1972 United States House of Representatives elections

The 1972 United States House of Representatives elections were held on November 7, 1972, to elect U.S. representatives to serve in the 93rd United States Congress. This was the first election held after the 1970 United States redistricting cycle. It coincided with the landslide reelection victory of President Richard M. Nixon. Nixon's Republican Party managed to gain a net of twelve House of Representatives seats from the Democratic Party, although the Democrats retained a majority.

This was the first election in which citizens at least 18 years of age (instead of 21 and older) could vote, due to the recent passage of the 26th Amendment. This was the last time until 2022 that a Democrat would win a House seat in Alaska, and the first time since 1888 that a Republican won a House seat in Louisiana.

Special elections Six special elections were also held throughout the year, six before November and one concurrent with the November general election.

Results 392 incumbent members sought reelection, but 13 were defeated in primaries and 13 defeated in the general election, for a total of 366 incumbents winning.

+ ↓ 242 1 192 Democratic Republican

Parties Seats Popular vote 1970 1972 +/- Strength Vote % Change Democratic Party 255 242 13 55.6% 36,780,100 51.7% 1.9% Republican Party 180 192 12 44.2% 33,064,172 46.5% 1.6% American Independent Party 0 0 0.0% 233,967 0.3% 0.1% Conservative Party 0 0 0.0% 376,863 0.3% 0.1% Liberal Party 0 0 0.0% 251,807 0.2% 0.1% Independent 0 1 1 0.2% 137,664 0.2% Peace and Freedom Party 0 0 0.0% 63,894 0.1% Socialist Workers Party 0 0 0.0% 51,815 0.1% 0.1% Prohibition Party 0 0 0.0% 10,902 <0.1% Socialist Labor Party 0 0 0.0% 10,835 <0.1% Communist Party 0 0 0.0% 2,076 <0.1% Others 0 0 0.0% 206,386 <0.1% 0.1% Total 435 435 100.0% 71,188,405 100.0% Source:

Incumbents retiring

Democratic gains : Fletcher Thompson (R) retired to run for U.S. senator, succeeded by Andrew Young (D) : Seymour Halpern (R), retired, succeeded by Lester L. Wolff (D), who was redistricted : Page Belcher (R), retired, succeeded by James R. Jones (D)

Democratic holds : David Pryor (D), retired to run for U.S. senator, succeeded by Ray Thornton (D) : Roman C. Pucinski (D), retired, succeeded by Frank Annunzio (D), who was redistricted : William P. Curlin Jr. (D), retired, succeeded by John B. Breckinridge (D) : Speedy Long (D), redistricted and retired, succeeded by Gillis William Long (D), who previously held the seat in the 88th Congress : Edward Garmatz (D), redistricted and retired, succeeded by Paul Sarbanes (D) : Thomas Abernethy (D), redistricted and retired, succeeded by David R. Bowen (D) : William Raleigh Hull Jr. (D), retired, succeeded by Jerry Litton (D) : Nick Galifianakis (D), retired to run for U.S. senator, succeeded by Ike Franklin Andrews (D) : Alton Lennon (D), retired, succeeded by Charlie Rose (D) : Arthur A. Link (D), redistricted retired to run for governor, succeeded by Mark Andrews (R), who was redistricted : Ed Edmondson (D), retired to run for U.S. senator, succeeded by Clem McSpadden (D) : Ray Blanton (D), retired to run for U.S. senator, succeeded by Ed Jones (D), who was redistricted : John Dowdy (D), retired, succeeded by Charles Wilson (D)

Republican gains : Elizabeth B. Andrews (D), redistricted and retired, succeeded by William Louis Dickinson (R) : Roman C. Pucinski (D), retired, succeeded by Frank Annunzio (D), who was redistricted : Patrick T. Caffery (D), retired, succeeded by Dave Treen (R) : William Hathaway (D), retired to run for U.S. senator, succeeded by William Cohen (R) : Charles H. Griffin (D), redistricted and retired, succeeded by Thad Cochran (R) : William M. Colmer (D), retired, succeeded by Trent Lott (R) : James Abourezk (D), retired to run for U.S. senator, succeeded by James Abdnor (R) : Watkins Moorman Abbitt (D), retired, succeeded by Robert Daniel (R)

Republican holds : H. Allen Smith (R), retired, succeeded by Carlos Moorhead (R) : James A. McClure (R), retired to run for U.S. senator, succeeded by Steve Symms (R) : Cliffard D. Carlson (R), retired, succeeded by Leslie C. Arends (R), who was redistricted : William L. Springer (R), retired, succeeded by Edward Rell Madigan (R) : Durward Gorham Hall (R), retired, succeeded by Gene Taylor (R) : Florence P. Dwyer (R), retired, succeeded by Matthew John Rinaldo (R) : Alexander Pirnie (R), redistricted and retired, succeeded by Donald J. Mitchell (R) : John H. Terry (R), redistricted and retired, succeeded by William F. Walsh (R) : Charles R. Jonas (R), retired, succeeded by James G. Martin (R) : William Moore McCulloch (R), retired, succeeded by Tennyson Guyer (R) : Jackson Edward Betts (R), retired, succeeded by Walter E. Powell (R), who was redistricted : Frank T. Bow (R), retired, succeeded by Ralph Regula (R) : J. Irving Whalley (R), retired, succeeded by John P. Saylor (R), who was redistricted : William L. Scott (R), retired to run for U.S. senator, succeeded by Stanford Parris (R) : Thomas Pelly (R), retired, succeeded by Joel Pritchard (R) : John W. Byrnes (R), retired, succeeded by Harold Vernon Froehlich (R)

Incumbents defeated

Incumbents defeated in primary

: George P. Miller (D) : John G. Schmitz (R) : Wayne Aspinall (D) : George Elliott Hagan (D) : Jack H. McDonald (R) : Walter S. Baring Jr. (D) : Cornelius Edward Gallagher (D) : Emanuel Celler (D) : James H. Scheuer (D) : James A. Byrne (D) : William Sheldrick Conover (R) : John L. McMillan (D) : James Kee (D)

Incumbents defeated in general election : Mike McKevitt (R) : John S. Monagan (D) : Abner J. Mikva (D) : Andrew Jacobs Jr. (D) : Fred Schwengel (R) : John Henry Kyl (R) : Louise Day Hicks (D) : John G. Dow (D) : William Anderson (D) : Earle Cabell (D) : Graham B. Purcell Jr. (D) : Sherman P. Lloyd (R) : Alvin E. O'Konski (R)

Alabama

Alabama was reapportioned from eight to seven seats and eliminated the old , dividing it between the old 2nd and 4th, and making compensating boundary changes elsewhere.

Alaska

Incumbent Nick Begich won re-election three weeks after having disappeared in a plane crash October 16; challenger Don Young would later win a March special election after Begich was declared dead on December 29.

Arizona

Arizona was reapportioned from three seats to four, and carved a new district in the Phoenix suburbs and the northeast from parts of the existing districts.

Arkansas

California

California was reapportioned from 38 to 43 seats, adding one seat in the Bay Area, one in the Central Valley, and three in southern California; three went to Democrats, two to Republicans. Despite a retirement and two lost renominations, both parties held their seats in this election, bringing the Democrats up from 20 seats to 23 and the Republicans up from 18 seats to 20.

! | George E. Danielson

1972 United States House of Representatives elections

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