2014 United States Senate elections

For a majority, Republicans needed at least 51 seats. Democrats could have retained a majority with 48 seats (assuming the two Independents continued to caucus with them) because the Democratic Vice President Joe Biden would become the tie-breaker. From 1915 to 2013, control of the U.S. Senate flipped in 10 of 50 cycles, or 20% of the time.[8] Republicans had lost ground in the 2012 elections, leading to an internal fight among the Republican leadership over the best strategies and tactics for the 2014 Senate races.[9] By December 2013, eight of the twelve incumbent Republicans running for re-election saw Tea Party challenges.[10] However, Republican incumbents won every primary challenge.[11] Although Democrats saw some opportunities for pickups, the combination of Democratic retirements and numerous Democratic seats up for election in swing states and red states gave Republicans hopes of taking control of the Senate.[12] 7 of the 21 states with Democratic seats up for election in 2014 had voted for Republican Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election compared to just 1 state with a Republican senator that voted for Barack Obama. Democrats also faced the lower voter turnout that accompanies mid-term elections.[13]

Poll aggregation website FiveThirtyEight gave the Republican Party a 60% chance of taking control of the Senate as of September 28.[14] Another poll aggregation website, RealClearPolitics, gave the Republican Party a net gain of 7 seats.[15] Due to the closeness of several races, it was initially believed that Senate control might not be decided on election night.[16] Both Louisiana and Georgia were seen as competitive, and both states require a run-off election if no candidate takes a majority of the vote.

Two independent candidates (in Kansas and South Dakota[17]) refused to commit to caucusing with either party.[16] In the final months of the race, polls showed them with viable chances of winning, leading some analysts to speculate on the possibility of an "Independent caucus" that could also include Maine Senator Angus King and possibly Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.[18][19] However, no Independent won a Senate race in 2014, and King and Sanders continue to caucus with the Democratic Party following the 2014 election.

By midnight ET, most major networks projected that the Republicans would take control of the Senate. The party held all three competitive Republican-held seats (Kentucky, Kansas, and Georgia), and defeated incumbent Democrats in North Carolina, Colorado, and Arkansas. Combined with the pick-ups of open seats in Iowa, Montana, South Dakota, and West Virginia, the Republicans made a net gain of 7 seats before the end of the night. Republicans defeated three incumbent Democrats, a task the party had not accomplished since the 1980 election.[20] Five of the seven confirmed pickups were in states that voted for Mitt Romney in 2012, but two of the seats that Republicans won represent states that voted for Barack Obama in 2012 (Colorado and Iowa). Of the three races that were not called by the end of election night, Alaska and Virginia were still too close to call, while Louisiana held a December 6 run-off election. Virginia declared Democrat Mark Warner the winner of his race by a narrow margin over Republican Ed Gillespie on November 7, and Alaska declared Dan Sullivan the winner against Democratic incumbent Mark Begich a week later, on November 12. Republican Bill Cassidy defeated Democratic incumbent Mary Landrieu in the Louisiana runoff on December 6.

The Republican Party made a net gain of nine U.S. Senate seats in the 2014 elections.[24]

Going into the elections, there were 53 Democratic, 45 Republican and 2 independent senators (both of whom caucus with the Democrats). In all, there were 36 elections: 33 senators were up for election this year as class 2 senators, and 3 faced special elections (all from Class 3). Of all these seats, 21 were held by Democrats and 15 were held by Republicans.

Colored shading indicates party with largest share of that row.

