2022 Congressional Elections (Wolfman's World)

The 2022 congressional elections took place on November 8, 2022, to select members of the 118th Congress. This was the first election to take place after the redistricting based on the results of the 2020 U.S. census. Up for election were the 34 Class III United States Senate seats and all 435 seats of the United States House of Representatives.
== Senate Elections ==
The 2022 United States Senate elections were held on November 8, 2022, with 34 of the 100 seats in the Senate being contested in regular elections, the winners of which would serve six-year terms in the United States Congress from January 3, 2023, to January 3, 2029. Senators are divided into three groups, or classes, whose terms are staggered so that a different class is elected every two years. Class III senators were last elected in 2016, and were up for election again in 2022. Of the Class III Senators up for re-election, 14 were members of the Democratic Party, and 20 were Republicans. Republicans only needed 1 seat to shift the balance of power, but wouldn't secure it. This was due to the Democrats being buoyed by President Joe Biden's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, which by the start of 2022 had been brought under control enough so that pre-pandemic life could resume, and his large infrastructure package which had gone into effect in mid-2020. The Republicans were also harmed by the nomination of many candidates who were very loyal to Former President Donald Trump key races.
=== Retired Incumbents in Safe States: ===
State 	Retiring Incumbent	Replaced By
Alabama	Richard Shelby (R)	Mo Brooks (R)
Vermont	Pat Leahy (D) 	T.J. Donovan (D)
=== Close Races in which the Incumbent Retired: ===
State & Race Summary	Incumbent 	Winner, Loser, and Margin of Victory	 	 	
Iowa 	When Chuck Grassley retired, it was thought that this race would competitive, but Chuck's Grandson and Iowa House Speaker Pat easily defeated former Congresswoman Abby Finkenauer. 	
Chuck Grassley (R) 	Pat Grassley (R) 	Defeated Abby Finkenauer	7.3%
Missouri 	This race was not thought of as competitive at first, but that changed when scandal-marred Former Governor Eric Greitens won the nomination. Scott Sifton, a former state senator, won election in the closest race of the cycle. 	Roy Blunt (R) 	Scott Sifton (D) 	Defeated Eric Greitens 	0.6%
North Carolina 	This race was seen as a tossup as soon as Richard Burr announced his retirement. The Democratic Primary was a tight race between State Senator Jeff Jackson and Former Chief State Supreme Court Justice Cheri Beasly, with Beasly narrowly winning. The Republicans ran Congressman Ted Budd, who was heavily campaigned for by Trump. Budd was able to defeat Beasly, keeping N.C. red.	Richard Burr (R) 	Ted Budd (R) 	Defeated Cheri Beasly 	1.1%
Ohio 	Ohio had been drifting to the right ever since 2016, when Rob Portman had last won re-election. But when Congressman Tim Ryan, and centrist Dem, ran for the seat, it was thought that this could be a blue flip yet. But Ryan was still defeated by former State GOP Chair Jane Timken. 	Rob Portman (R) 	Jane Timken (R) 	Defeated Tim Ryan 	5.6%
Pennsylvania 	This was one of the most competitive races of 2022. Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman won the Democratic primary against little opposition. His strong labor union ties helped deliver him a victory in the general election against Author Sean Parnell a Trump loyalist whom Donald Trump Jr. campaigned for. 	Pat Toomey (R) 	John Fetterman (D) 	Defeated Sean Parnell 	4.3%
Wisconsin 	Ron Johnson's retirement was a shock to some, and many in the Republican party worried about the vacancy in a state that Joe Biden had carried in 2020. Ultimately, Sarah Godlewski, the State Treasurer defeated former Congressman Sean Duffy, who had first become famous on "The Real World". 	Ron Johnson (R) 	Sarah Godlewski (D)	Defeated Sean Duffy 	3.2%
=== Close Races Featuring an Incumbent: ===
State & Race Summary	Winner 	Defeated, Margin of Victory 	 	
Alaska 	The Alaska GOP had planed to primary Lisa Murkowski. Murkowski and Kelly Tshibaka, a more Trump-loyal Republican, made it to the second round, 
where Murkowski was able to win over most Dems and defeat Tshibaka. 	Lisa Murkowski (R) INCUMBENT 	Kelly Tshibaka (R) 	8.7%
Arizona 	Mark Kelly had won the seat in the 2020 special election, and now sought a full term. Although some predicted the race to be close, Kelly easily defeated Mark Brnovich, the state AG. 	Mark Kelly (D) INCUMBENT 	Mark Brnovich (R) 	7.1%
Florida 	Although this race was expected to be close, almost nobody thought that Congresswoman Val Demings would win. Rubio had always enjoyed broad support in Florida as a member of the Cuban-American community. 	Marco Rubio (R) INCUMBENT 	Val Demings (D) 	8.2%
Georgia 	Many people did not expect Raphael Warnock to hold this seat. He had only been elected in the 2020 special election by a small margin. But the GOP ran a weak candidate in retired football player Herschel Walker, and Warnock held on.	Raphael Warnock (D) INCUMBENT 	Herschel Walker (R) 	6.4%
Louisiana 	This race was an upset similar to Susan Collins' re-election in 2020. When Jon Bel Edwards, the Democratic Governor announced his campaign, many expected him to defeat John Kennedy. But the republican held strong for another term. 	John Neely Kennedy (R) INCUMBENT 	John Bel Edwards (D) 	8.9%
Nevada 	Catherine Cortez Masto's re-election was expected to be easy. Adam Laxalt, a Trump-loyalist, won the nominatioon to run against her, but was trounced. 	Catherine Cortez Masto (D) INCUMBENT	Adam Laxalt (R) 	7.3%
New Hampshire 	This was the only senate pickup for the Republicans. Chris Sununu, the popular Governor, defeated Maggie Hassan. Kelly Ayotte, whom Hassan had defeated narrowly in 2016, replaced Sununu as Governor. 	Chris Sununu (R) 	Maggie Hassan (D) INCUMBENT	5.8%
=== Incumbents Safely Re-Elected: ===
State 	Re-Elected Incumbent
Arkansas 	John Boozman (R)
California 	Alex Padilla (D)
Colorado 	Michael Bennet (D)
Connecticut 	Richard Blumenthal (D)
Hawaii 	Brian Schatz (D)
Idaho 	Mike Crapo (R)
Illinois 	Tammy Duckworth (D)
Indiana 	Todd Young (R)
Kansas 	Jerry Moran (R)
Kentucky 	Rand Paul (R)
Maryland 	Chris Van Hollen (D)
New York 	Charles Schumer (D)
North Dakota 	John Hoeven (R)
Oklahoma 	James Lankford (R)
Oregon 	Ron Wyden (D)
South Carolina	Tim Scott (R)
South Dakota 	John Thune (R)
Utah 	Mike Lee (R)
Washington 	Patty Murray (D)
== House Elections ==
The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections were held on November 8, 2022, with all of the 435 seats in the chamber being contested in regular elections, the winners of which would serve two-year terms in the United States Congress from January 3, 2023, to January 3, 2025. The Republicans were able to take back the chamber for the first time in 4 years, mainly due to the round of redistricting that had taken place following the 2020 Census, which skewed the elections towards the Republicans. During this election, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) retired, and was replaced in her leadership role within the Democratic party. Many expected Tim Ryan (D-OH) to replace her, but he had retired to run for Senate, and so the position went to Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).
Category:Politics
Category:Wolfman’s World