579 769 579 771 577 773 577 774 576 777 576 778 574 782 574 782 572 788 569 792 564 794 561 796 557 796 555 795 556 795 557 792 560 789 561 786 561 783 564 781 563 780 563 780 559 779 559 779 557 777 554 776 551 773 550 772 548 768 548 766 549 764 547 764 542 762 540 760 537 758 537 757 538 755 538 754 534 750 529 749 526 745 521 742 519 742 517 747 511 747 508 742 507 740 507 740 509 742 509 742 511 742 514 740 512 740 511 739 509 738 507 738 501 739 499 739 488 736 485 736 483 734 481 729 481 727 479 725 476 722 475 722 472 719 472 717 468 714 467 713 466 711 465 709 464 705 464 704 465 702 465 702 468 703 469 699 469 697 471 694 473 688 474 686 475 685 473 682 470 671 465 665 463 659 463 651 464 644 467 643 459 639 456 2018 Florida gubernatorial election poly 710 356 668 361 668 367 673 377 681 411 684 413 684 417 686 417 686 421 685 425 684 431 686 435 686 440 685 441 685 443 687 444 688 448 691 452 742 450 742 453 743 453 744 448 743 445 743 444 745 443 748 444 756 444 754 440 754 437 758 425 758 421 761 416 760 414 758 415 755 413 755 409 752 406 748 403 747 399 744 394 740 392 737 388 733 384 730 381 723 378 717 367 712 367 707 363 707 359 2018 Georgia gubernatorial election poly 215 493 215 550 250 592 354 592 354 546 301 493 2018 Hawaii gubernatorial election poly 175 28 188 30 184 48 184 53 186 58 187 59 186 62 186 66 187 68 191 71 193 77 196 83 198 85 199 86 201 86 202 90 195 105 195 109 198 112 202 112 205 109 208 125 214 132 214 138 216 140 218 138 221 138 223 139 227 139 228 138 233 139 235 140 237 140 239 137 241 137 242 141 244 141 235 194 188 186 141 177 152 135 154 131 153 129 150 129 150 125 152 122 155 118 158 117 158 114 164 106 167 103 167 98 163 96 163 83 166 67 170 47 2018 Idaho gubernatorial election poly 568 201 590 201 613 199 613 204 617 209 618 216 623 265 622 267 622 273 624 276 625 282 622 284 622 287 617 293 617 304 614 306 615 307 617 309 614 311 612 311 610 313 611 316 612 317 610 319 609 317 606 317 605 316 600 319 598 321 595 319 594 315 595 314 595 310 592 308 592 305 590 304 585 304 578 295 578 292 580 287 582 284 582 281 578 280 572 281 571 278 571 274 558 263 558 259 556 257 556 251 559 248 559 245 562 243 562 239 565 237 565 233 562 230 562 229 564 226 570 225 573 222 573 219 576 216 576 211 568 202 2018 Illinois gubernatorial election poly 486 245 484 243 483 236 483 233 481 231 481 225 479 222 478 216 475 210 475 205 473 202 472 201 472 197 473 195 474 189 471 186 471 182 503 182 556 181 556 183 559 186 557 188 557 194 560 198 565 199 566 201 566 203 570 205 570 207 575 211 574 217 572 219 572 221 570 223 564 224 561 227 561 232 563 233 563 236 561 237 561 242 557 244 557 247 556 248 553 245 553 243 515 244 2018 Iowa gubernatorial election poly 376 321 380 257 420 259 491 260 493 263 497 263 498 265 496 267 496 271 502 279 504 292 503 325 436 324 2018 Kansas gubernatorial election poly 868 92 865 92 869 106 875 125 877 132 879 132 881 134 881 136 883 137 883 133 884 133 884 126 886 125 886 124 885 123 885 121 886 120 887 118 889 118 890 120 891 120 894 117 896 116 897 113 900 113 901 111 901 104 900 102 901 100 903 102 905 103 905 105 905 106 903 106 903 107 903 109 904 110 906 110 906 109 904 107 904 106 905 106 907 106 908 104 908 102 907 102 907 100 910 97 913 97 914 99 911 99 909 100 909 102 910 103 911 103 912 101 913 100 913 99 915 99 919 94 923 91 924 90 926 89 927 85 927 82 924 78 924 77 922 77 921 79 919 79 917 77 916 71 909 71 901 41 892 37 886 42 885 44 882 43 880 40 879 39 878 39 876 44 874 52 872 56 872 65 870 68 870 73 872 74 872 77 870 80 868 84 2018 Maine gubernatorial election poly 758 242 759 252 764 247 766 247 770 242 774 242 778 239 781 239 784 240 789 244 791 245 793 247 796 247 800 239 804 247 811 247 811 248 807 253 808 261 801 258 800 259 800 263 803 264 810 265 814 267 816 267 815 264 811 257 810 251 811 249 811 247 810 244 811 240 815 236 816 237 816 239 813 241 813 243 816 245 816 250 814 251 814 255 816 253 817 255 815 256 815 260 819 263 821 263 821 265 822 270 823 270 823 266 821 264 821 263 822 262 824 263 826 266 828 266 830 265 835 264 836 262 837 256 834 256 832 257 824 257 822 245 819 236 817 230 2018 Maryland gubernatorial election poly 844 169 844 155 857 153 876 148 877 146 879 144 881 144 883 146 883 149 881 150 881 154 883 158 884 156 886 156 893 165 896 165 900 163 900 161 899 158 895 158 895 157 898 157 900 159 902 163 902 164 901 165 897 166 894 168 893 169 892 171 892 172 894 172 895 173 902 173 903 172 904 172 904 174 902 174 902 173 896 173 895 174 893 174 893 175 891 175 891 174 892 172 889 174 889 173 891 171 891 168 890 167 887 168 887 173 885 173 882 167 877 162 859 166 2018 Massachusetts gubernatorial election poly 632 211 685 206 686 203 690 200 690 194 692 193 693 188 694 186 696 187 698 187 698 177 692 160 688 155 682 158 682 161 679 164 678 167 675 167 672 165 672 161 674 159 677 156 676 153 679 151 679 140 676 137 675 135 678 134 674 129 670 129 662 124 658 125 654 122 654 118 655 116 664 115 666 116 671 117 673 114 670 112 667 113 667 114 669 114 668 116 666 116 661 112 661 106 660 104 659 105 651 107 647 107 647 101 646 100 639 104 632 104 629 105 624 110 621 111 619 110 618 109 617 109 616 110 611 110 609 107 609 105 606 103 601 102 600 101 599 101 596 104 594 104 594 102 597 98 597 96 600 94 601 92 603 91 605 91 605 90 604 89 602 89 598 90 595 92 591 97 589 98 588 100 588 101 585 102 583 103 582 105 579 106 575 106 574 108 569 110 569 112 570 114 572 116 575 116 588 119 591 120 595 121 597 122 600 122 602 123 603 123 604 125 607 126 609 127 609 133 610 137 612 138 613 136 615 131 615 128 617 126 618 124 620 124 621 125 622 124 624 123 626 123 627 124 628 124 629 122 630 119 639 118 641 116 648 116 652 117 654 117 654 122 652 123 649 125 649 128 652 129 653 130 653 131 650 132 646 133 647 137 647 142 645 144 642 145 642 140 644 137 644 135 642 135 641 137 641 140 636 142 636 147 634 148 634 156 632 159 632 166 633 167 633 169 632 169 632 173 636 180 639 188 639 195 638 198 638 201 635 205 635 209 2018 Michigan gubernatorial election poly 475 180 475 141 469 137 469 135 472 132 472 118 470 113 469 106 469 101 468 99 468 88 464 82 464 68 465 65 463 63 463 61 493 61 494 53 498 55 498 62 501 67 505 67 507 69 512 69 513 71 517 71 521 68 528 71 535 74 538 74 539 73 540 76 544 78 546 80 551 80 556 76 557 76 559 79 561 79 561 78 570 78 571 81 575 79 577 80 573 83 569 84 563 87 559 89 552 95 552 98 549 100 537 110 536 123 528 130 528 134 531 138 531 141 529 143 529 155 533 158 536 158 539 161 541 161 549 169 551 170 555 174 555 179 512 180 