Grover Cleveland Lost 116 House Seats in 1894 Midterm Elections

Which US President suffered the greatest loss in a midterm election?

That "distinction" belongs to President Grover Cleveland, who lost 116 House seats and 4 Senate seats in the 1894 midterm elections.

This came four years after President Benjamin Harrison, a Republican, lost 93 House seats. Two years later, the country decided to put Grover Cleveland back into the White House (he was the first man to serve non-consecutive terms in the White House at the time).

There was some serious buyer's remorse in 1894, as the Democrats suffered a complete wipeout - still the worst of all time.

Why did the country turn so quickly on President Cleveland and the Democrats?

After decades of economic growth, things came to a crashing halt in 1893 with the "Panic of 1893".

This was an eight month depression that resulted in unemployment rates spiking to over 25% in many states. Things started to go sour for the nation's economy just a few days after President Cleveland was sworn in, and many in the country blamed Cleveland and his policies for the economic depression. They would take it out on the Democrats in 1894.

In the modern era, President Barack Obama and President Bill Clinton both suffered heavy losses in their first term midterm elections.

President Obama would lose 63 House seats and 6 Senate seats in 2010, as the Tea Party wave took over, and many Americans were upset about Obamacare.

In 1994, President Bill Clinton lost 54 House seats and 8 Senate seats thanks to the "Republican Revolution" and the "Contract with America".

President Clinton would turn things around dramatically, actually gaining seats for his party in 1998, while President Obama would moderate his losses in 2014.

Other big wipeouts in the midterm elections include President Ulysses Grant in 1874, President Warren Harding in 1922 and President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938.

Source: US Midterm Elections History

Filed under: General Knowledge