According to forecasts, Democrats may claim 55–56 seats in the Senate out of 100, and 250 seats in the House of Representatives, where 218 are needed for a majority. The margin turned out to be even larger than polls had expected, and the campaign may become one of the Republican Party’s worst defeats in congressional elections in decades.
Democrats won in states that are usually considered Republican strongholds: Texas, Kansas, and South Carolina. They also won in Michigan, North Carolina, and Ohio, where Donald Trump won in 2024; in Alaska and Mississippi, a Democratic victory was also not ruled out, according to the counts.
According to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, U.S. President Donald Trump said he was ready to accept the election results and cooperate with Democrats. In an interview with Fox, he named rising fuel prices linked to the situation in the Middle East after the U.S. and Israel’s military campaign against Iran and the partial blocking of the Strait of Hormuz as a possible reason for the Republicans’ defeat.
The Trump administration previously exempted Russian diesel fuel from sanctions in hopes of lowering prices, but the measure had no noticeable effect. Democrats built their campaign on criticism of the Trump administration, accusing it of dividing society and pursuing an ill-considered foreign policy, including the war against Iran, while portraying Republicans as a party acting in the interests of a narrow upper stratum of society.
Without Congress’s approval, no legislative initiative, including the budget, can be adopted. The Senate also confirms candidates for positions in the administration, and Congress can conduct investigations and impeach officials.
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