Parties								Total
		Democratic	Republican	Independent	Libertarian	Green	Other
Before these elections		53	45	2	—	—	—	100
Not up		32	30	2	—	—	—	64
	Class 1 (2012→2018)	23	8	2	—	—	—	33
	Class 3 (2010→2016)	9	22	—	—	—	—	31
Up		21	15	—	—	—	—	36
	General: Class 2	20	13	—	—	—	—	33
	Special: Class 3	1	2	—	—	—	—	3
Incumbent retired		4	3[lower-alpha 2]	—	—	—	—	7
	Held by same party	1	3	—	—	—	—	4
	Replaced by other party	3 Democrats replaced by 3 Republicans		—	—	—	—	3
	Result	1	6	—	—	—	—	7
Incumbent ran		17[lower-alpha 3][lower-alpha 4]	12[lower-alpha 3]	—	—	—	—	29
	Won re-election	11[lower-alpha 5]	12[lower-alpha 5]	—	—	—	—	23
	Lost re-election	5 Democrats replaced by 5 Republicans		—	—	—	—	5
	Lost renomination but held by same party	—	—	—	—	—	—	0
	Withdrew from renomination and party lost	1 Democrat replaced by 1 Republican		—	—	—	—	1
	Result	11	18	—	—	—	—	29
Total elected		12	24	0	—	—	—	36
Net gain/loss		9	9	—	—	—	—	9
Nationwide vote		19,786,883	23,253,636	698,161	879,722	152,703	394,075	45,165,180
	Share	43.81%	51.49%	1.55%	1.95%	0.34%	0.87%	100%
Result		44	54	2	—	—	—	100

Source: Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives[1]

In seven races the margin of victory was under 10%.

Alabama election

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Nominee Jeff Sessions Party Republican Popular vote 795,606 Percentage 97.3%

County results: Sessions:      80–90%      90–100%

U.S. senator before election Jeff Sessions Republican Elected U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions Republican

Three-term incumbent Republican Jeff Sessions had been re-elected with 63% of the vote in 2008. Sessions sought re-election. Democrat Victor Sanchez Williams ran against Sessions as a write-in candidate.[53] Sessions won with 97.3 percent of the vote[54] against assorted write-in candidates.[55]

Alaska election

Nominee Dan Sullivan Mark Begich Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 135,445 129,431 Percentage 48.0% 45.8%

Borough and census area results

U.S. senator before election Mark Begich Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan Republican

One-term incumbent Democrat Mark Begich had been first elected with 48% of the vote in 2008, defeating six-term Senator Ted Stevens by 3,953 votes (a margin of 1.25%).[57] Begich was 52 years old in 2014 and was seeking re-election to a second term.[58] Stevens, who would have been almost 91 years old at the time of the election, had already filed for a rematch back in 2009,[58] but was killed in a plane crash the following year.

Republican Lieutenant Governor Mead Treadwell,[59] 2010 nominee Joe Miller,[60] State Natural Resources Commissioner Daniel S. Sullivan,[61] and Air Force veteran John Jaramillo ran for the GOP nomination. In the August 19 primary, Sullivan won the Republican nomination with 40% and defeated Begich in the general election.[62]

Arkansas election

Nominee Tom Cotton Mark Pryor Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 478,819 334,174 Percentage 56.5% 39.4%

U.S. Senate election results map. Red denotes counties won by Cotton. Blue denotes those won by Pryor.

U.S. senator before election Mark Pryor Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Tom Cotton Republican

Two-term incumbent Democrat Mark Pryor had been re-elected with 80% of the vote without Republican opposition in 2008.[63] Pryor was running for a third term.[64]

Freshman Representative Tom Cotton of Arkansas's 4th congressional district was the Republican nominee.[65] In the general election, Cotton defeated Pryor.

Colorado election

Nominee Cory Gardner Mark Udall Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 983,891 944,203 Percentage 48.2% 46.3%

County results

U.S. senator before election Mark Udall Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Cory Gardner Republican

One-term incumbent Democrat Mark Udall had been elected with 53% of the vote in 2008. Udall was running for re-election.[67]

Congressman Cory Gardner of Colorado's 4th congressional district was the Republican nominee; his late entry into the race caused numerous Republicans to withdraw their candidacies.[68] Gaylon Kent was the Libertarian Party nominee. Unity Party of America founder and National Chairman Bill Hammons was the Unity Party nominee.

Delaware election

Nominee Chris Coons Kevin Wade Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 130,655 98,823 Percentage 55.8% 42.2%

County results

U.S. senator before election Chris Coons Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Chris Coons Democratic

Democrat Chris Coons won in the 2010 United States Senate special election in Delaware caused by Joe Biden's election as Vice President, winning by a 57% to 41% margin. Coons sought re-election. His Republican opponent was engineer Kevin Wade,[71] whom Coons went on to defeat in the general election.

