--- title: What Are Midterm Elections and Why Are They Every Two Years? description: Why do midterm elections even exist? Here's how the U.S. Constitution's framers came up with six-year Senate terms and two-year House terms. canonical: https://time.com/5443162/why-midterm-elections-exist-history/ author: Olivia B. Waxman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-11-05T21:00:51.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-13T08:05:13.463Z article:section: History og:title: What Are Midterm Elections and Why Are They Every Two Years? og:description: How the U.S. Constitution's framers came up with six-year Senate terms and two-year House terms og:url: https://time.com/5443162/why-midterm-elections-exist-history/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ac9704eb70c66bd/69893e388fd2ee590135d0c3/capitol-hill.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2405 og:image:height: 1353 og:image:alt: capitol-hill og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: What Are Midterm Elections and Why Are They Every Two Years? twitter:description: How the U.S. Constitution's framers came up with six-year Senate terms and two-year House terms twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ac9704eb70c66bd/69893e388fd2ee590135d0c3/capitol-hill.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Why Do Midterm Elections Even Exist? Here's Why the Framers Scheduled Things This Way > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Subscription: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME is a general-interest news organization founded in 1923, reporting on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world. A TIME subscription provides full access to that journalism in print and digital, from $20 a year, and can be cancelled at any time. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-sub-2026q3/newsletters?i=77512673-4a96-47bf-a20d-abac132252a2&cr=time-sub-2026q3-v1) * TIME Subscriptions: [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-sub-2026q3/subscribe?i=77512673-4a96-47bf-a20d-abac132252a2&cr=time-sub-2026q3-v1) ## Video: 2018 Midterm Elections Could Shift Power [Watch (HLS stream): 2018 Midterm Elections Could Shift Power](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/FTuOXmCB.m3u8) (3:59)  _Published 2018-10-24. With the possibility of a flip of the House and candidates set to make history, voter enthusiasm builds leading up to the midterm elections._  by [Olivia B. Waxman](https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Staff Writer Nov 5, 2018 9:00 PM UTC  by [Olivia B. Waxman](https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Staff Writer Nov 5, 2018 9:00 PM UTC Midterm elections in the United States, like the one this Tuesday, Nov. 6, have historically been known for lower [voter turnout](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/03/us/non-voters-midterm-elections.html) than presidential elections. So why have them at all? Why not just hold Congressional elections on a four-year cycle, like Presidential elections, and benefit from the boost in attention that comes with the White House being up for grabs? The reason goes deep. The cornerstone of the U.S. Constitution is the system of checks and balances, a system that spreads power around in order make sure that any one deliberative body doesn’t get despotic. The makeup of Congress, with its term limits, is designed to balance experience and fresh new ideas. Short terms are designed to make a representative more likely to keep up with his or her constituents’ latest policy preferences, whereas long terms can free a person to make decisions without thinking of re-election coming around the corner. The most democratic deliberative body is supposed to be the U.S. House of Representatives. Members serve for two-year terms, per [Article 1, section 2, clause 1 of the U.S. Constitution](https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/articles/article-i). The simplest explanation for how the Constitutional Convention decided that was an appropriate time limit is that they viewed it as a compromise between the annual elections used by early state legislatures and the roughly three-year terms that had existed in Britain. Plus, setting pre-established times for elections made sure that, “Unlike in parliamentary systems, American political parties could not call advantageous elections,” [according to](https://history.house.gov/Institution/Origins-Development/Biennial-Elections/) the Office of the Historian at the House of Representatives. “Elections would be held according to a given length of time rather than when political leaders thought they would be most likely to win.” In addition, some argued that the complexities of running a national government meant that members would need more than a year to get used to the rules and procedures, not to mention that in those days, it also just took longer to physically travel to the national seat of power than the local seat of power. Meanwhile, the Senate was designed to be more distant from the ever-changing and uninformed passions of the general public, which is basically the entire reason why U.S. Senators serve for six-year terms, per [Article I, section 3, clause 1](https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Constitution%5FSenate.htm#2). They’re divided into three classes so that every two years, one-third of the Senators must be up for re-elections, per [clause 2](https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Constitution%5FSenate.htm#3). The rationale, as one writer from the era, Joseph Storey, put it, was to “prohibit any permanent combination for sinister purposes.” State legislatures chose Senators until the [17th Amendment](https://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=false&doc=58) established direct