The president's party lost seats in 20 of the past 22 midterm elections dating back to 1938.

An analysis by the Pew Research Center shows that since the 1920s, the vast majority of House districts have been consistently won by the same party, with only a small share regularly changing hands. This highlights the large advantage incumbents have in House elections.

Analysts expect GOP-led states to net seats through mid-decade redistricting, while Democratic states face greater hurdles due to commissions and legal limits—tilting the likely outcome toward Republican gains in 2026.

All 435 voting seats in the US House are up for election, but less than 10% of them are competitive. See a breakdown of the races and which way they are leaning here.

Analysts reported that the 2022 midterms featured the lowest share of competitive congressional districts since 1970, reflecting how modern redistricting has increasingly produced safe seats and reduced voter choice.

Beginning in Texas, Republican-controlled legislatures in Missouri, Florida, Ohio, and North Carolina moved to redraw maps before 2030—an uncommon mid-decade effort aimed at securing additional congressional seats.

The Constitution empowers the House to impeach a president by a majority vote and the Senate to convict by a two-thirds vote. Three presidents—Andrew Johnson, Bill Clinton, and Donald Trump (twice)—were impeached, though none were removed from office.

An October 2025 Pew Research Center survey found that 69% of Americans believed President Trump was trying to exert more power than previous presidents. Most Democrats viewed it negatively, while about half of Republicans said it was good for the country.

Under Article II of the Constitution, the United States Senate provides "advice and consent" on presidential nominees. This resource displays the outcome of every Cabinet nomination since Jimmy Carter's presidency and every Supreme Court nomination in US history.

Because presidents are elected through the Electoral College rather than a national vote, candidates can win while receiving fewer votes nationwide. John Quincy Adams, Rutherford B. Hayes, Benjamin Harrison, George W. Bush, and Donald Trump (2016) each won the presidency while losing the nationwide popular vote.

There are 14 Democratic and 21 Republican Senate seats up for grabs. See the Cook Political Report's continuously updated estimates on how they're leaning.

Ratified in 1951, the amendment states that no person may be elected president more than twice. It also specifies that a vice president who assumes office midterm may serve up to 10 years in total.

Denial rates for new H-1B petitions rose from 6% in 2015 to 24% under the Trump administration as officials tightened standards. Under Biden, approvals rebounded, with denials falling to just 2% by 2022—the lowest since 2009.

The Senate now takes longer than ever to confirm presidential nominees, with partisan gridlock stalling even routine appointments. The average confirmation time has nearly tripled since the 1980s, leaving key government roles vacant for months.

States have generally redrawn districts only once per decade following the census, with mid-decade redistricting occurring infrequently and usually prompted by court orders or unusual political circumstances.

Voter turnout reached 66% in 2020—the highest since 1908—and 64% in 2024, tied for second-highest with 1960. In 2024, Trump benefited from higher turnout among his prior voters and new voters.

Franklin D. Roosevelt issued a record 635 vetoes—more than twice as many as any other president. Other frequent users include Grover Cleveland (584), Harry Truman (250), and Dwight Eisenhower (181), reflecting long tenures, divided government, high legislative output, and assertive executive leadership.

The House charged President Trump with pressuring Ukraine to investigate political rival Joe Biden while withholding military aid. The Senate acquitted him in February 2020, with only one Republican voting to convict.

Television networks first granted airtime to the out-of-power party in 1966, with Republicans Everett Dirksen and then-Representative Gerald R. Ford delivering the inaugural response. See a list of each opposition response to the State of the Union since then.

A president may veto legislation passed by Congress, but a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate can override it. For most presidents, only a small share of their vetoes have been successfully overturned.

In 1868, the House impeached Andrew Johnson for violating the Tenure of Office Act and obstructing congressional Reconstruction policies. Johnson was the first president ever to be impeached, surviving conviction and removal in the Senate by a single vote.

The National Conference of State Legislatures maintains a live tracker showing where mid-decade congressional redistricting is underway, detailing which states are pursuing new maps, the legislative and constitutional methods being used, and how courts are responding as the 2026 elections approach.

