1934 United States Senate elections

The 1934 United States Senate elections were held in the middle of Democratic President Franklin D. Roosevelt's first term. The 32 seats of Class 1 were contested in regular elections, and special elections were held to fill vacancies. During the Great Depression, voters strongly backed Roosevelt's New Deal and his allies in the Senate, with Democrats picking up a net of nine seats, giving them a supermajority (which required 64 seats, two-thirds of the total 96 seats in 1934). Republicans later lost three more seats due to mid-term vacancies (one to Farmer-Labor and two to Democrats); however, a Democrat in Iowa died and the seat remained vacant until the next election. The Democrats entered the next election with a 70-22-2-1 majority.

This marked the first time that an incumbent president's party gained seats in both houses of Congress in midterm election cycles, followed by 1998 and 2002. This was also the second of three times in American history that the opposition party failed to flip any Senate seats, alongside 1914 and 2022.

Retirements
Three Democrats and one Republican retired instead of seeking re-election.

Defeats
Eight Republicans and two Democrats sought re-election but lost in the primary or general election.

Party Switches
One Republican won re-election as a Progressive.

Before the elections
At the beginning of 1934.

Elections during the 73rd Congress
In these special elections, the winners were seated during 1934; ordered by election date then by state.

Elections leading to the 74th Congress
In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning January 3, 1935; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 1 seats.

Closest races
Ten races had a margin of victory under 10%:

Virginia was the tipping point state with a margin of 55.1%.

New York
In New York, the whole Democratic ticket was elected in the third landslide in a row.

Tennessee
There were two elections due to a resignation.

Tennessee (regular)
Three-term Democrat Kenneth D. McKellar was easily re-elected.

Tennessee (special)
One-term Democrat Cordell Hull resigned March 3, 1933 to become U.S. Secretary of State.

Democrat Nathan L. Bachman was appointed to continue Hull's term, pending a special election which Bachman easily won.

Wyoming


There were two elections to the same seat due to the November 3, 1933 death of Democrat John B. Kendrick. Democrat Joseph C. O'Mahoney was appointed to continue the term, pending a special election. O'Mahoney won both the special election and the regular election to the next term.

Wyoming (special)
O'Mahoney would be re-elected twice and serve until his 1952 defeat.