election of Senators by the people. “You have not a \[pure\] democracy, but a republic accountable to people — but not immediate responsive to the people,” explains Sidney Milkis of the University of Virginia’s Miller Center of Public Affairs, who spoke to TIME as part of a presidential-history partnership between TIME History and the Miller Center. “That’s why you have a third \[of the Senate\] turning over, so it doesn’t get too far removed from currents of public opinion.” Discussion of appropriate term limits hasn’t been confined to the Early Republic period. President Lyndon B. Johnson, in his [1966 State of the Union address](https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/annual-message-the-congress-the-state-the-union-27), called for term limits for members of the House of Representative to be extended from two years to four years because he thought members spent too much time campaigning. His exact words: “I will ask you to make it possible for Members of the House of Representatives to work more effectively in the service of the Nation through a constitutional amendment extending the term of a Congressman to four years, concurrent with that of the President.” “He felt it would provide for more effective governing because he thought that people who came in at the same time would be more likely to work together,” says Milkis. But the idea didn’t catch on, as members were preoccupied with the Vietnam War and the civil rights movement, among other more pressing legislative priorities. Nowadays, midterm elections hinge not only on what people think about whoever is running for Congress, but also about whoever is President of the United States — which, in some cases, is the even more important factor. That’s “the biggest change from the original design,” says Milkis, who points out that Alexander Hamilton in particular was concerned about keeping the President above this particular fray. “They didn’t think campaigns would be constant,” he says. “The way they’ve become so nationalized, \[seen as\] referenda \[on the presidents\], that would concern the Framers.” ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] US midterms don't typically get a lot of attention but this year it's different. The 2018 Congressional election has solidified its status as a coast- to- coast battle for the House with both President Trump and former President Barrack Obama hitting the campaign trail to back candidates The elections are slated to not only determine the balance of power in Congress, but they also have the potential to shape the strategies and identities of the two parties heading into the 2020 presidential race. Right now, Republicans have the majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Re- election is such a big deal because it represents Enormous stakes for both parties. If the republicans keep the house, they will see it as a reinforcement of Trump's mandate. And for the democrats, it's an opportunity to put a check on president Trump, and try to use congressional power to get at some of these scandals that have already been plaguing his presidency. House members serve a two year term, so every seat is up for grabs. Right now Republicans have 236 out of 435 seats. Democrats have 193 and six are vacant. And there are a record number of house members not seeking re- election in 2018, with more than 40 Republicans not running again, including House Speaker Paul Ryan So what happens if dems manage to take the house. Its very unlikely that they will be able to pass, meaningful registration to advance their agenda. So its highly unlikely that we're gonna see anything like medicare for all. What is very likely, is that democrats will use the powers of congressional subpoena, and congressional investigation. To investigate this president who has been accused of so many ethical lapses. But flipping the House is rare. In fact, in the past 25 years, it's only happened three times. Yet, each time voters favor the party not in the White House. This combined with voter energy, has democrats optimistic. Voters are really interested in this year's midterms, partly because of what happened in the 2016 election. Voter turnout in the primaries among Democrats doubled from 2014 levels, and you're also seeing a tremendous amount of activism over the last two years that has all been building up to this year's midterms. And after a divisive 2016 Democratic primary, the party is experiencing a revival of sorts. There is a tremendous amount of enthusiasm around registering and mobilizing voters of color, and white suburban moms living in these Districts that have kinda [ UNKNOWN ] conservative in the past, but now are open for pick up for the Democrats. There are a lot of college educated women who woke up after the 2016 election and said, this is not the country that I thought I was going to rest my kids in. And have basically spend the last two years knocking on doors for Democrats. Meanwhile Trump's outsider politics continues to reign supreme for Republicans. So Republicans have really been leaning into Trumpism. The energy is around people who are really embracing Trump's agenda. And it's not just Congress that could change, there are 36 governorships up for grads and more 6, 000 members of state legislatures will be elected. A record number of women are running for office and this year's candidates could make history. Arizona and Tennessee could send women to the US Senate for the first time. US House of Representatives could get its first Somali- American and Native American women. But ultimately it will be voter turnout that will determine this election. There's a tremendous amount of energy and enthusiasm around getting voters who dont typically show up to the midterms to actually show up and vote this year. 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