295 seats 140 seats 47 47 50.9% 48.2% Start date November 8, 1966 | 248 187 26,934,136 25,521,157 6.2% 5.8% | |
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Winner John William M | ||
The 1966 United States House of Representatives elections was an election for the United States House of Representatives in 1966 which occurred in the middle of President Lyndon Johnson's second term. As the Vietnam War continued to escalate and race riots exploded in cities across the country, Johnson's popularity had fallen, and the opposition Republican Party was able to gain a net of 47 seats from Johnson's Democratic Party, which nonetheless maintained a clear majority in the House. This was also the first election that occurred after the Voting Rights Act of 1965 became law.
Contents
Future president George H. W. Bush ran for a seat in Texas, and won.
Overall results
Source: Election Statistics - Office of the Clerk
1 One vacancy due to refusal of House to seat Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. (D-New York)
Republican gains
Florida
Florida redistricted to adjust for demographic changes; in addition to minor boundary changes a district was removed from northern Florida, and Broward County was broken out into its own district.
Indiana
Indiana redistricted for this election, and boundary changes forced two Republican incumbents into the same district while creating a new district that was won by another Republican.
Maryland
Maryland redistricted its at-large district into an 8th district around Montgomery County, managing to adjust boundaries so no existing incumbents were displaced.
Ohio
Ohio redistricted its at-large seat into a 24th district, splitting out the counties to the southwest of Dayton from the city itself, as well as moving a district in southeastern Ohio into the Columbus area.
Texas
Texas redistricted for this election, eliminating its at-large district and removing two East Texas districts in favor of adding three districts in South Texas, suburban Houston, and suburban Dallas.