The Most Shocking Midterm Election Upsets in U.S. History

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Midterm elections rarely receive the nonstop attention reserved for presidential races, but they can completely rearrange Washington. Every House seat and roughly one-third of Senate seats are contested, along with many state and local offices.

Most races follow a familiar script. Incumbents raise more money, attract major endorsements, and enter Election Day with strong name recognition. Yet history has repeatedly shown that none of those advantages can guarantee victory.

Republicans seize Congress in 1994

Democrats entered the 1994 midterms controlling both chambers of Congress. Republicans, led by Newt Gingrich, promoted their Contract with America and turned the election into a national fight over the direction of President Bill Clinton’s administration.

The result became known as the Republican Revolution. The party gained 54 House seats and eight Senate seats, taking control of both chambers. It was the first time Republicans had captured a House majority since 1952.

Paul Wellstone topples a well-funded incumbent.

Paul Wellstone entered Minnesota’s 1990 Senate race as a political science professor taking on Republican Sen. Rudy Boschwitz. The incumbent had more money, greater name recognition, and the advantages of already holding office.

Wellstone turned his underdog position into the heart of his campaign. He traveled around Minnesota in a used school bus, wrote his own speeches, stayed with supporters instead of booking hotels, and ran lively advertisements that made him appear approachable.

A Vermont farmer wins with a $251 campaign.

His opponent, businessman Jack McMullen, had far more money and had only recently made Vermont his permanent home. Tuttle used that weakness against him. During a memorable debate, he tested McMullen’s knowledge of farming and the pronunciation of Vermont place names.

Lisa Murkowski wins without her name on the ballot.

Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski appeared to have reached the end of her political career after losing the 2010 Republican primary to Joe Miller. Rather than leave the race, however, she launched a write-in campaign for the general election.

The challenge went far beyond convincing voters to support her. They also needed to write and spell her name correctly on their ballots. Her campaign distributed wristbands carrying her name and worked to teach voters how to complete a valid write-in vote.

Eric Cantor loses a race almost nobody expected him to lose.

Eric Cantor was not an ordinary House member when he entered Virginia’s 2014 Republican primary. As House majority leader, he was the second-ranking Republican in the chamber and widely viewed as a possible future speaker.

Voters delivered a stunning rejection. Brat defeated Cantor with nearly 56% of the vote, becoming the first challenger to unseat a sitting House majority leader in a primary. The loss immediately forced Republicans to reconsider their leadership plans and exposed the risks facing powerful incumbents who appear disconnected from their districts. Cantor’s defeat remains one of the biggest congressional primary shocks in modern politics.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeats a party leader.

Few people outside New York knew Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s name when she challenged Rep. Joe Crowley in the 2018 Democratic primary. Crowley had represented his district for nearly two decades and chaired the House Democratic Caucus, making him one of the party’s most powerful lawmakers.

Ocasio-Cortez ran a grassroots campaign focused heavily on direct contact with voters. Crowley enjoyed the financial and organizational advantages of a long-serving incumbent, but that strength did not translate into enough votes.

Midterms can overturn the safest predictions.

Midterm elections often act as a judgment on the party controlling the White House, but national political waves tell only part of the story. A single primary or Senate contest can also produce a result that few campaign professionals see coming.