1930 United States House of Representatives elections

The 1930 United States House of Representatives elections was an election for the United States House of Representatives in 1930 which occurred in the middle of President Herbert Hoover's term.

1930 U.S. House of Representatives elections

November 4, 1930[lower-alpha 1]
All 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives Results here only reflect the General elections. 218 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Bertrand Snell John Nance Garner Party Republican Democratic Leader since March 4, 1931 March 4, 1929 Leader's seat New York 31st Texas 15th Last election 270 seats 164 seats Seats won 218[lower-alpha 2] 216[lower-alpha 2] Seat change 52 52 Popular vote 13,141,932 11,026,131[1] Percentage 53.04% 44.50% Swing 3.69% 2.53%   Third party   Party Farmer–Labor Last election 1 seat Seats won 1 Seat change Popular vote 277,739 Percentage 1.12% Swing 0.58%
Democratic hold      Democratic gain      Republican hold      Farmer–Labor hold
Speaker before election Nicholas Longworth Republican Elected Speaker John Nance Garner[lower-alpha 2] Democratic

During the election cycle, the nation was entering its second year of the Great Depression. Hoover was perceived[2][3] as doing little to solve the crisis, and his personal popularity was extremely low. His Republican Party was initially applauded for instituting protectionist economic policies, which were intended to limit imports to stimulate the domestic market. However, after the passage of the heavily damaging Smoot-Hawley Tariff, a policy that was bitterly opposed by the Democratic Party, public opinion turned sharply against Republican policies.

Republican candidates across the country bore the blame for the economic collapse, and Democrats gained a total of 52 seats in the 1930 midterm elections. Even so, Republicans retained a narrow 2-seat majority after the polls closed. However, during the 13 months between Election Day and the start of the 72nd Congress, 14 members-elect died, and Republicans lost a number of the special elections called to fill those vacancies. Consequently, the Democrats held a 219-212 advantage over the Republicans when the new Congress convened.[4][5] This was the first of four consecutive depression-era House elections in which Democrats made enormous gains, achieving a cumulative gain of 170 seats. Over the ensuing 64 years (until the 1994 midterm elections), House Republicans would be in the minority for all but four years, winning majorities only in 1946 and 1952.