2018 Minnesota gubernatorial election poly 489 257 486 253 485 249 482 244 482 234 480 231 480 225 477 222 475 212 473 205 470 204 469 201 458 196 451 197 448 199 440 192 418 192 352 188 349 231 382 234 380 256 438 257 445 258 2018 Nebraska gubernatorial election poly 148 336 77 231 94 167 136 177 187 187 163 313 161 316 159 313 153 311 151 313 150 335 2018 Nevada gubernatorial election poly 863 93 860 93 859 94 860 105 862 108 862 112 855 118 855 119 856 119 856 151 876 146 877 143 882 141 882 139 880 137 880 134 877 133 875 133 873 123 2018 New Hampshire gubernatorial election poly 237 433 249 350 254 311 331 320 357 322 356 331 355 332 348 429 320 427 281 424 281 430 264 428 253 426 252 435 2018 New Mexico gubernatorial election poly 830 107 818 111 811 112 806 114 797 126 794 131 790 134 790 138 794 138 794 141 793 142 793 144 795 145 795 148 793 150 790 150 789 153 786 156 779 158 776 160 772 160 771 158 763 158 751 163 751 165 752 165 753 168 755 169 756 172 756 175 753 177 753 179 745 186 745 192 816 177 817 180 821 180 822 182 822 185 825 188 828 188 833 190 841 193 844 194 844 204 850 203 857 200 865 194 871 189 868 187 864 191 857 195 854 195 851 194 847 198 845 200 845 198 846 196 846 194 844 193 844 191 845 190 845 181 842 168 843 151 840 140 839 138 836 137 836 136 837 135 837 133 834 128 834 122 834 117 2018 New York gubernatorial election poly 670 267 664 211 688 208 690 211 697 210 699 213 704 213 707 211 714 210 722 201 731 196 736 224 734 225 734 230 735 230 734 246 728 253 724 253 720 258 720 263 719 264 718 263 716 263 714 266 714 273 713 274 713 277 709 277 705 274 705 272 703 271 700 272 698 274 697 274 696 273 691 273 690 274 689 274 687 272 683 273 682 272 681 269 677 266 2018 Ohio gubernatorial election poly 358 332 359 322 404 324 446 326 503 326 503 334 504 341 506 363 507 400 505 399 500 397 497 394 495 394 492 396 490 395 488 394 486 394 484 396 481 395 479 395 479 397 476 399 473 398 469 396 465 396 465 394 463 394 463 396 461 398 459 398 455 397 454 394 449 393 448 395 445 395 444 392 442 391 442 389 437 389 437 390 435 390 433 389 432 388 428 388 427 387 423 387 423 384 421 382 419 383 417 383 417 382 414 383 410 378 410 359 411 343 412 334 2018 Oklahoma gubernatorial election poly 29 146 26 142 27 139 28 128 34 120 38 114 44 102 49 88 53 80 58 64 61 61 66 61 67 64 70 64 73 67 73 77 78 81 86 81 87 80 89 80 90 81 93 81 93 82 96 82 99 84 104 85 104 84 106 84 107 86 113 86 114 85 117 85 118 86 133 85 161 92 161 96 165 99 165 102 163 104 162 107 159 110 157 112 157 115 155 117 153 117 149 122 148 125 148 129 149 130 151 130 152 132 151 133 140 176 89 164 56 155 2018 Oregon gubernatorial election poly 743 186 738 192 733 194 734 201 742 242 772 237 819 228 822 225 825 224 828 220 832 216 826 212 825 210 821 210 821 206 824 203 824 201 822 200 823 197 824 196 824 192 827 189 823 189 821 187 820 182 815 181 814 179 773 188 744 193 2018 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election poly 877 164 872 165 873 170 874 180 877 179 880 175 883 175 884 173 2018 Rhode Island gubernatorial election poly 708 361 708 359 711 357 711 355 716 354 728 348 750 347 754 352 770 350 784 357 795 366 791 371 788 377 788 383 785 387 782 388 782 390 777 395 777 397 772 402 767 402 767 404 768 405 768 406 763 412 760 413 757 413 756 410 756 407 753 405 750 403 749 399 747 396 747 394 744 392 742 391 739 387 727 377 724 376 721 372 720 369 718 367 717 365 712 365 2018 South Carolina gubernatorial election poly 353 187 357 124 411 127 471 128 471 132 467 134 467 138 473 142 473 180 470 182 470 187 473 190 472 193 469 199 466 197 461 196 458 195 452 195 449 196 441 190 423 191 384 188 2018 South Dakota gubernatorial election poly 586 366 587 360 586 359 586 357 590 355 595 334 621 332 621 328 727 318 729 316 730 316 730 320 727 323 726 327 724 326 721 327 720 330 718 330 716 329 711 334 711 336 708 337 701 343 699 343 697 345 694 346 694 349 689 352 688 357 637 362 2018 Tennessee gubernatorial election poly 350 431 353 376 357 334 410 336 408 365 408 379 414 385 418 384 422 384 421 387 424 388 428 390 432 390 436 392 437 391 440 390 445 397 448 397 450 395 452 395 455 398 460 400 464 396 469 398 475 400 477 400 479 398 482 397 485 398 487 396 489 397 493 397 495 396 503 400 506 401 510 404 512 403 515 403 516 432 516 433 517 438 519 441 520 446 524 451 525 458 525 463 522 467 522 468 523 472 523 475 522 481 521 483 521 487 514 489 509 492 505 493 503 497 499 499 486 510 477 513 467 520 463 521 458 527 454 527 453 529 455 531 451 545 451 551 453 559 454 566 455 569 457 567 456 559 454 554 454 552 453 550 453 544 455 535 460 527 464 522 465 522 465 523 461 528 458 532 455 535 453 545 454 545 454 550 455 551 455 556 457 558 458 561 458 567 457 567 453 571 450 571 446 568 442 567 436 567 432 563 426 562 419 559 417 554 417 551 415 547 413 546 413 540 412 539 412 536 413 535 410 532 407 530 402 521 396 517 396 514 391 502 391 499 389 497 389 495 380 488 380 486 378 483 372 483 371 482 362 482 361 481 358 480 355 481 350 485 349 490 345 493 345 495 342 498 340 498 338 496 332 494 329 490 325 489 317 480 315 476 315 466 312 463 312 460 308 455 304 454 295 444 294 440 288 438 288 435 285 432 283 430 283 426 316 429 2018 Texas gubernatorial election poly 854 152 855 144 854 142 854 132 855 130 855 120 854 119 854 116 856 116 860 112 860 107 858 105 858 99 844 104 832 107 833 113 835 116 836 124 835 125 835 128 838 131 838 134 839 137 841 137 843 146 844 148 844 154 2018 Vermont gubernatorial election poly 538 123 538 111 541 109 544 111 545 111 551 109 557 105 559 104 561 105 559 107 558 111 558 112 560 112 561 111 563 111 564 113 567 113 571 118 574 118 599 124 601 124 604 127 607 128 608 137 612 140 607 146 606 152 607 154 611 150 611 148 620 136 620 137 620 140 614 152 613 158 614 159 614 162 612 163 612 168 613 169 613 174 612 175 611 179 610 180 610 182 611 184 611 189 613 193 613 197 598 198 566 200 565 198 562 197 559 194 559 188 561 186 557 183 557 174 553 169 550 168 544 161 542 160 540 160 538 156 534 156 532 154 531 143 533 140 533 138 530 134 530 130 535 126 2018 Wisconsin gubernatorial election poly 233 218 248 131 298 138 354 144 350 194 346 230 2018 Wyoming gubernatorial election rect 599 556 561 591 2018 Guam gubernatorial election rect 634 591 599 557 2018 Northern Mariana Islands gubernatorial election rect 681 516 636 555 2018 United States Virgin Islands gubernatorial election </imagemap>
2018 gubernatorial election results      Democratic hold      Republican hold      Democratic gain      Republican gain

