U.S. Senate election, 2008

United States Senate elections, 2008

← 2006 November 4, 2008 2010 →
Class 2 (33 of the 100) seats of the United States Senate and 2 special elections 51 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Harry Reid Mitch McConnell Party Democratic Republican Leader's seat Nevada Kentucky Seats before 49 49 Seats after 57 41 Seat change 8 8 Popular vote 33,650,061 28,863,067 Percentage 51.9% 44.5% Swing 1.3% 2.7% Seats up 12 23 Races won 20 15   Third party Fourth party   Party Independent Democratic Independent Seats before 1 1 Seats after 1 1 Seat change Popular vote 0 176,752 Percentage 0% 0.27% Seats up 0 0 Races won 0 0
Democratic gain   Democratic hold   Republican hold
Majority Leader before election Harry Reid Democratic Elected Majority Leader Harry Reid Democratic

Harry Reid
Democratic

Harry Reid
Democratic

Elections to the United States Senate were held on November 4, 2008 with 35 of the 100 seats in the Senate being contested. Thirty-three seats were up for regular elections; the winners were eligible to serve six-year terms from January 3, 2009 to January 3, 2015, as members of Class 2. There were also two special elections: one in Mississippi and another in Wyoming; as both seats were Class 1 Senate seats, the winners of both seats would serve the remainder of terms that ended on January 3, 2013.

The presidential election which was won by Democrat Barack Obama, elections for all House of Representatives seats, and several gubernatorial elections, as well as many state and local elections, occurred on the same date.

Going into the 2008 election, the Senate consisted of 49 Democrats, 49 Republicans, and two independents (Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Joe Lieberman of Connecticut) who caucused with the Democrats, giving the Democratic caucus a 51-49 majority. Of the seats up for election in 2008, 23 were held by Republicans and 12 by Democrats. The Republicans, who openly conceded early on that they wouldn't be able to regain the majority in 2008, lost eight seats. This election was the second cycle in a row in which no seats switched from Democratic to Republican. In addition, this was the largest Democratic Senate gain since 1986, when they also won eight seats. Finally, the 2008 election marked the first time since 1964 in which a Democratic presidential candidate won the White House with Senate coattails.