Georgia election

Nominee David Perdue Michelle Nunn Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 1,358,088 1,160,811 Percentage 52.9% 45.2%

County results

U.S. senator before election Saxby Chambliss Republican Elected U.S. Senator David Perdue Republican

Two-term incumbent Republican Saxby Chambliss had been re-elected with 57% of the vote in 2008 in a runoff election with former state Representative Jim Martin; Georgia requires run-off elections when no Senate candidate wins over 50% of the vote. Chambliss did not seek a third term.[29]

Political activist Derrick Grayson,[74] Representatives Jack Kingston of Georgia's 1st congressional district,[75] Paul Broun of Georgia's 10th congressional district,[76] and Phil Gingrey of Georgia's 11th congressional district[77] all declared their candidacy for the Republican nomination, as did former Secretary of State Karen Handel.[78] In the May 20 primary, no candidate received a majority of votes, so the top two candidates faced each other in a runoff; Perdue narrowly won against Kingston in the runoff primary election on July 22 with 50.9% of the vote.[79]

Michelle Nunn, CEO of Points of Light and the daughter of former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn, won the Democratic nomination.[80][81] Other declared Democratic candidates included former State Senator Steen Miles, psychiatrist Branko Radulovacki, and former US Army Ranger Todd Robinson. Amanda Swafford, a former Flowery Branch, Georgia, city councilwoman, received the Libertarian Party of Georgia nomination.[82]

Hawaii special election

Nominee Brian Schatz Campbell Cavasso Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 246,827 98,006 Percentage 69.8% 27.8%

County results

U.S. senator before election Brian Schatz Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Brian Schatz Democratic

Daniel Inouye, the second longest serving United States Senator in U.S. history, died on December 17, 2012, after respiratory complications.[85] Hawaii law allows the Governor of Hawaii, to appoint an interim Senator "who serves until the next regularly-scheduled general election, chosen from a list of three prospective appointees that the prior incumbent's political party submits". Governor Neil Abercrombie did so,[86] selecting Lieutenant Governor Brian Schatz to fill the Senate seat.[87] Inouye had been re-elected in 2010 with 72% of the vote.[88] Schatz was challenged in the Democratic primary by Congresswoman Colleen Hanabusa of Hawaii's 1st congressional district, who Inouye had hoped would be his successor.[89] Schatz defeated Hanabusa in the primary with 48.5% to 47.8%.[90]

Campbell Cavasso, former State Representative and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2004 and 2010, was the Republican nominee.[91]

Idaho election

Nominee Jim Risch Nels Mitchell Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 285,596 151,574 Percentage 65.3% 34.7%

County results

U.S. senator before election Jim Risch Republican Elected U.S. Senator Jim Risch Republican

One-term incumbent Republican Jim Risch had been elected with 58% of the vote in 2008. Risch sought a second term.[94]

Boise attorney Nels Mitchell was the Democratic nominee.[95]

Illinois election

Nominee Dick Durbin Jim Oberweis Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,929,637 1,538,522 Percentage 53.5% 42.7%

County results

U.S. senator before election Dick Durbin Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Dick Durbin Democratic

Three-term incumbent and Senate Majority Whip Democrat Dick Durbin had been re-elected with 68% of the vote in 2008. Durbin ran for a fourth term.[98]

State Senator Jim Oberweis was the Republican nominee.[99] He defeated primary challenger Doug Truax with 56% of the vote.