Democrats made a net gain of 41 seats in the United States House of Representatives, gaining a majority in the chamber and thereby ending the federal trifecta that the Republican Party had established in the 2016 elections. The Republican Party retained control of the United States Senate, making a net gain of two seats and defeating four Democratic incumbents in states that had voted for Trump in 2016. As a result of the 2018 elections, the 116th United States Congress became the first Congress since the 99th United States Congress (elected in 1984) in which the Democrats controlled the U.S. House of Representatives and the Republicans controlled the U.S. Senate. In state-level elections, Democrats picked up a net of seven governorships and several state legislative seats.

This was the first time since 1970 that one party gained Senate seats while losing House seats, which also occurred in 1914, 1962, and 2022. In the state elections, Democrats gained seven state governorships, control of approximately 350 state legislative seats, and control of six state legislative chambers.

The elections marked the highest voter turnout seen in midterm elections since 1914, at 49.4%. The elections saw several electoral firsts for women, racial minorities, and LGBT candidates, including the election of the first openly gay governor and the first openly bisexual U.S. senator. In various referendums, numerous states voted to expand Medicaid coverage, require voter identification, establish independent redistricting commissions, legalize marijuana, repeal felony disenfranchisement laws and enact other proposals. During the campaign, Democrats focused on health care, frequently attacking Republicans for supporting repeal of provisions of the Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare), including protections for individuals with preexisting conditions. They also focused on tying many Republican incumbents and candidates to President Trump. Republican messaging focused on immigration and the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. There were allegations of attempted Russian interference in these elections as well as controversies regarding potential voter suppression.

Research has linked Republican losses in the elections to the party's unsuccessful and unpopular efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, as well as the China–United States trade war.

Issues, advertisements, and campaigning

In May 2018, President Trump began to emphasize his effort to overcome the traditional strength of the non-presidential party in midterm elections, with the "top priority for the White House [being to hold] the Republican majority in the Senate". He was already well into his own 2020 reelection campaign, having launched it on his inauguration day in January 2017. By early August, the president's midterm efforts had included rallies in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, Montana and elsewhere "reprising the style and rhetoric of his 2016 campaign". He focused his message on the economy, his proposed border wall, the "trade war" with China, criticism of the media, and his proposal to create the space force, a new branch of the military devoted to operations in space. In late August 2018, the Huffington Post reported that Trump and his administration had been engaging in campaign activity on taxpayer-funded trips. According to the report, a top White House staffer identified 35 events by Cabinet and senior staff members "with or affecting House districts in August already". White House Deputy Press Secretary Lindsay Walters called the report "misleading".

The 2018 elections featured a wider range and larger number of campaign advertisements than past midterm elections. Almost a third of Republican ads focused on taxes, especially on the recently enacted Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. By mid-October 2018, at a cost of some $124 million, more than 280,000 television advertisements related to immigration had been aired in House, Senate and gubernatorial races, representing a five-fold increase compared to the 2014 cycle. In October 2018, The New York Times and The Washington Post characterized Republicans' 2018 campaign messaging as being chiefly focused on fear-mongering about immigration and race. According to The Washington Post, President Trump "settled on a strategy of fear—laced with falsehoods and racially tinged rhetoric—to help lift his party to victory in the coming midterms, part of a broader effort to energize Republican voters". In November 2018, Facebook, NBC, and Fox News withdrew a controversial pro-Trump advertisement that focused on a migrant caravan; Facebook noted that the ad violated Facebook's rules concerning "sensational content".

Nearly half of all advertisements by Democrats focused on health care, in particular on defending the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare or the Affordable Care Act) and keeping in place protections for individuals with preexisting conditions. A number of Republican candidates claimed to support provisions of the Affordable Care Act, such as protections for preexisting conditions, even though they supported efforts that either weakened or eliminated those provisions. In the final weeks of the campaign, Democrats indicated their desire to keep the focus of the campaign on Republican efforts to repeal provisions of Obamacare through the proposed American Health Care Act of 2017. A Gallup poll conducted days before the election found that voters considered healthcare and the economy to be the top issues among registered voters, though many voters also considered immigration to be a top priority.

Federal elections

Senate

Main article: 2018 United States Senate elections

Control of Senate seats by class after the 2018 elections

Class	Democratic	Republican	Independent	Next elections
1	21	10	2	2024
2	12	21	0	2020
3	12	22	0	2022
Total	45	53	2	—

In the 2018 elections, Republicans sought to defend the Senate majority they had maintained since the 2014 elections. Thirty-five of the 100 seats were up for election, including all 33 Class 1 Senate seats. Class 2 Senate seats in Minnesota and Mississippi each held special elections to fill vacancies. The Class 1 Senate elections were for terms lasting from January 2019 to January 2025 while the Class 2 special elections were for terms ending in January 2021. 24 of the seats up for election were held by Democrats, two of the seats up for election were held by independents caucusing with the Democrats and nine of the seats up for election were held by Republicans. Three Republican incumbents did not seek election in 2018 while all Democratic and independent incumbents sought another term. 42 Republican senators and 23 Democratic senators were not up for election.

