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lapfog_1

(29,205 posts) Sat Dec 2, 2017, 12:57 AM Dec 2017

I have a question that maybe someone knows off the top of their heads

I admit, I could look up the data and figure this out for myself... but I'm lazy.

Of the currently serving Senators and House members, how many people voted for them?

In other words, I suspect that the Senate in particular but also the House... we are ruled by a small minority of voters.

We know the pResident lost by 3 million votes... but Republicans in both chambers were probably voted in with fewer votes than the Democrats and Independents serving in those same chambers.

4 replies

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I have a question that maybe someone knows off the top of their heads (Original Post) lapfog_1 Dec 2017 OP

Totally. Just think of how california only has two senators even though they have 40 milliin people. applegrove Dec 2017 #1

Democrats also got more votes for the U.S. Senate than Republicans L. Coyote Dec 2017 #2

That's for all the Senators or only those up for election in 2016? lapfog_1 Dec 2017 #3

Your suspicion is mistaken. Repub majorities in the popular vote in the House and Senate onenote Dec 2017 #4

applegrove

(118,677 posts)

1. Totally. Just think of how california only has two senators even though they have 40 milliin people.

Reply to lapfog_1 (Original post)

Sat Dec 2, 2017, 01:00 AM

Dec 2017

L. Coyote

(51,129 posts)

2. Democrats also got more votes for the U.S. Senate than Republicans

Reply to lapfog_1 (Original post)

Sat Dec 2, 2017, 01:00 AM

Dec 2017

Last edited Sat Dec 2, 2017, 01:58 AM - Edit history (1)

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/11/10/democrats-won-popular-vote-senate-too/93598998/

In results that are still preliminary, 45.2 million Americans cast a vote for a Democratic Senate candidate, while 39.3 million Americans voted for a Republican.

Link to tweet

lapfog_1

(29,205 posts)

3. That's for all the Senators or only those up for election in 2016?

Reply to L. Coyote (Reply #2)

Sat Dec 2, 2017, 01:06 AM

Dec 2017

I suspect the ratio is about the same for previous elections.

Thanks for the link!

onenote

(42,704 posts)

4. Your suspicion is mistaken. Repub majorities in the popular vote in the House and Senate

Reply to lapfog_1 (Original post)

Sat Dec 2, 2017, 01:17 AM

Dec 2017

The way to calculate this for the Senate is to look at the popular vote for the past three elections (2012, 2014, and 2016).

In 2012, Republican candidates for Senate outpolled Democratic candidates by more than 10 million votes,49,998,693 to 39,130,984.

In 2014, Republican candidates for Sente outpolled Democratic candidates by nearly 4 million votes, 24,631,488 to 20,875,493.

And in 2016, the Democratic candidates outpolled the Republicans by 11 million votes, 51,496,682 to 40,402,790.

With respect to the House, you just have to look at the 2016 elections. The republicans outpolled the Democrats by around 1.5 million votes: 63,173,815 61,776,554

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