1999 United States state legislative elections
November 2, 1999
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8 legislative chambers in 4 states | |||||||||||||||||||
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Map of upper house elections: Democrats retained control Republicans retained control Split body formed No regularly-scheduled elections | |||||||||||||||||||
Map of lower house elections: Democrats retained control Republicans gained control Republicans retained control No regularly-scheduled elections | |||||||||||||||||||
The 1999 United States state legislative elections were held on November 2, 1999, alongside other elections. Elections were held for 7 legislative chambers in four states. Both chambers of the Northern Mariana Islands legislature were up.[1]
Democrats maintained control of the Mississippi and Louisiana legislatures, while Republicans maintained control of the lower house in New Jersey and the upper house in Virginia. Republicans had won a 1997 special election to claim a 21-19 majority in the Virginia Senate after Democrat Charles L. Waddell resigned his seat.[2][3] Republicans maintained this majority in 1999, which gave them their first-ever elected majority in history. Republicans flipped the Virginia House of Delegates, which was previously tied, resulting in the first-ever Republican majority.
Additionally, in the summer of 1999, a Democratic senator died in the New Hampshire Senate and was succeeded by a Republican in a special election, switching that chamber from Democratic control to tied.[4]
Summary table
Regularly scheduled elections were held in 7 of the 99 state legislative chambers in the United States. Nationwide, regularly scheduled elections were held for 538 of the 7,383 legislative seats. This table only covers regularly scheduled elections; additional special elections took place concurrently with these regularly scheduled elections.
| State | Upper House | Lower House | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seats up | Total | % up | Term | Seats up | Total | % up | Term | |
| Louisiana | 39 | 39 | 100 | 4 | 105 | 105 | 100 | 4 |
| Mississippi | 52 | 52 | 100 | 4 | 122 | 122 | 100 | 4 |
| New Jersey | 0 | 40 | 0 | 2/4[d] | 80 | 80 | 100 | 2 |
| Virginia | 40 | 40 | 100 | 4 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 2 |
State summaries
Louisiana
All seats of the Louisiana State Senate and the Louisiana House of Representatives were up for election to four-year terms in single-member districts. Democrats maintained control of both chambers.
| Party | Before | After | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | 26 | 26 | ||
| Republican | 13 | 13 | ||
| Total | 39 | 39 | ||
| Party | Before | After | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | 78 | 74 | 4 | |
| Republican | 27 | 31 | 4 | |
| Total | 105 | 105 | ||
Mississippi
All seats of the Mississippi State Senate and the Mississippi House of Representatives were up for election to four-year terms in single-member districts. Democrats maintained control of both houses.
| Party | Before | After | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | 34 | 34 | ||
| Republican | 18 | 18 | ||
| Total | 52 | 52 | ||
| Party | Before | After | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | 86 | 86 | ||
| Republican | 33 | 33 | ||
| Independent | 3 | 3 | ||
| Total | 122 | 122 | ||
New Jersey
All seats of the New Jersey General Assembly were up for election. Assembly members were elected to two-year terms in two-member districts.[5] Republicans retained control.
| Party | Before | After | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | 32 | 35 | 3 | |
| Republican | 48 | 45 | 3 | |
| Total | 80 | 80 | ||
Virginia
All seats of the Senate of Virginia and the Virginia House of Delegates were up for election in single-member districts. Senators were elected to four-year terms, while delegates served terms of two years. Republicans maintained control of the Senate and flipped the House of Delegates, which was previously tied.
| Party | Before | After | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | 19 | 19 | ||
| Republican | 21 | 21 | ||
| Total | 40 | 40 | ||
| Party | Before | After | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | 49 | 52 | 3 | |
| Independent | 1[e] | 1 | ||
| Democratic | 50 | 47 | 3 | |
| Total | 100 | 100 | ||
Territorial and federal district summaries
Northern Mariana Islands
All seats of the Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives and half of the Northern Mariana Islands Senate are up for election. Senators are elected to four-year terms, and Representatives are elected to two-year terms. Republicans maintained control of both houses.
| Party | Before | After | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | 8 | 6 | 2 | |
| Democratic | 1 | 2 | 1 | |
| Independent | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 9 | 9 | ||
| Party | Before | After | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | 13 | 11 | 2 | |
| Democratic | 5 | 6 | 1 | |
| Independent | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 18 | 18 | ||
Notes
- ^ a b c d The Washington House of Representatives was controlled by a power-sharing agreement between Democrats and Republicans. Thus, it is not counted in this total.
- ^ a b The Virginia House of Delegates was split. Thus, it is not included in the prior total.
- ^ a b The New Hampshire Senate became evenly-split due to a special election. Thus, it is not included in the prior total.
- ^ The upper houses of Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Texas use a 2-4-4 term length system.
- ^ Independent Lacey Putney sided with the Republicans, deadlocking the chamber.
References
- ^ https://ballotpedia.org/State_legislative_elections,_1999
- ^ "Virginia State Legislature". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
- ^ Southern Politics in the 1990s. LSU Press. ISBN 978-0-8071-4181-6.
- ^ Jimenez, Ralph (December 9, 1999), With Election Defeat, N.H. Democrats Lose Majority in Senate, Boston, Massachusetts: Boston Globe, p. B.19
- ^ "New Jersey Secretary of State". state.nj.us.