Republicans have secured a majority in the U.S. Senate with victories in West Virginia and Ohio, ensuring control of at least one chamber of Congress next year for Donald Trump’s party. The Republicans also made early gains as they fight to retain control of the House of Representatives.
The election results ensure that Republicans will be able to help Trump appoint conservative judges and other government staff if he wins the presidential race, or block much of the agenda of Democrat Kamala Harris if she wins.
According to projections right after voting closed, Republican Jim Justice won the open Senate seat in West Virginia, taking over the seat previously held by Joe Manchin, a Democrat-turned-independent candidate. Projections also indicated that Republican Bernie Moreno would defeat Democrat Sherrod Brown in Ohio. These two victories gave Republicans at least a 51-49 majority in the Senate, with further potential gains expected as more results come in from other races.
Republicans also won several races that could give them a majority of 220-212 in the House of Representatives, though the final result may not be known for several days. They won a Democratic district in Pennsylvania that includes Scranton, the hometown of Democratic President Joe Biden, and another Democratic seat in North Carolina.
Democrats won a Republican-held seat in upstate New York and a seat in Alabama, which was re-drawn in compliance with a U.S. Supreme Court order to create majority-minority districts.
To take control of the 435-seat House, Democrats now need to win at least six more seats. In Delaware, voters made history by electing Democrat Sarah McBride, the first openly transgender member of Congress.
As with the presidential election, the final result is likely to be determined by a small segment of the electorate. Fewer than 40 races are considered truly competitive.
Republicans have a chance to further increase their Senate majority if they win in Montana, where Democrat Jon Tester faces a tough re-election battle, and in several competitive Midwestern states.
However, the final outcome remains uncertain. Analysts say Democrats could still gain enough seats to take control of the House of Representatives, though there are no signs of a “wave victory” like the 2018 or 2010 elections that resulted in a change of government.
With at least 200 safe seats for each party, the winning side is likely to end up with a narrow majority, which could make governing more difficult. This was evident in the past two years, when internal conflicts among Republicans led to failed votes and leadership turmoil, undermining the party’s efforts to cut spending and tighten immigration policies.
Close races in the heavily Democratic states of New York and California may determine control of the House of Representatives, though the final result could take some time to be known, as California typically takes several days to count its votes.
