In the House of Representatives, the Democrats picked up twelve seats at the expense of the Republican Party.[2] In the Senate, Republicans picked up two seats, and James L. Buckley won the election as a member of the Conservative Party of New York. He is the most recent individual to win election to the Senate as a member of a third party and remain affiliated with that party after the election. Democrats also gained a net 11 governorships and maintained majorities in state legislatures.
Nixon and Vice President Spiro Agnew campaigned heavily for Republican candidates, with Nixon encouraging voters to respond to anti-war and civil rights activists by voting the Republican ticket. In an October speech, he declared, "My friends, I say that the answer to those that engage in disruption--to those that shout their filthy slogans, to those that try to shout down speakers--is not to answer in kind, but go to the polls on election day, and in the quiet of that ballot box, stand up and be counted: the great silent majority of America."[3][4]
This was the first time that Republicans gained Senate seats while losing House seats in a midterm, which also later occurred in 2018.[5] Democrats did this in 1914 and 1962 as well.
This election saw future president Jimmy Carter win the election to the governorship in Georgia.
