Chamber:
	Senate
Dates of elections / renewal (from/to):
	3 November 1998
Purpose of elections:
	Elections were held for one-third (34) of the seats of the Senate on the normal expiry of the members' term of office.
Background and outcome of elections:
	The 1998 congressional elections, called « mid-term » since they were taking place halfway through the four-year presidential mandate, were held for all 435 Representatives’ seats and one-third (34) of the Senators, alongside polling for 36 of the 50 state Governors. For the House, 401 incumbents were in the running, while of the Senate seats up for renewal, 18 were held by the Democratic Party and 16 by the Republican Party. Polling took place in the wake of the alleged sex and perjury scandal involving President of the Republic Bill Clinton (Democratic Party) and Ms. Monica Lewinsky. Nevertheless, a certain voter fatigue and backlash against the Republicans in their action on this matter was evident in opinion polls as election day neared. Major issues debated during the campaign included education, the environment, moral values, social security, taxes and the economy in general, which stood well. But as is customarily the case in mid-terms, local issues, personalities of the candidates and their financial advantage over their opponents proved as significant. In this connection, the Republicans in particular spent considerably on their campaigns. Polling day saw the lowest voter turnout since 1942. The overall outcome - viewed principally as a referendum on whether Congress should move forward with its impeachment inquiry of President Clinton - gave no clear verdict on this question, as the Senate standings stayed the same and the Democrats picked up four House seats. The two parties shared the eight new Senators’ seats and of the 40 new Representatives, 23 were Democrats and 17 Republicans. A record number of women were chosen. All in all, the electorate’s voting pattern could be characterized as moderate. When the 106th Congress convened on 6 January 1999, Mr. Dennis Hastert replaced Mr. Newt Gingrich as Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives after the latter had resigned.

STATISTICS

Round no 1 (3 November 1998): Elections results
Voters	36% (approx.)

Round no 1: Distribution of seats
Political Group	Total	Seats 98	Gain/Loss
Republican Party	55	16	=
Democratic Party	45	18	=

Distribution of seats according to sex:
Men:	91
Women:	9

Distribution of seats according to profession:
Law	55
Business	24
Public service/politics	18
Education	13
Journalism	8
Agriculture	6
Real Estate	4
Medicine	2
Others	4

Comments:
	Total higher than total membership since some Senators have more than one occupation