Democrats have taken control of the Senate and the House of Representatives following the results of the US midterm elections, a vote that marked a major rejection of President Donald Trump's policies and reset the balance of power in Washington. President Trump told the New York Times that he is 'absolutely willing to accept these results' and ready to collaborate with Democrats. Voters eliminated Republican candidates closely tied to Trump or those who sought independence from him. Democrats gained seats in the Senate in Maine, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas, according to the Associated Press. Republican Senator Susan Collins, known for her ability to block Democratic initiatives for 30 years, conceded defeat to the Democratic candidate, Troy Jackson. In Texas, legislator James Talarico defeated Attorney General Ken Paxton, elevated by Trump, declaring in his victory speech: 'We have demonstrated that a politics of division is not equal to a politics of love.' In South Carolina, Dr. Annie Andrews defeated Darline Graham, sister of former Senator Lindsey Graham, and in Michigan, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed triumphed even though his campaign was affected by his primary rival, Haley Stevens, supporting the Republican candidate. Democrats could widen their Senate advantage: votes were still being counted in Alaska and Mississippi, an unexpected terrain where fewer than 50 votes separated the two candidates. Democrats registered major victories also in governor races: in Georgia, Keisha Lance Bottoms became the first African American woman elected governor in US history, and in Texas, Gina Hinojosa became the first Democratic governor since 1990, replacing Republican Greg Abbott. Dr. Amy Acton became the first woman elected governor of Ohio, and Democrat Sherrod Brown secured a new term in the Senate, flipping a seat held by Republicans. The midterm election result represents the first national mandate regarding Trump's second term, showing deep voter dissatisfaction with the president and Republicans who supported his agenda. Democrats flipped seats in the House of Representatives across the board. The Republican effort at redistricting, intended to protect their majority, failed: Democrats won districts in Florida redrawn by Republicans, and a seat flipped by Democrats in North Carolina was part of the Republican effort. Democratic candidates blamed Trump and the war in Iran, associated with economic difficulties that generated national frustration. Republicans portrayed their opponents as extremists socially and economically. Republicans rejected a significant challenge in Florida: Senator Ashley Moody defeated progressive Angie Nixon in a tight contest to complete Marco Rubio's term. The last polling places closed at 1:00 a.m. Eastern Time in Alaska, and complete results for some races may take days to be known. More than 400 reporters, editors, data analysts, video journalists, and photographers from the New York Times covered the elections, understanding the complexity of the country and the contradictory voters. Minor issues: A technical malfunction of voting machines in Westchester County, New York, forced authorities to collect ballots manually. In Florida, floods forced the relocation of several polling stations, and in North Carolina, technical problems caused minor delays. [1]

As the story develops

Update

Historic victory for Democrats: they take control of both Chambers of Congress

Democrats won a historic number of seats: seven Senate mandates, twenty-four House seats, five governorships, and up to fourteen state legislative chambers, marking the largest victory of this type within a time period since 2010. Although results are still being counted, Republicans failed to take any single mandate previously held by Democrats, despite intensive efforts to redraw electoral districts intended to maintain their power. This victory broke decades of Republican dominance in traditionally conservative states, such as Texas and Kansas, and brought the Democratic Party a majority of governorships for the first time since 2010. [2]

Democrats won a historic number of seats: seven Senate mandates, twenty-four House seats, five governorships, and a maximum of fourteen state legislative chambers, marking the largest victory of this type within a time period since 2010. Although results are still being counted, Republicans failed to take any single mandate previously held by Democrats, despite intensive efforts to redraw electoral districts intended to maintain their power. This victory broke decades of Republican dominance in traditionally conservative states, such as Texas and Kansas, and brought the Democratic Party a majority of governorships for the first time since 2010. [2]

Democrats won seven Senate mandates, twenty-four House seats, five governorships, and a maximum of thirteen state legislative chambers. [2]

Republicans failed to take any single mandate previously held by Democrats, despite intensive efforts to redraw electoral districts intended to maintain their power. [2]

This victory broke decades of Republican dominance in traditionally conservative states, such as Texas and Kansas, and brought the Democratic Party a majority of governorships for the first time since 2010. [2]

US Capitol in Washington, D.C., November 4, 2026, the day after the midterm elections in which Democrats secured control over the House of Representatives and the Senate, altering the political balance in Congress during the remaining two months of President Donald Trump's term. [2]