Assuming the two independents won re-election and continued to caucus with them, Senate Democrats needed to win a net gain of two Senate seats to win a majority. Including the two independents, Democrats held approximately 74 percent of the seats up for election, the highest proportion held by one party in a midterm election since at least 1914. Prior to the 2018 elections, Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight wrote that Democrats faced one of the most unfavorable Senate maps any party had ever faced in any Senate election. Silver noted that ten of the seats Democrats defended were in states won by Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election. Meanwhile, the Class I Senate seat in Nevada was the lone Republican-held seat up for election in a state that had been won by Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election. Silver predicted that even a nine-point victory in the nationwide popular vote for Congress would not be enough to give Democrats a majority in the Senate. Some observers speculated that Republicans might be able to pick up a net of nine seats, which would give them the 60-seat super-majority necessary to break filibusters on legislation.

Republicans won a net gain of two seats in the Senate. The 2018 elections were the first midterm elections since 2002 in which the party holding the presidency gained Senate seats. Republicans defeated Democratic incumbents in Indiana, Missouri, North Dakota and Florida. Democrats defeated the Republican incumbent in Nevada and picked up an open seat in Arizona. All four defeated Democratic incumbents represented states won by Trump in the 2016 presidential election. Democratic incumbents tallied victories in the competitive Midwestern states of Ohio, Michigan and Wisconsin as well as the key Northeastern swing state of Pennsylvania. Montana and West Virginia, both of which voted for Trump by a margin of at least 20 points, also re-elected Democratic incumbents. After the election, Chris Cillizza of CNN noted that by limiting their Senate losses in 2018, Democrats put themselves in a position to potentially take control of the Senate in the 2020 or 2022 Senate elections.

House of Representatives

Main article: 2018 United States House of Representatives elections

Cartogram of U.S. House of Representative results:
  Democratic gain   Republican gain
  Democratic hold   Republican hold
  Independent hold

Historical mid-term seat gains in the House of Representatives for the party not holding the presidency

In the 2018 elections, Democrats sought to take control of the United States House of Representatives for the first time since the 2010 elections. All 435 voting seats in the House of Representatives were up for election to serve two-year terms. Additionally, elections were held to select five of the six non-voting delegates for the District of Columbia and the U.S. territories.

The 2018 House elections saw the largest number of retirements by incumbents of any election cycle since at least 1992. By June 2018, 20 House Democrats and 44 House Republicans, including Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, had announced their retirement. The disproportionate number of Republican retirements may have harmed Republican prospects in the 2018 mid-term elections due to the loss of incumbency advantage.

Democrats had 193 seats immediately prior to the November elections, and needed to net at least 25 seats to win a majority in the House of Representatives. In the November elections, Democrats won a net gain of 40 seats. As the elections also saw Democrats fill two vacant seats that had previously been controlled by the party, the Democrats won control of a total of 235 seats, while Republicans won control of at least 199 seats. The net gain of 40 seats represented the Democratic Party's largest gain in the House since the 1974 elections. Democrats won the nationwide popular vote for the House of Representatives by 8.6 percentage points, one of the highest margins won by either party since 1992. Due in part to the surge in turnout, the total number of votes won by Democratic candidates for the House of Representatives nearly equaled the number of votes Trump won in the 2016 presidential election. The 2018 elections were the third midterm elections since 2006 in which the President's party lost control of the House of Representatives.

Democrats defeated 29 Republican incumbents and picked up 14 open seats. Republicans did not defeat a single Democratic incumbent, though the party did pick up two open seats in Minnesota and one in Pennsylvania. Republicans defended the vast majority of their rural seats, but several urban and suburban seats flipped to the Democrats. Many of the districts picked up by Democrats had given a majority or a plurality of their vote to Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election. Of the 447 individuals who served in the House during the 115th Congress, at least 104 did not win re-election in 2018—this represents the third-highest turnover rate of any election cycle since 1974.

Special elections

There were a total of eight special elections to the United States House of Representatives in 2018. These elections were held to fill vacancies for the remainder of the 115th Congress. As a result of the special elections held prior to November 6, Democrats won a net gain of one seat.

Four special elections were held prior to November 6, 2018:

• Special election in Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district following the resignation of Tim Murphy (R), held on March 13, 2018; won by Conor Lamb (D).
• Special election in Arizona's 8th congressional district following the resignation of Trent Franks (R), held on April 24, 2018; won by Debbie Lesko (R).
• Special election in Texas's 27th congressional district following the resignation of Blake Farenthold (R), held on June 30, 2018; won by Michael Cloud (R).
• Special election in Ohio's 12th congressional district following the resignation of Pat Tiberi (R), held on August 7, 2018; won by Troy Balderson (R).

Four special elections were held on November 6, 2018, coinciding with the regularly-scheduled elections:

• Special election in Michigan's 13th congressional district following the resignation of John Conyers (D); won by Brenda Jones (D).
• Special election in Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district following the resignation of Pat Meehan (R); won by Mary Gay Scanlon (D).
• Special election in Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district following the resignation of Charlie Dent (R); won by Susan Wild (D).
• Special election in New York's 25th congressional district following the death of Louise Slaughter (D); won by Joseph Morelle (D).

State elections

Partisan control of states in the 2018 elections

  Democrats retained trifecta

  Democrats gained trifecta

  Republicans retained trifecta

  Republicans gained trifecta

  Divided government maintained

  Divided government established

  Officially non-partisan legislature

The vast majority of states held gubernatorial or state legislative elections in 2018. The 2018 state elections will impact the redistricting that will follow the 2020 United States census as many states task governors and state legislators with drawing new boundaries for state legislative and Congressional districts.

Gubernatorial elections

Main article: 2018 United States gubernatorial elections

Elections were held for the governorships of 36 U.S. states and three U.S. territories as well as for the Mayor of the District of Columbia. Democrats defended every seat they had controlled prior to the election and picked up seven governorships. They won open seats in Michigan, Nevada, Kansas, New Mexico and Maine and defeated Republican incumbents in Illinois and Wisconsin. They also picked up the independent-held seat in the U.S. Virgin Islands in a runoff election held November 20, 2018. Most of the Democratic victories were in Democratic-leaning states or swing states. Democratic candidates ran well ahead of Hillary Clinton in South Dakota, Oklahoma, Idaho, South Carolina and other "red states" that had given large margins to Trump in the 2016 presidential. All of those candidates fell short, however, and Kansas was the lone red state to elect a Democratic governor in 2018.

Republicans picked up the independent-held seat in Alaska, and Republican incumbents won election in competitive and Democratic-leaning states such as Arizona, Iowa, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maryland. The party also won competitive open seat elections held in Florida, Georgia and Ohio. Democrats picked up the governorship of Guam, but the incumbent Republican governor of the Northern Marianas Islands won re-election.

Legislative elections

Main article: 2018 United States state legislative elections

Partisan control of congressional redistricting after the 2018 elections. Note that most states will hold elections in 2020 that could affect partisan control of the decennial redistricting which will occur prior to the 2022 elections.

  Democratic control

  Republican control

  Split or bipartisan control

  Independent redistricting commission

  No redistricting necessary

Eighty-seven of the 99 state legislative chambers, in 46 states—6,069 seats out of the nation's 7,383 legislative seats (82%)—held regularly-scheduled elections. Every territorial legislature except for the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico held elections for at least one chamber. In some legislative chambers, all seats were up for election, but some chambers with staggered terms held elections only for a portion of the seats in the chamber.

