Closest U.S. House elections in history

The tightest races for the U.S. House of Representatives, ranked by the narrowest margin between the top two candidates.

What is the closest U.S. House election in history?

Among races with real turnout (at least 50,000 combined votes for the top two finishers), Indiana’s 8th district in 1984, “the Bloody Eighth,” decided by just 4 votes (116,645 to 116,641) between Francis X. McCloskey and Richard McIntyre, after a contested recount the House itself resolved by seating McCloskey. Smaller 19th-century districts have produced single-vote margins, but with turnout too small to compare meaningfully; see the note below. Iowa’s 2nd district in 2020, decided by 6 votes, is the closest of the modern era.

Just 6 votes decided the closest U.S. House election of the modern era: Iowa’s 2nd District in 2020, certified for Mariannette Miller-Meeks over Rita Hart, 196,964 to 196,958.

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Closest U.S. House elections in history
#	Election	Result	Margin
1	1984 Indiana	Francis X. McCloskey def. Richard D. McIntyre	0.00 pts
2	2020 Iowa	Mariannette Miller-Meeks def. Rita R Hart	0.00 pts
3	1960 Indiana	William E Chambers def. John Roush	0.00 pts
4	1944 Wisconsin	John Byrnes def. Laverne R Dilweg	0.01 pts
5	1994 Connecticut	Samuel Gejdenson def. Edward W. Munster	0.01 pts
6	1956 Maine	James L Reid def. James C Oliver	0.02 pts
7	1930 Indiana	Albert Vestal def. Claude C Ball	0.02 pts
8	1990 Missouri	Joan Kelly Horn def. Jack Buechner	0.02 pts
9	1922 Illinois	James Buckley def. John Gorman	0.03 pts
10	1986 Indiana	John Patrick Hiler def. Thomas W. Ward	0.03 pts
11	1900 Ohio	Emmett Tompkins def. John Lentz	0.04 pts
12	1996 Pennsylvania	Jon D. Fox def. Joseph M. Hoeffel	0.04 pts
13	1870 South Carolina	J P M Epping def. L Wimbush	0.04 pts
14	1952 Colorado	Wayne Aspinall def. Howard M Shults	0.04 pts
15	2006 Connecticut	Joe Courtney def. Rob Simmons	0.04 pts
16	1956 New Jersey	Alfred Sieminski def. Norman Roth	0.05 pts
17	2000 Michigan	Mike Rogers def. Dianne Byrum	0.05 pts
18	1930 Illinois	Claude Parsons def. James Heidinger V	0.05 pts
19	1984 Idaho	Richard H. Stallings def. George V. Hansen	0.06 pts
20	1960 Utah	Morris Peterson def. A Walter Stevenson	0.06 pts
21	1928 Missouri	Jacob Milligan def. Henry F Lawrence	0.06 pts
22	2000 Minnesota	Mark R. Kennedy def. David Minge	0.06 pts
23	1986 North Carolina	Howard Coble def. Robin Britt	0.06 pts
24	1986 Minnesota	Arlan Stangeland def. Collin C. Peterson	0.07 pts
25	2014 Arizona	Martha McSally def. Ron Barber	0.07 pts

How this ranking is measured

U.S. House general elections ranked by the smallest gap in vote share between the top two finishers, among races with real turnout: a floor of at least 50,000 combined votes for the top two finishers. That floor is what keeps this list to genuinely comparable elections. Kentucky’s 2nd district in 1829, decided by a single vote (2,520 to 2,519) out of roughly 5,000 cast, is even closer but falls well below it. The floor also sets aside historical multi-member at-large contests and fusion-ballot artifacts, both of which make a two-candidate margin meaningless. Indiana’s 8th district in 1984 (“the Bloody Eighth”), decided by 4 votes, tops the list that clears the floor; Iowa’s 2nd district in 2020, decided by 6 votes, is the closest of the modern era.

Compiled by PolitiFinder · published June 14, 2026 · sources: Data & sources · data last verified August 15, 2026.