The 1940 United States House of Representatives elections were elections for the United States House of Representatives to elect members to serve in the 77th United States Congress. They were held for the most part on November 5, 1940, while Maine held theirs on September 9. They coincided with President Franklin D. Roosevelt's re-election to an unprecedented third term. His Democratic Party narrowly gained seats from the opposition Republican Party, cementing their majority. However, the election gave firm control of the US House of Representatives and Senate to the New Dealers once again, as Progressives dominated the election.^[1]

Quick Facts All 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives 218 seats needed for a majority, Majority party ...

1940 United States House of Representatives elections

← 1938 November 5, 1940[lower-alpha 1] 1942 →
All 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives 218 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Sam Rayburn Joseph Martin Party Democratic Republican Leader since September 16, 1940 January 3, 1939 Leader's seat Texas 4th Massachusetts 14th Last election 262 seats 169 seats Seats won 267 162 Seat change 5 7 Popular vote 24,227,821 21,490,392 Percentage 51.4% 45.6% Swing 2.7% 1.9%   Third party Fourth party   Party Progressive American Labor Last election 2 seats 1 seat Seats won 3 1 Seat change 1 Popular vote 477,435 338,770 Percentage 1.0% 0.7% Swing   Fifth party Sixth party   Party Farmer–Labor Independent Last election 1 seat 0 seats Seats won 1 1 Seat change 1 Popular vote 298,250 113,497 Percentage 0.6% 0.2% Swing 0.3%
Speaker before election Sam Rayburn Democratic Elected Speaker Sam Rayburn Democratic

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The upswing in the economy that occurred following the Recession of 1937–38 encouraged voters that the New Deal plan had been working. This allowed the Democrats to stabilize their support.

As of 2024, this was the last time the House of Representatives was made up of six parties.

More information Party, Total seats (change) ...

Party		Total seats (change)		Seat percentage	Vote percentage	Popular vote
	Democratic Party	267	5	61.3%	51.4%	24,227,821
	Republican Party	162	7	37.2%	45.6%	21,490,392
	Progressive Party	3	1	0.6%	1.0%	477,435
	American Labor Party	1		0.2%	0.7%	338,770
	Farmer–Labor Party	1		0.2%	0.6%	298,250
	Independents	1	1	0.2%	0.2%	113,497
	Communist Party	0		0.0%	0.2%	95,173
	Prohibition Party	0		0.0%	0.1%	62,504
	Socialist Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	19,782
	Socialist Labor Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	6,403
	Fifteen Dollar Pension Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	2,418
	Liberal Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	2,256
	Fusion Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	2,014
	No Wage Tax Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	864
	Workers Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	411
	Buono Food Plan Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	375
	Peace Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	341
	States' Rights Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	270
	Keep America Neutral Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	128
	Roosevelt New Deal Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	98
	The American Way Party	0		0.0%	<0.1%	65
	Others	0		0.0%	<0.1%	5,578
Totals		435		100.0%	100.0%	47,144,845

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Source: Election Statistics - Office of the Clerk

More information House seats by party holding plurality in state, Net gain in states ...

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Many special elections were held. The elected winner would serve only the remainder of the incumbent Congress. Sorted by election date.

Several close allies of former governor Huey Long were defeated in primaries by reform candidates.