Democrats flipped at least 350 state legislative seats, picking up most of those seats in states where President Trump's approval rating was relatively low. Six chambers—the Colorado Senate, New Hampshire House, New Hampshire Senate, Minnesota House, Maine Senate and New York State Senate—flipped from Republican to Democratic control. Additionally the Connecticut Senate went from being evenly divided to a Democratic majority. Democrats also broke Republican legislative supermajorities in North Carolina, Michigan and Pennsylvania and gained a legislative supermajority in both houses of the California, Illinois and Oregon legislatures.

Democrats gained a trifecta (control of the governor's office and both legislative chambers) in Colorado, Illinois, Connecticut, Maine, New Mexico, New York and Nevada as well as in Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Republicans lost trifectas in Kansas, Michigan, Wisconsin and New Hampshire. After the election, Democrats have 14 trifectas, Republicans have 21 trifectas, and 14 states have a divided government. Minnesota became the lone multicameral state legislature in the nation with divided control, with the Democratic Party hold a majority in its state house and the Republican Party holding a majority in its state senate. All other state legislatures were either unicameral or had unified bicameral party control. In Alaska, Republicans won the gubernatorial election and held a majority of the seats in both chambers of the state legislature, but a coalition of independents, Democrats, and Republicans elected independent Bryce Edgmon as Speaker of the Alaska House of Representatives.

All parties presented candidates in more races than usual. The number of Democratic candidates increased to almost 88% of the races in 2018 from 77% in 2014. Parties often do not run in races where the incumbent or other favorite candidate has a very high margin in polls, in order to focus resources on more competitive races with greater chances of success; however, increasing the number of candidates is seen as a way to drive local voter engagement and increase the number of votes for other, more competitive races at an upper level.

Despite these Democratic gains, the party controlled a total of just 37 state legislative chambers after the election, far fewer chambers than it had controlled prior to the 2010 elections. Tim Storey of the National Conference of State Legislatures attributed the continuing Republican dominance of state legislatures in part to Republican control of redistricting in many states following 2010. In at least three states (Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Michigan), Republicans retained control of the lower house even though a majority of voters voted for a Democratic candidate for the lower house. In many states, Democrats indicated their hope that 2018 would be part of a "two-cycle process", with gains in 2018 putting the party within distance of taking control of more state legislative chambers in the 2020 elections.

Other state elections

See also: List of U.S. statewide elected officials

Many states have statewide elected officials other than the governor. Such positions include secretary of state, attorney general, treasurer and auditor. These officials can play important roles in setting policy and overseeing state functions. In 2018, Democrats won attorneys general races in Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada and Colorado; each position had previously been held by a Republican. After the elections, Democrats held 27 of the 50 attorneys general positions in the country. Democrats also won control of the office of secretary of state in Michigan, Arizona, and Colorado, although Republicans still held a majority of the elected secretary of state positions nationwide. Other offices that Democrats won control of in 2018 include the Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Maine State Treasurer, the Iowa State Auditor and the Florida Commissioner of Agriculture.

Attorney general

Results of the 2018 US Attorney General elections

  Republican hold

  Democratic hold

  Democratic gain

  No election

Main article: 2018 United States attorney general elections

Attorneys General were elected in 30 states, 2 territories, and the District of Columbia. 43 states elect their attorney general, and 7 are appointed through other processes. The previous Attorney General elections for this group of states took place in 2014, except in Vermont where Attorneys General only serve two-year terms and elected their current attorney general in 2016.

Democrats gained 4 elected Attorney General offices, Republicans gained zero offices. This caused Democratic Attorney Generals to constitute a majority of elected Attorneys General in U.S. states.

Ballot measures

  Medicaid expansion proposal passed

  Medicaid expansion previously implemented or passed

  No Medicaid expansion

A total of 157 ballot measures were voted on in 34 states. These include initiatives on redistricting reform, voting rights, marijuana, infrastructure, health care and taxes.

As a result of successful ballot measures, Colorado, Michigan and Utah established independent redistricting commissions while Nebraska, Utah and Idaho expanded access to Medicaid. Florida voters approved Florida Amendment 4, which restored voting rights to some felons who have served out their sentence and banned off shore drilling, vaping in indoor work spaces, and gambling institutions related to dog racing. Nevada and Michigan approved automatic voter registration, and Michigan expanded absentee voting. Also, Maryland approved same-day voter registration, allowing voters to register as late as on Election Day. In Arkansas and North Carolina, voter ID ballot measures were approved. Michigan, Missouri and Utah voters approved marijuana proposals, with Michigan approving recreational marijuana and Missouri approving medical marijuana. Utah voters also approved medical marijuana, although Utah lawmakers later rolled back some of the provisions of the measure. North Dakota voters voted down a proposal to legalize recreational marijuana. In California, voters declined to repeal the 2017 Road Repair and Accountability Act, which increased fuel taxes and vehicle license fees to fund infrastructure improvements. Nationwide, 96 transportation ballot measures worth about $30.68 billion passed at the state and local levels on Election Day—41 transportation-related ballot measures failed.

Local elections

Mayoral elections

Incumbent candidates won in mayoral elections held in major cities, including Anchorage, Alaska (Ethan Berkowitz); Austin, Texas (Steve Adler); Oakland, California (Libby Schaaf); Providence, Rhode Island (Jorge Elorza); and Washington, D.C. (Muriel Bowser). The District of Columbia and Oakland each re-elected mayors for the first time since 2002.

Incumbent mayors were also re-elected in Chesapeake, Virginia (Richard West); Chula Vista, California (Mary Salas); Irvine, California (Donald P. Wagner); Long Beach, California (Robert Garcia); Louisville, Kentucky (Greg Fischer); Lubbock, Texas (Dan Pope); Newark, New Jersey (Ras J. Baraka); Reno, Nevada (Hillary Schieve); San Jose, California (Sam Liccardo); and Santa Ana, California (Miguel Pulido). In San Bernardino, California, John Valdivia defeated incumbent Mayor R. Carey Davis. Open seats were won in Anaheim, California (Harry Sidhu); Chandler, Arizona (Kevin Hartke); Garland, Texas (Lori Barnett-Dodson); and Trenton, New Jersey (Reed Gusciora). In Oklahoma City, David Holt, a member of the Osage Nation, was the first Native American to be elected mayor. In Fort Smith, Arkansas, George McGill won an open seat and became the city's first black mayor.

Mayoral elections in November 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona, and Corpus Christi and Laredo, Texas, as well as Little Rock, Arkansas, resulted in no single candidate carrying a majority of the vote. Frank Scott Jr. won the December 2018 runoff to become Little Rock's first elected African-American mayor. In Texas, incumbents won their runoff races in Laredo (Pete Saenz) and Corpus Christi (Joe McComb). The Phoenix mayoral runoff was held in March 2019.

Although most local offices are nonpartisan, when looking at party identification of the officeholders, registered Republicans gained two mayorships during 2018. Linda Gorton won a seat previously held by a Democrat in Lexington, Kentucky and Bob Dyer won a seat previously held by an independent in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Following the November elections, registered Democrats hold 60 mayorships (−1) in the 100 largest cities in the United States, registered Republicans hold 28 (+2) and independents hold 7 (−1).

