The Democratic Party took control of the Senate and the US House of Representatives after the midterm elections, turning the vote into the most serious political blow against President Donald Trump since the start of his second term. The victory came through breakthroughs in states that for decades have been among the Republican Party’s most reliable strongholds.
Democrats won at least seven Senate seats in Kansas, Iowa, Texas, Ohio, Maine, North Carolina and South Carolina. In Kansas, the party elected a senator for the first time since the Great Depression, while in South Carolina it won a Senate election for the first time this century.
In Texas, James Talarico defeated Ken Paxton. This is the first victory by a Democrat for statewide office in Texas in more than 30 years. In South Carolina, Annie Andrews unseated Trump-backed Senator Lindsey Graham. Democrats also won in Ohio, a state the president has carried three times.
In the House of Representatives, Democrats flipped more than two dozen districts, including some in which Trump secured a double-digit lead in 2024. According to The Associated Press, the result gives the party the ability to block the president’s legislative agenda, reject his nominees and launch investigations into the actions of his administration.
High prices weighed on Republicans
Exit polls conducted by SSRS for a consortium of US media outlets show that around half of voters viewed the election as an opportunity to punish the president. Around three-quarters said they were angry or dissatisfied with the direction in which the country was heading, while 70% wanted Congress to increase oversight of the president.
Nearly nine in ten voters identified the cost of living as an important or decisive factor in their vote, Reuters reported. High food and fuel prices, the war with Iran and concerns about corruption displaced the cultural issues Republicans had used to try to attack Democrats.
According to data cited by Reuters, support for Republicans among Hispanic voters fell to around one-third, compared with 46% in the 2024 election. Young voters and Black men have also moved away from the coalition that helped Trump return to the White House.
Trump promised to accept the result
Trump said he would accept the election result and was ready to work with Democrats on issues such as immigration. At the same time, he warned that he would veto “crazy” bills passed by Congress.
“Americans voted for change, and now Democrats must deliver it,” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said.Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson described the result as the beginning of a new political battle and said his party would seek to regain the chamber in 2028.
The new Congress will begin work on January 3, 2027. Democrats are planning a 100-day program to reduce the cost of living, as well as investigations into the Trump administration and the actions of its senior officials. Hakeem Jeffries could become the first Black Speaker of the House of Representatives if elected by his colleagues.
Sources: reuters.com, apnews.com