U.S. President Donald Trump said he would find a way to work with Democrats if the Republican Party lost control of Congress in the midterm elections. At the same time, he refused to make an unconditional commitment to accept the results regardless of the outcome.
“I will accept the results if the elections are fair,” Trump told reporters at the end of October. In response to a question about whether he would work with Democrats if the Republican majority were lost, he said he would “find a way” to do so.
The condition of “fair elections” leaves the president’s position different from an unconditional acceptance of the result. On October 27, The Washington Post reported that Trump had refused to accept the results in advance without additional conditions.
Democrats are advancing toward the House
Americans voted for all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the Senate’s 100 seats. Gubernatorial elections are being held in 36 states.
Republicans entered the vote in control of the White House and both chambers of Congress. Pre-election forecasts put Democrats in a strong position to regain the House, while the Senate race was considerably more closely contested.
In early projections, The Associated Press declared victories for Democrats in South Carolina and North Carolina. Annie Andrews won the Senate seat in South Carolina, while Roy Cooper won in North Carolina. The victories are significant because both states are traditionally considered Republican strongholds.
What follows if the majority changes
Loss of the House would limit Trump’s ability to advance legislative initiatives and would give Democrats control over committees and congressional oversight powers. If Democrats also win the Senate, the president will face bipartisan control of Congress during the second half of his term.
Trump has already said that he has the presidential veto and can use it against legislation he does not approve of. Thus, a potential loss of the majority would not automatically mean the adoption of the Democratic agenda, but rather negotiations over individual bills or the blocking of initiatives.
In the first hours after the polls closed, Democrats were on course to take control of the House, but final control of the Senate had still not been determined. In the United States, results are announced through successive projections by major media outlets, while official certification is carried out by the states.
Sources: iheart.com, washingtonpost.com, apnews.com