Special elections

Two nonpartisan mayoral special elections were held in 2018:

• Special election in Nashville, Tennessee following the resignation of Mayor Megan Barry, held on May 24, 2018; won by David Briley.
• Special election in San Francisco, California following the death of Mayor Ed Lee, held on June 5, 2018; won by London Breed.

Other local elections and referendums

• Washington, D.C., re-elected Democrats Michael D. Brown as shadow senator and Franklin Garcia as shadow representative, offices that are charged with lobbying Congress for D.C. statehood.
• Also during Washington, D.C.'s June 19 primary elections, voters approved Initiative 77, which would phase out the minimum wage exemption for tipped employees. The D.C. Council subsequently repealed the initiative.
• In Anchorage, Alaska, Municipal Proposition 1, a petition-based initiative to limit access to bathrooms and locker rooms based on biological sex, was defeated.
• At least two citizen initiatives sought to change how candidates are elected in non-partisan local elections with mixed results in 2018. In Fargo, North Dakota, voters approved the use of approval voting while in Lane County, Oregon voters rejected the use of STAR voting. Voters in Memphis, Tennessee rejected two referendums seeking to repeal the use of instant-runoff voting in city elections, which is set to begin being used in 2019.
• In Lincoln, Nebraska, voters approved a term-limits amendment to the city charter, blocking three-term incumbent Mayor Chris Beutler from running for re-election.

Tribal elections

Several notable Native American tribes held elections for top tribal leadership positions during 2018.

Osage Nation Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear, San Carlos Apache Nation Tribal Chairman Terry Rambler, and Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina Tribal Chairman Harvey Godwin Jr. were all re-elected to second terms. Penobscot Nation Tribal Chief Kirk Francis was re-elected to a fifth term. Long-time Chairman of the Quapaw Tribe John Berrey was reelected, and voters formally changed the tribe's name to the Quapaw Nation.

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez, Oglala Sioux Tribe President Julian Bear Runner, Rosebud Sioux Tribe President Rodney Bordeaux, Tunica-BiloxiTribe Chairman Marshall Pierite, Yurok Tribal Chief Joe James, and United Houma Nation Principal Chief August "Cocoa" Creppel all won open seats. White Mountain Apache Tribal Chairwoman Gwendena Lee-Gatewood won an open seat to become the first woman elected to lead the tribe.

Ousted Northern Cheyenne Tribal Council President L. Jace Killsback was re-elected by two votes in a special election on January 2 after being removed from office in October 2017. He resigned from the position in October 2018 due to conflicts with the Tribal Council, triggering a new special election for January 2019.

Party leadership elections

• Troy Price was re-elected chair of the Iowa Democratic Party.
• Mike Madigan was re-elected chair of the Illinois Democratic Party.

Turnout

Turnout of the voting eligible population in midterm elections held since 1945

A total of 50.3 percent of eligible voters voted in 2018 (more than 122 million people), compared to a turnout of just 36.0 percent of eligible voters in 2014. The 2018 elections had highest turnout of any mid-term election held since the 1914 elections. Twenty-three states had double-digit percentage-point increases compared to average turnout in midterm elections held between 1982 and 2014. Georgia had the greatest increase over its 1982-2014 midterm average. Its 55% turnout was 21 points higher. Texas had a turnout of 46% which was 14 points higher.

The United States Election Project estimated that 40 million early voters cast ballots before election day, breaking the record for the number of early votes. Some states, such as Texas and Nevada, reported that officials had received more early ballots than the total number of ballots processed in the 2014 midterm election.

Records and firsts

The number of women who sought and won election to Congress in each election cycle from 1974 to 2018.

A total of $5.7 billion was spent in the 2018 elections for House and Senate races, the most expensive midterm race ever. The single most expensive race was the Florida U.S. Senate campaign, in which candidates and outside groups spent $209 million to support or oppose Democratic nominee Bill Nelson and Republican nominee Rick Scott, the latter of whom spent over $63 million of his personal fortune on his candidacy.

The 2018 elections saw a number of significant successes for women candidates. Following the 2018 election, there was a record number of women (127) in the 116th Congress, up from 110 in the previous 115th Congress. The share of women members in the 116th is 23.7 percent, up from 20.6 percent. The number of Democratic women in the House increased by 25, while Republican women in the House declined by 10. The number of women in the Senate increased by three, with 2 Democrats and 1 Republican.

The 2018 elections also saw a number of significant successes for LGBT candidates and religious and ethnic minorities. Jared Polis, who was elected governor of Colorado, became the first openly gay man to be elected governor. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan became the first Muslim women elected to the House of Representatives; Ayanna Pressley became the first female African-American Representative from Massachusetts; Sharice Davids of Kansas and Deb Haaland of New Mexico became the first Native American women elected to Congress, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York became the youngest-ever female member of the House at age 29. Other candidates failed to achieve historic firsts, including gubernatorial candidates Christine Hallquist (D-VT) and Paulette Jordan (D-ID). Hallquist was the first transgender person to be a major party's nominee for governor and would have been the first transgender governor, but lost to incumbent Republican Phil Scott in the general election, and Jordan, who would have been the first Native American female governor, lost to Republican Brad Little in the general election.

Following the 2018 election, Minnesota became the only state in which each party controlled one chamber of the state legislature, though in Alaska, Republicans controlled one chamber and a cross-party coalition controlled the other. This represented the fewest divided legislatures since the 1914 elections, when there only one state with a divided legislature. Nevada became the first state in U.S. history to have an overall female majority in the state legislature, with women holding 23 of 42 seats in the state Assembly and nine of 21 seats in the state Senate. Women made up the majority of a single state legislative chamber, rather than the entire state legislature, on one previous occasion, in the 2009-2010 New Hampshire State Senate. The 2018 elections also saw Guam elect a female majority to their territorial legislature.

Ballot controversies and recounts

Arizona

In Arizona, a court settlement was reached on November 9 between Democrats and Republicans after Republicans filed a lawsuit on November 7 to attempt to prevent Maricopa and Pima counties from using procedures that permit mail-in ballot fixes to occur beyond election day. The settlement gave all counties until November 14 to address problems with the ballots for the state's Senate race. Ultimately, Republican candidate Martha McSally conceded the race.

Florida

Recounts of ballots were ordered for Florida's Senate, governor, and agriculture commissioner races on November 10 after the tallies from 67 counties were deemed too close to call. Due to the recount ordered, Democratic candidate Andrew Gillum withdrew his earlier concession to Republican candidate Ron DeSantis. In total eight lawsuits were filed in the days after November 7. After recounts were held for each race, the Democratic candidates for Senate and governor and the Republican candidate for agriculture commissioner all conceded between November 17 and November 19. On November 19, the Supervisor of Elections for Broward County, Florida, Brenda Snipes, announced her resignation from her post, effective January 4, 2019, after national scrutiny led to widespread condemnation by Republicans.

Georgia

In Georgia, a judge placed a temporary restraining order on Dougherty County results on November 9 as, among other things, some of the 14,000 absentee ballots were allegedly re-routed through Tallahassee due to Hurricane Michael, resulting in a delay to the county election office certifying its results. On November 17, Georgia Secretary of State Robyn Crittenden certified the election result, a day after the restraining order expired.