Iowa election

Nominee Joni Ernst Bruce Braley Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 588,575 494,370 Percentage 52.1% 43.8%

County results

U.S. senator before election Tom Harkin Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Joni Ernst Republican

Five-term incumbent Democrat Tom Harkin had been re-elected with 63% of the vote in 2008. Harkin announced on January 26, 2013, that he would not seek a sixth term.[102] Congressman Bruce Braley was the Democratic nominee.[103][104]

State Senator Joni Ernst was the Republican nominee.[105]

Doug Butzier, who was the Libertarian Party's nominee, died in a plane crash on October 13, 2014, but still appeared on the ballot.[106]

Kansas election

Nominee Pat Roberts Greg Orman Party Republican Independent Popular vote 460,350 368,372 Percentage 53.1% 42.5%

County results

U.S. senator before election Pat Roberts Republican Elected U.S. Senator Pat Roberts Republican

Three-term incumbent Republican Pat Roberts had been re-elected with 60% of the vote in 2008. Roberts sought a fourth term.[109] He faced a primary challenge from radiologist Milton Wolf, a conservative Tea Party supporter.[110] Roberts defeated Wolf in the Republican primary by 48% to 41%.[111] Shawnee County District Attorney Chad Taylor won the Democratic nomination.[112] Randall Batson from Wichita was on the general election ballot as a Libertarian.[113] Also, Greg Orman qualified for the ballot as an independent.[114]

On September 3, Taylor announced he was dropping out of the election, leading to speculation that Democrats would support Orman's candidacy.[115] On September 18, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that Taylor's name had to be removed from the ballot.[116]

Kentucky election

Turnout	46.27%
Nominee Mitch McConnell Alison Lundergan Grimes Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 806,787 584,698 Percentage 56.2% 40.7%
County results
U.S. senator before election Mitch McConnell Republican Elected U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell Republican

Five-term Republican incumbent and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell had been re-elected with 53% of the vote in 2008. McConnell sought re-election to a sixth term.[119] McConnell defeated businessman Matt Bevin in the Republican primary on May 20.[120]

Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, with support from much of Kentucky's Democratic leadership, won the Democratic primary.[120][121] Actress Ashley Judd publicly claimed to be considering a run for the Democratic nomination, but ultimately decided against it.[122][123]

Ed Marksberry pursued an independent bid after dropping out of the Democratic field in September 2013.[124][125]

Louisiana election

Nominee Bill Cassidy Mary Landrieu Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 712,379 561,210 Percentage 55.9% 44.1%

Runoff results by Parish

U.S. senator before election Mary Landrieu Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy Republican

Three-term incumbent Democrat Mary Landrieu had been re-elected with 52% of the vote in 2008. Landrieu ran for a fourth term.[127][128]

Louisiana uses a unique jungle primary system that eschews primaries in favor of run-off elections between the top two candidates; this run-off can be avoided if the winning candidate receives over 50% of the vote. Democrats Wayne Ables, Vallian Senegal, and William Waymire ran against Landrieu in the election, as did Republicans Bill Cassidy (representative of Louisiana's 6th congressional district), Thomas Clements (small business owner), and retired Air Force Colonel Rob Maness.[129][130] Electrical Engineer Brannon McMorris ran as a Libertarian.[131]

Because Republican candidate Maness took almost 14% of the votes in the primary, there was a runoff election on December 6, 2014, between Landrieu (42%) and Cassidy (41%). Cassidy won the runoff with 56% of the vote.

Maine election

Nominee Susan Collins Shenna Bellows Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 413,495 190,244 Percentage 68.5% 31.5%

County Results

U.S. senator before election Susan Collins Republican Elected U.S. Senator Susan Collins Republican

Three-term incumbent Republican Susan Collins was seeking a fourth term.[134][135] Shenna Bellows, former executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Maine, was the Democratic nominee.[136]

Massachusetts election

Nominee Ed Markey Brian Herr Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,289,944 791,950 Percentage 61.9% 38.0%

Results by town. Blue indicates towns carried by Ed Markey, red indicates towns carried by Brian Herr.

U.S. senator before election Ed Markey Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Ed Markey Democratic

Five-term incumbent and 2004 Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry had been re-elected with 66% of the vote in 2008. Kerry resigned in early 2013 to become U.S. Secretary of State.[139] Governor Deval Patrick appointed Democrat Mo Cowan to the seat.[140] Democratic Congressman Ed Markey beat Republican Gabriel E. Gomez in the June 25, 2013 special election by a 55% to 45% margin.[141] Markey had served the remainder of Kerry's term before running for re-election to a first full term in 2014. Hopkinton Town Selectman Brian Herr was the Republican nominee.[142]