The United States Senate elections of 1930 occurred in the middle of Republican President Herbert Hoover's term. With the Great Depression beginning to take hold, Republican incumbents became unpopular, and Democrats picked up a net of eight seats, erasing the Republican gains from the previous election cycle. Republicans retained control of the U.S. Senate since Vice President Charles Curtis cast the tie-breaking vote. This was the first of four consecutive Senate elections in the Depression in which Democrats made enormous gains, a This was the first of four consecutive Senate elections in the Depression in which Democrats made enormous gains, achieving a cumulative pick-up of 34 seats. In Louisiana, Democratic Senator-elect Huey Long chose not to take his Senate seat until January 25, 1932 so he could remain as Governor of Louisiana. The Republicans therefore retained the plurality of seats at the beginning of the next Congress. With Vice PresidentCharles Curtis able to cast tie-breaking votes, the Republicans would have majority control with their 48 of the 96 seats. That slim control was further weakened in the last months of the next Congress with several mid-term seat changes. In Minnesota, Henrik Shipstead was not up for election in 1930. He was a former Republican who became a Farmer–Laborite in 1922. Although the Farmer–Laborites would later merge with the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, Shipstead and his contemporaries were not aligned with either major party. He would later rejoin the party in 1940.
Gains and losses
The Republicans only gained one seat by defeating incumbent Daniel F. Steck. The Democrats took open seats in Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts, and West Virginia, and defeated five incumbents:
In these special elections, the winner were seated during 1930; ordered by election date.
Elections leading to the 72nd Congress
In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1931; ordered by state. All of the elections involved the Class 2 seats.
Six-term Republican Francis E. Warren had died November 24, 1929 and Republican Patrick J. Sullivan was appointed to continue the term, pending a special election in which he was not a candidate.
