U.S. Government
Balance of Power Since 1857
The following table shows you the division of power among the Branches of the U.S. Government since 1857. Content courtesy of House.gov.
| Congress | House Majority | Senate Majority | Presidency | Party Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 35th (1857–1859) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Buchanan) | Unified |
| 36th (1859–1861) | Republicans | Democrats | Democrat (Buchanan) | Divided |
| 37th (1861–1863) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Lincoln) | Unified |
| 38th (1863–1865) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Lincoln) | Unified |
| 39th (1865–1867) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Lincoln) / Democrat (A. Johnson) | Unified/ Divided |
| 40th (1867–1869) | Republicans | Republicans | Democrat (A. Johnson) | Divided |
| 41st (1869–1871) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Grant) | Unified |
| 42nd (1871–1873) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Grant) | Unified |
| 43rd (1873–1875) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Grant) | Unified |
| 44th (1875–1877) | Democrats | Republicans | Republican (Grant) | Divided |
| 45th (1877–1879) | Democrats | Republicans | Republican (Hayes) | Divided |
| 46th (1879–1881) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (Hayes) | Divided |
| 47th (1881–1883) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Garfield / Arthur) | Unified |
| 48th (1883–1885) | Democrats | Republicans | Republican (Arthur) | Divided |
| 49th (1885–1887) | Democrats | Republicans | Democrat (Cleveland) | Divided |
| 50th (1887–1889) | Democrats | Republicans | Democrat (Cleveland) | Divided |
| 51st (1889–1891) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Harrison) | Unified |
| 52nd (1891–1893) | Democrats | Republicans | Republican (Harrison) | Divided |
| 53rd (1893–1895) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Cleveland) | Unified |
| 54th (1895–1897) | Republicans | Republicans | Democrat (Cleveland) | Divided |
| 55th (1897–1899) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (McKinley) | Unified |
| 56th (1899–1901) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (McKinley) | Unified |
| 57th (1901–1903) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (McKinley / T. Roosevelt) | Unified |
| 58th (1903–1905) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (T. Roosevelt) | Unified |
| 59th (1905–1907) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (T. Roosevelt) | Unified |
| 60th (1907–1909) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (T. Roosevelt) | Unified |
| 61st (1909–1911) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Taft) | Unified |
| 62nd (1911–1913) | Democrats | Republicans | Republican (Taft) | Divided |
| 63rd (1913–1915) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Wilson) | Unified |
| 64th (1915–1917) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Wilson) | Unified |
| 65th (1917–1919) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Wilson) | Unified |
| 66th (1919–1921) | Republicans | Republicans | Democrat (Wilson) | Divided |
| 67th (1921–1923) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Harding) | Unified |
| 68th (1923–1925) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Harding / Coolidge) | Unified |
| 69th (1925–1927) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Coolidge) | Unified |
| 70th (1927–1929) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Coolidge) | Unified |
| 71st (1929–1931) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Hoover) | Unified |
| 72nd (1931–1933) | Democrats | Republicans | Republican (Hoover) | Divided |
| 73rd (1933–1935) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (F. Roosevelt) | Unified |
| 74th (1935–1937) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (F. Roosevelt) | Unified |
| 75th (1937–1939) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (F. Roosevelt) | Unified |
| 76th (1939–1941) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (F. Roosevelt) | Unified |
| 77th (1941–1943) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (F. Roosevelt) | Unified |
| 78th (1943–1945) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (F. Roosevelt) | Unified |
| 79th (1945–1947) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (F. Roosevelt / Truman) | Unified |
| 80th (1947–1949) | Republicans | Republicans | Democrat (Truman) | Divided |
| 81st (1949–1951) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Truman) | Unified |
| 82nd (1951–1953) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Truman) | Unified |
| 83rd (1953–1955) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Eisenhower) | Unified |
| 84th (1955–1957) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (Eisenhower) | Divided |
| 85th (1957–1959) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (Eisenhower) | Divided |
| 86th (1959–1961) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (Eisenhower) | Divided |
| 87th (1961–1963) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Kennedy) | Unified |
| 88th (1963–1965) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Kennedy / L. Johnson) | Unified |
| 89th (1965–1967) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (L. Johnson) | Unified |
| 90th (1967–1969) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (L. Johnson) | Unified |
| 91st (1969–1971) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (Nixon) | Divided |
| 92nd (1971–1973) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (Nixon) | Divided |
| 93rd (1973–1975) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (Nixon / Ford) | Divided |
| 94th (1975–1977) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (Ford) | Divided |
| 95th (1977–1979) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Carter) | Unified |
| 96th (1979–1981) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Carter) | Unified |
| 97th (1981–1983) | Democrats | Republicans | Republican (Reagan) | Divided |
| 98th (1983–1985) | Democrats | Republicans | Republican (Reagan) | Divided |
| 99th (1985–1987) | Democrats | Republicans | Republican (Reagan) | Divided |
| 100th (1987–1989) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (Reagan) | Divided |
| 101st (1989–1991) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (G.H.W. Bush) | Divided |
| 102nd (1991–1993) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (G.H.W. Bush) | Divided |
| 103rd (1993–1995) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Clinton) | Unified |
| 104th (1995–1997) | Republicans | Republicans | Democrat (Clinton) | Divided |
| 105th (1997–1999) | Republicans | Republicans | Democrat (Clinton) | Divided |
| 106th (1999–2001) | Republicans | Republicans | Democrat (Clinton) | Divided |
| 107th (2001–2003) | Republicans | Republicans / Democrats | Republican (G.W. Bush) | Unified / Divided |
| 108th (2003–2005) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (G.W. Bush) | Unified |
| 109th (2005–2007) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (G.W. Bush) | Unified |
| 110th (2007–2009) | Democrats | Democrats | Republican (G.W. Bush) | Divided |
| 111th (2009–2011) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Obama) | Unified |
| 112th (2011–2013) | Republicans | Democrats | Democrat (Obama) | Divided |
| 113th (2013–2015) | Republicans | Democrats | Democrat (Obama) | Divided |
| 114th (2015–2017) | Republicans | Republicans | Democrat (Obama) | Divided |
| 115th (2017–2019) | Republicans | Republicans | Republican (Trump) | Unified |
| 116th (2019–2021) | Democrats | Republicans | Republican (Trump) | Divided |
| 117th (2021–2023) | Democrats | Democrats | Democrat (Biden) | Unified |
| 118th (2023–2025) | Republicans | Democrats | Democrat (Biden) | Divided |