Washington, D.C.

November 8, 1950

Yesterday, elections across the United States determined the face of the new Congress. Republicans braced-- their major gains from 1946 had eroded in 1948 and, in all likelihood, would take an additional hit in 1950, a midterm for the first Republican President since just before the Great Depression. Traditionally a referendum on the President’s performance, midterms often saw a downturn in the fortunes of the President’s party.

President Dewey had campaigned for Republican candidates in his strongholds-- the northeast, the midwest, and the northwest. The business of government had to continue to churn forward, though, and with crises evolving in Asia the President’s time speaking on behalf of Congressional Republicans was short.

Trouble began early in the night. Connecticut was a bloodbath for Republicans-- of the five seats they held going in, three were lost to Democrats. Democrats nearly doubled the number of seats they held in New Jersey. They picked up six seats in the President’s home state, New York. As polls closed further west later in the night, things did not improve. Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois saw significant Democratic victories in the House.

As far as the Senate was concerned, Republicans celebrated early-- the Senate Majority Leader, Scott W. Lucas of Illinois, had been unseated by Republican underdog Everett Dirksen. Elsewhere Republicans saw victories: in Idaho Herman Welker defeated Glenn Taylor, in California Richard Nixon defeated Sheridan Downey, in Maryland John Marshall Butler defeated Millard Tydings with the timely assistance of Senator Joseph McCarthy.

Democrats, however, struck back in kind. The number three Republican in the Senate, Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference Eugene Millikin of Colorado, was unseated by Democrat John A. Carroll in a tight race. In another unlikely victory, Democrat Paul Aiken took advantage of the relatively low name recognition of Harry Darby, a placeholder, and scored a win in Kansas. More Democrats won in New York, Wisconsin, and Missouri.

In the final analysis, the Republican Party was dealt a heavy blow in the House of Representatives-- their previous seat total of 211 seats had been reduced by 28 to 183, while Democrats picked those seats up and rose to 251 seats. In the Senate, despite facing a bad map, Democrats not only held their own but picked up a net of one seat.

As leadership departed from the Hill from both parties, the attitude going into 1951 is difficult to describe. Nobody is quite able to declare total victory in the 1950 midterms, though by the numbers it seems the Democrats came out on top. As the new class of Senators is sworn in, Democrats have chosen Senator Earnest McFarland of Arizona as the new Senate Majority Leader. Replacing Eugene Millikin as the Senate Republican Conference Chair is Senator Leverett Saltonstall of Massachusetts.