Before the election there were allegations of voter suppression raised in Georgia, as well as outcry that candidate Brian Kemp did not resign from his position as secretary of state, which oversaw the election. On November 12, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams filed a lawsuit to prevent two counties from rejecting absentee ballots with minor mistakes, such as if a voter moved and had not changed their address. During her concession speech on November 16, Abrams announced her plans to file a federal lawsuit challenging the way the state elections were run. She alleged that Kemp used his position of secretary of state and its office to aggressively purge the rolls of inactive voters, enforce an "exact match" policy for checking voters' identities that left many voters in limbo and other measures to tip the election in his favor.

North Carolina

Further information: 2018 North Carolina's 9th congressional district election

The North Carolina Board of Elections voted unanimously on December 4 to not certify the congressional race in North Carolina's 9th district after allegations of potential widespread election fraud in the district. The board then declared a public hearing for December 21 to ensure the election was without corruption. The Washington Post reported on December 5 that the board had collected as evidence of election fraud six sworn statements from voters in Bladen County alleging that individuals called on them to pick up their absentee ballots. Incoming Democratic Majority Leader Steny Hoyer announced that the House of Representatives would not seat the apparent winner, Republican Mark Harris, until the fraud investigation had been completed, leaving it vacant at the start of the 116th United States Congress.

After a delay caused by a restructuring of the board, hearings resumed on February 18, 2019. On that day the regulator reported that it had found evidence of "a coordinated, unlawful and substantially resourced absentee ballot scheme" that may have involved more than a thousand ballots or ballot request forms. The board then unanimously voted on February 21, 2019, to call a new election, which was held on September 10, 2019. Harris declined to run in the special election, and the GOP instead nominated Dan Bishop, a Republican state senator. Democratic candidate Dan McCready again sought and received the Democratic nomination. The race was regarded as being a toss-up and a potential bellwether for the 2020 presidential election; Bishop ultimately won by about two percentage points.

Foreign interference

Main article: Russian interference in the 2018 United States elections

In early 2018, six U.S. intelligence agencies unanimously reported their conclusion that Russian personnel were monitoring American electoral systems and promoting partisan causes on social media. Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats stated during congressional testimony that "the United States [was] under attack" from Russian efforts to impact the results of the elections. United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned in a committee hearing that the federal government was not adequately protected from Russian interference in the 2018 midterm elections, saying: "No responsible government official would ever state that they have done enough to forestall any attack on the United States of America". At the July 2018 Russia–United States summit, President Trump downplayed the conclusions of the United States Intelligence Community, stating that he believed Russian President Vladimir Putin's repeated denials of interference in American elections. Trump would later accuse China of meddling in the U.S. midterm elections, asserting that "they don't want me or us to win" because of his imposition of tariffs on Chinese goods. In August 2018, Coats and FBI director Christopher Wray announced at a White House press conference that Russia was actively interfering in the 2018 elections.

In July 2018, Democratic senator Claire McCaskill alleged that Russian hackers unsuccessfully attempted to break into her Senate email account. The following month, NPR reported that Democratic senator Jeanne Shaheen from New Hampshire reported to the FBI several attempts to compromise her campaign including both spearphishing attempts on her staff and a disturbing incident where someone called her offices "impersonating a Latvian official, trying to set up a meeting to talk [about] Russian sanctions and about Ukraine". Her opposition to Russian aggression and support of sanctions had placed her on an official Russian blacklist. On August 8, 2018, U.S. Senator Bill Nelson from Florida told the Tampa Bay Times that Russian operatives had penetrated some of Florida's election systems, though he was criticized by The Washington Post's Fact Checker for providing no evidence of Russian hacking. In 2019, Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation on Russian interference in the 2016 election concluded "at least one Florida county" was successfully penetrated, and Governor Ron DeSantis said voter databases in two counties had been successfully penetrated.

On December 22, 2018, Coats reported that there was no evidence of vote tampering, but that "influence operations" had persisted. "The activity we did see was consistent with what we shared in the weeks leading up to the election. Russia, and other foreign countries, including China and Iran, conducted influence activities and messaging campaigns targeted at the United States to promote their strategic interests". That same month, Politico reported that the National Republican Congressional Committee had been hacked, though it was unclear which group was responsible for the data breach.

The Voice of America reported in April 2020 that "U.S. intelligence agencies concluded the Chinese hackers meddled in both the 2016 and 2018 elections".

In 2022, it was reported that a Federal Election Commission investigation had found that American Ethane Company, which had received investments from Russian oligarchs, had contributed Russian money to US political candidates in the 2018 midterm elections, largely in Louisiana. FEC commissioners Ellen Weintraub and Shana M. Broussard criticized the Republicans in the FEC for a "slap on the wrist" civil penalty.

Aftermath and reactions

Further information: 116th Congress and Presidency of Donald Trump

See also: 2019 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election

Republican President Donald Trump and Democratic House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi each declared victory for their respective parties in the 2018 elections

The Democratic takeover of the House of Representatives gave the Democratic Party the ability to block Republican legislation in the 116th United States Congress, which met from January 2019 to January 2021. The takeover also gave the Democrats control of congressional committees, along with the accompanying power to issue subpoenas and conduct investigations. Continued Republican control of the Senate gave the Republican Party the opportunity to confirm President Trump's nominees without Democratic support. During the 116th Congress, the Republican-controlled Senate confirmed numerous Trump-appointed judges.

After the election, despite the Democratic takeover of the House, President Trump claimed he had won a "big victory". He indicated that he looked forward to "a beautiful bipartisan-type situation" but promised to assume a "warlike posture" if House Democrats launched investigations as attacks on his administration. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi asserted that her party won gains because of voter desire to "[restore] the Constitution's checks and balances to the Trump administration". Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Senate Democrats performed "much better than expected" in a difficult election cycle. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said election day was "a very good day" for his party.

The election was widely characterized as a "blue wave" election. At the end of election night, Democratic gains in the House appeared modest and the Democratic candidates trailed in Senate races in Arizona and Montana and looked set to make a net loss of as many as four Senate seats, leading some news outlets to characterize the election as a "split decision" whereas other outlets described it as a "blue wave". However, late ballot counting over the next days and weeks found Democrats winning several more seats in the House and the Arizona and Montana Senate elections, leading to a re-evaluation of the initial election night analyses. One week after the election, Nathaniel Rakich of FiveThirtyEight said the election was "by any historical standard, a blue wave". Two weeks after the election, Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight wrote: "There shouldn't be much question about whether 2018 was a wave election. Of course it was a wave". It was third-largest midterm change of seats for either party in the House in the post-Watergate era, and the largest Democratic House gain since 1974. In Ohio and North Carolina, Democrats failed to pick up a single seat despite winning close to half the vote. While Democrats won almost half the vote in Ohio, they only won a quarter of its House elections. The New York Times asserted that gerrymandering affected the outcomes of races in those states. Democrats also made among the largest gains in House seats in Pennsylvania, where the state Supreme Court had struck down a heavily gerrymandered map that favored Republicans.

