Democrats won both chambers in Tuesday’s midterms. They flipped at least seven Senate seats, in Kansas, Iowa, Texas, Ohio, Maine, North Carolina and South Carolina. MS NOW estimates they will hold at least 250 House seats. Nine House seats, two Senate seats and two governors’ races were still uncalled by late Wednesday. Vice President JD Vance blamed the war with Iran for the losses.
Democrats will take full control of Congress in January after winning both the House and the Senate, NBC News projects. Republicans entered Election Day with slight advantages in the Senate (53-47) and the House (219-214), with 35 Senate seats and all 435 House seats on the ballot.
Democrats flipped at least seven Senate seats, in Kansas, Iowa, Texas, Ohio, Maine, North Carolina and South Carolina, and held battleground seats in Georgia and Michigan. James Talarico defeated Ken Paxton in Texas and Sherrod Brown won in Ohio. In Maine, Democrat Troy Jackson defeated Republican Susan Collins. CBS News projects Democrats will hold at least 54 Senate seats.
MS NOW estimates Democrats will hold at least 250 House seats, against the 218 needed for a majority. As of late Wednesday, nine House seats, two Senate seats and two governors’ races were still uncalled by the AP. Democrats also flipped five governorships and as many as 12 state legislative chambers. That included the Texas House, ending more than two decades of Republican control.
Vice President JD Vance blamed the war with Iran for the Republican losses. The new majorities give Democrats leverage to restore enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies and reverse Medicaid cuts. Trump now faces the prospect of congressional investigations and contentious spending negotiations. Democrats would still need 60 Senate votes to override the filibuster.