Presidents from both parties have treated the War Powers Resolution as voluntary, framing compliance as seeking "support" rather than "permission." Courts have declined to rule on the law's constitutionality each time a related case was brought before them.

After Trump ordered unilateral military operations in both Venezuela and Iran without congressional authorization, lawmakers from both parties introduced war powers resolutions to block further action. Each effort failed, with Republican majorities largely supporting the president.

President Trump's audience was about 13% higher than President Biden's 2024 address, but it fell short of Donald Trump's first-term State of the Union viewership, which consistently topped 37 million and peaked near 48 million in 2017.

A presidential candidate is declared the winner once they reach 270 of the Electoral College’s 538 votes. This interactive map from 270 to win shows how winning individual states shifts the path to victory on election night.

Research from the Pew Research Center indicates that Democrat and Republican lawmakers have become more ideologically unified internally while moving further apart overall—with Republicans shifting to the right faster than Democrats have shifted to the left.

Franklin D. Roosevelt won third and fourth terms in 1940 and 1944 as Americans emerged from the Great Depression and sought continuity during World War II. Voters prioritized stability, keeping Roosevelt in office until his death in 1945.

Following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack, the House impeached Trump for inciting violence against the US government. The Senate acquitted him on Feb. 13, 2021. He is the only president who has been impeached twice.

Conducted once every 10 years, the US Census determines how House seats are reapportioned among the states. The 2020 results shifted representation as state population growth and decline altered the geographic balance of political power.

This interactive tool lets users explore the outcomes of every US presidential election from George Washington's uncontested 1789 victory through 2024, showing how electoral votes, state results, and shifting coalitions shaped each race.

In the first presidential election after the Civil War, Republican Ulysses S. Grant defeated Democrat Horatio Seymour. President Andrew Johnson, deeply unpopular with both parties, was denied renomination. Grant's victory reflected Northern support for Reconstruction.

In response to Republican mid-decade redistricting efforts, Democratic leaders in California, New York, Illinois, and Maryland signaled plans to revisit their own congressional maps.

After Franklin D. Roosevelt won four elections, Congress moved to prevent future presidents from holding power indefinitely. Ratified in 1951, the 22nd Amendment set a firm two-term limit as a safeguard against extended presidencies.

In a 2023 poll, 87% of respondents said they supported imposing term limits on members of Congress. The overwhelming bipartisan backing makes term limits one of the most consistently popular political reforms in the United States.

While 64% of eligible voters cast ballots in the 2024 presidential election, turnout in municipal elections is usually below 15%. For school board elections—where members oversee more than 50 million students and $600B in spending—turnout is often around 5%-10%.

The highly-respected Cook Political Report rates how partisan--and therefore, how safe--every district in the US is. Hover over your home district to see the score.

In 1912, after serving nearly two full terms—one elected, the other partial after stepping in as vice president—Theodore Roosevelt sought a third. He lost the Republican nomination to William Taft, then ran as a Progressive Party candidate but was ultimately defeated by Woodrow Wilson.

In a contingent election, the United States House of Representatives is constitutionally required to choose the president, with each state delegation casting one vote when no candidate secures a majority of the electoral votes.

Formal treaties—requiring two-thirds Senate approval—have become rare in American foreign policy. Modern presidents increasingly use executive agreements, which don't need congressional consent, allowing faster diplomacy but reducing legislative oversight and transparency.

The House impeached President Bill Clinton over charges related to his affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. The Senate acquitted him on both counts in 1999, allowing him to finish his second term in office.

In presidential systems like the US, the executive and legislature are separately elected, giving presidents fixed terms and independent authority. In parliamentary systems, executives are elected by legislatures and can be removed by a simple vote of no confidence.

As the Supreme Court begins a new term, several major cases could define the scope of presidential authority. The court may rule on President Trump's efforts to control state National Guard units, fire independent officials, impose tariffs, and cut congressionally mandated federal spending.