Research has found that Republicans who voted for the repeal of the Affordable Care Act got lower vote shares in the 2018 election. Studies also show that Trump's implementation of tariffs that adversely affected the U.S. economy adversely affected Republican outcomes in the 2018 election. Racism and sexism was a stronger predictor of the vote in the House than it had been in the 2016 election, as less sexist and less racist voters switched from the Republican Party to the Democratic Party.

Table of state, territorial and federal results

See also: Political party strength in U.S. states

This table shows the partisan results of Congressional, gubernatorial and state legislative races held in each state and territories in 2018. Note that not all states and territories held gubernatorial, state legislative, and United States Senate elections in 2018—the territories and Washington, D.C., do not elect members of the United States Senate. Washington, D.C., and the five inhabited territories each elect one non-voting member of the United States House of Representatives. Nebraska's unicameral legislature and the governorship and legislature of American Samoa are officially non-partisan. Several seats in the House of Representatives were vacant at the time of the election.

Subdivision and PVI		Before 2018 elections				After 2018 elections
Subdivision	PVI	Governor	State leg.	U.S. Senate	U.S. House	Governor	State leg.	U.S. Senate	U.S. House
Alabama	R+14	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 6–1	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 6–1
Alaska	R+9	Ind	Split	Rep	Rep 1–0	Rep	Split	Rep	Rep 1–0
Arizona	R+5	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 5–4	Rep	Rep	Split	Dem 5–4
Arkansas	R+15	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 4–0	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 4–0
California	D+12	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 39–14	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 46–7
Colorado	D+1	Dem	Split	Split	Rep 4–3	Dem	Dem	Split	Dem 4–3
Connecticut	D+6	Dem	Split	Dem	Dem 5–0	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 5–0
Delaware	D+6	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 1–0	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 1–0
Florida	R+2	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 15–11	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 14–13
Georgia	R+5	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 10–4	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 9–5
Hawaii	D+18	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 2–0	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 2–0
Idaho	R+19	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 2–0	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 2–0
Illinois	D+7	Rep	Dem	Dem	Dem 11–7	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 13–5
Indiana	R+9	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 7–2	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 7–2
Iowa	R+3	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 3–1	Rep	Rep	Rep	Dem 3–1
Kansas	R+13	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 4–0	Dem	Rep	Rep	Rep 3–1
Kentucky	R+15	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 5–1	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 5–1
Louisiana	R+11	Dem	Rep	Rep	Rep 5–1	Dem	Rep	Rep	Rep 5–1
Maine	D+3	Rep	Split	Split R/I	Split 1–1	Dem	Dem	Split R/I	Dem 2–0
Maryland	D+12	Rep	Dem	Dem	Dem 7–1	Rep	Dem	Dem	Dem 7–1
Massachusetts	D+12	Rep	Dem	Dem	Dem 9–0	Rep	Dem	Dem	Dem 9–0
Michigan	D+1	Rep	Rep	Dem	Rep 9–4	Dem	Rep	Dem	Split 7–7
Minnesota	D+1	Dem	Rep	Dem	Dem 5–3	Dem	Split	Dem	Dem 5–3
Mississippi	R+9	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 3–1	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 3–1
Missouri	R+9	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 6–2	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 6–2
Montana	R+11	Dem	Rep	Split	Rep 1–0	Dem	Rep	Split	Rep 1–0
Nebraska	R+14	Rep	NP	Rep	Rep 3–0	Rep	NP	Rep	Rep 3–0
Nevada	D+1	Rep	Dem	Split	Dem 3–1	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 3–1
New Hampshire	Even	Rep	Rep	Dem	Dem 2–0	Rep	Dem	Dem	Dem 2–0
New Jersey	D+7	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 7–5	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 11–1
New Mexico	D+3	Rep	Dem	Dem	Dem 2–1	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 3–0
New York	D+11	Dem	Split	Dem	Dem 17–9	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 21–6
North Carolina	R+3	Dem	Rep	Rep	Rep 10–3	Dem	Rep	Rep	Rep 9–3
North Dakota	R+17	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 1–0	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 1–0
Ohio	R+3	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 12–4	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 12–4
Oklahoma	R+20	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 4–0	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 4–1
Oregon	D+5	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 4–1	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 4–1
Pennsylvania	Even	Dem	Rep	Split	Rep 12–6	Dem	Rep	Split	Split 9–9
Rhode Island	D+10	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 2–0	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 2–0
South Carolina	R+8	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 6–1	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 5–2
South Dakota	R+14	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 1–0	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 1–0
Tennessee	R+14	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 7–2	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 7–2
Texas	R+8	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 25–11	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 23–13
Utah	R+20	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 4–0	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 3–1
Vermont	D+15	Rep	Dem	Split D/I	Dem 1–0	Rep	Dem	Split D/I	Dem 1–0
Virginia	D+1	Dem	Rep	Dem	Rep 7–4	Dem	Rep	Dem	Dem 7–4
Washington	D+7	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 6–4	Dem	Dem	Dem	Dem 7–3
West Virginia	R+20	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 2–0	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 3–0
Wisconsin	Even	Rep	Rep	Split	Rep 5–3	Dem	Rep	Split	Rep 5–3
Wyoming	R+25	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 1–0	Rep	Rep	Rep	Rep 1–0
United States	Even	Rep 33–16–1	Rep 31–13–5	Rep 51–49	Rep 235–193	Rep 27–23	Rep 29–18–2	Rep 53–47	Dem 235–199
Washington, D.C.	D+43	Dem	Dem	—	Dem	Dem	Dem	—	Dem
American Samoa	—	NP/D	NP		Rep	NP/D	NP		Rep
Guam		Rep	Dem		Dem	Dem	Dem		Dem
N. Mariana Islands		Rep	Rep		Ind	Rep	Rep		Ind
Puerto Rico		PNP/D	PNP		PNP/R	PNP/D	PNP		PNP/R
U.S. Virgin Islands		Ind	Dem		Dem	Dem	Dem		Dem
Subdivision	PVI	Governor	State leg.	U.S. Senate	U.S. House	Governor	State leg.	U.S. Senate	U.S. House
Subdivision and PVI		Before 2018 elections				After 2018 elections

Election night television viewership

Legend

cable news network

broadcast network

Total television viewers
8:00 to 11:00 PM Eastern

Network	Viewers
FNC	7,784,000
NBC	5,690,000
ABC	5,264,000
CNN	5,070,000
MSNBC	4,479,000
CBS	3,897,000

Television viewers 25 to 54
8:00 to 11:00 PM Eastern

Network	Viewers
CNN	2,573,000
FNC	2,392,000
NBC	2,282,000
ABC	1,957,000
MSNBC	1,354,000
CBS	1,296,000

Further reading

• Jett, Jennifer (November 9, 2018). "Right and Left React to the Midterm Results". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
• Foreman, Sean D., Godwin, Marcia L., Wilson, Walter Clark (Eds.). 2020. The Roads to Congress 2018: American Elections in the Trump Era. Springer.
• Sabato, Larry and Kyle Kondik. 2019. The Blue Wave: The 2018 Midterms and What They Mean for the 2020 Elections. Rowman & Littlefield.

External links

• "State Elections Legislation Database", Ncsl.org, Washington, D.C.: National Conference of State Legislatures, State legislation related to the administration of elections introduced in 2011 through...2020