By Wednesday afternoon, the Democratic delegation had advanced significantly, culminating in victories of seven Senate seats, at least 24 House districts, five governorships, and fourteen state legislative chambers. [2]

According to Associated Press data, Republicans did not yet have any score to reverse a congressional, gubernatorial, or state legislative mandate held by Democrats. The only remaining opportunities for Republicans to yield parliamentary seats are concentrated in two newly gerrymandered congressional districts, which were not intended to be competitive at all initially. [2]

Disproportionate results underscore the scale of the GOP defeat; Democrats break decades of Republican dominance in traditionally red states and reshape the balance of power from Washington to state capitals. [2]

Comment from Mary Radcliffe, head of research at FiftyPlusOne, via email: one of the seats Republicans might still recover, but which was not redrawn before this campaign, is District 2 in Maine. [2]

Democrats won important seats in various states: in Kansas, voters elected their first Democratic federal senator since 1932, ending a streak of 94 consecutive losses. In Texas, Democrats overturned a three-term Republican governor and won a Senate seat that had escaped the Democratic Party since 1988. Republican Senate mandates also fell in Iowa, South Carolina, and Ohio, along with seats in Maine and North Carolina. [2]

The same political wave also hit at the governor level. Democrats registered surprise victories in Georgia, Iowa, Ohio, and Nevada — all states won by Donald Trump in 2024 — which brought them a national majority of governorships for the first time since 2010. [2]

Radical change also reached the state capital level, where Republican legislative majorities that had resisted for decades fell like dominoes. [2]

Democrats took control of the Texas House for the first time in more than twenty years, overturned both chambers of the Wisconsin legislature, and took the North Carolina House of Representatives from Republicans after the state had been in minority for 16 years. [2]

In Pennsylvania, Democrats conquered the Senate chamber for the first time since 1994, leading the party to total control of the state government. They recovered lower chambers in Michigan and Minnesota, restoring total Democratic control in both states. In Arizona, unofficial results point towards Democrats controlling both legislative chambers for the first time in approximately 60 years. [2]

Even where Republicans maintained legislative majorities, Democrats eliminated veto-proof supermajorities in Florida, Indiana, Kansas, and Missouri. Not since the Watergate era in 1974 had Republicans faced such a check on legislative power at the state level, according to the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee. [2]

The scale of the losses is all the more remarkable given the aggressive efforts made by Republicans to protect their power. At Trump's urging, GOP legislators spent months pursuing an extraordinary redistricting campaign, redrawing congressional bases in Texas, Florida, and North Carolina to tilt the electoral map in their favor. [2]

Yet, this gerrymandering effort did nothing to stop the Democratic wave. And the damage could not yet be complete. Republicans were still fighting to retain Senate mandates in Alaska and Mississippi, and several congressional competitions remained unresolved throughout Wednesday. [2]

Reporting contribution by Kevin Breuninger. [2]

Update

Trump accepts historic defeat: Democrats take Congress in an anti-Trump wave

Contrary to centuries of political tradition, Donald Trump did not contest the results of the November 2026 midterm elections, marking a break from his 2020 rhetoric and acknowledging that voters overwhelmingly rejected his mandate. This acceptance of results comes in a context where Trump tried to impose his candidacy, claiming the economy is 'fine' and intervention in Iran was necessary, but failed in the face of massive dissatisfaction with his policies, including unilateral tariffs and high living costs. [3]

The Democratic victory is described by experts as being of 'Watergate' magnitude, with former Chicago mayor and possible 2028 candidate Rahm Emanuel comparing the results to the deepest crisis of public trust. Democrat Roy Cooper, who won a seat in the North Carolina Senate, stated: 'We knew that chaos and corruption in Washington were hurting people... Today you said it must stop.' However, Democrats will have difficulty implementing an agenda without hitting Trump's veto power, which he will maintain until January 2029. [3]

The destruction of the Republican electoral base was so complete that the coalition of young, African American, and Latino voters that propelled Trump decisively shifted to Democrats. Republicans, who invested over $250 million from their own budgets plus donations from figures such as Elon Musk, failed to stop the wave. Even vocal supporters of Trump, such as Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican candidate for Ohio governor, acknowledged defeat to Democrat Amy Acton, although they expressed concerns about the future direction of the country. [3]

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Sources

  1. New York Times Here’s the latest.
  2. CNBC Democrats flip dozens of GOP seats. Republicans haven't flipped a single one
  3. ndtv.com Unlike 2020, Trump Accepts Midterm Results. What Exactly Changed?