Election 2026LiveSenate54 Dem · 44 Rep · 2 to callHouse240 Dem · 147 Rep · 48 to callGovernors28 Dem · 20 Rep · 2 to callUpdated 07:22 ET · AP race calls
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US Politics

Democrats win House and Senate in midterm elections

CBS News projects 251 to 268 House seats for Democrats, while Speaker Mike Johnson says he won't run for minority leader.

The United States Capitol in Washington
The United States Capitol in Washington. Photo: Architect of the Capitol, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
8 news outlets reported this · Little coverage from conservative outlets
Liberal6 outletsDemocratic wave, Republican blame and what power bringsCenter1 outletDemocrats projected to take over the HouseConservative1 outletDemocrats' new power to investigate the Pentagon
Published 3 min read
Overview

Democrats won control of in Tuesday's elections. CBS News says Democrats won at least 54 seats, with Alaska and Mississippi still too close to call. CBS projects Democrats will hold 251 to 268 House seats, and ABC News also projects a Democratic House.

Votes are still being counted in several races, including in Maine, Montana, Florida and Alaska. CBS reports Democrats flipped more than two dozen Republican-held House seats. It also reports Republicans were on track to lose every district they tried to .

Mike Johnson told his staff he won't run for minority leader. Majority Leader Steve Scalise says he plans to run for Republican leader, and Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan has also entered the race. Vice President JD Vance said the party lost because of the Iran war.

NBC News reports President Trump also blames the Iran war but says he would "do it again." CBS reports Trump said "we would have won" had he been on the ballot. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer vowed to wrap Trump in "legislative razor wire" as Democrats outline oversight plans.

The Washington Examiner reports Democrats are looking at oversight of the Pentagon, including the Iran war and boat strikes.

Key figures
  • at least 54 Senate seats won by Democrats, by CBS News' count — CBS News
  • 251 to 268 House seats Democrats will control, as CBS News projects — CBS News
  • more than two dozen Republican-held House seats Democrats flipped, by CBS News' account — CBS News
  • more than $47 billion Iran war cost the Pentagon reported to Congress in mid-October, per the Washington Examiner — Washington Examiner

Three sides of the story

Liberal6 outlets

Democratic wave, Republican blame and what power brings

CBS News opens on Democratic leaders planning how to use power while the "grapples with stunning losses." It quotes Schumer's "legislative razor wire" vow, Sen. Ted Cruz calling the result a "Watergate-level repudiation," and Vance saying the "reason we lost is the war." It also summarizes a Journal op-ed by Sen. John Cornyn.

NBC News titles its video "Democrats take Congress in historic win" and lists next to it a segment on Trump blaming the Iran war while saying he would "do it again." ABC News builds "How Democrats flipped the Senate blue" on its voter poll, describing "a wave of discontent" over the economy and Trump. It says projected winner Jon Ossoff drew support from around 6 in 10 Georgia voters.

The New Republic looks to the courts. It says a Democratic Senate of at least 54 seats means Trump cannot put additional conservative judges on the upper federal courts during 2027 and 2028. It calls Nathan Johnson's Texas win perhaps the most consequential downballot result.

Center1 outlet

Democrats projected to take over the House

NewsNation reports under the headline "Democrats projected to take over the House." It says this is the first time Democrats will control the House since the 2022 midterms.

Conservative1 outlet

Democrats' new power to investigate the Pentagon

The Washington Examiner leads with Democrats "salivating" over Pentagon oversight after what it calls Tuesday's "bluenami." It quotes Rep. Robert Garcia's election-night "LAWYER UP" message and Rep. Adam Smith's letter seeking more public testimony from senior Pentagon officials. It names the Iran war, boat strikes, deployments to American cities and defense contracts as subjects Smith says deserve more scrutiny.

The paper reports that the war's cost, as the Pentagon gave it to Congress in mid-October, tops $47 billion. It recounts Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's firing of more than a dozen senior leaders, including his line that what the media calls an accusation, he wears "as an accomplishment." It notes Democrats have sought information on contracts tied to Trump's sons, who have denied wrongdoing.

Bradley Bowman of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies says more oversight is what you would expect when the party that doesn't hold the White House controls Congress.

All sources: 10 articles from 8 outlets

Liberal (8)

Center (1)

Conservative (1)

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1 min
Congress

The US parliament: the Senate and the House of Representatives. A bill becomes law when both pass it and the president signs it.

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Midterm elections

US elections halfway through a president's four-year term. The whole House, a third of the Senate and many governors are elected. In 2026 Election Day is November 3.

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Senate

The upper chamber of Congress: 100 senators, two per state, elected for six years. It confirms judges and ministers and approves treaties.

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Redistricting and gerrymandering

States redraw their election districts, normally after each ten-year census. Gerrymandering is drawing the lines to help one party, by packing the other side's voters into a few districts or spreading them thin. Both parties do it where they can.

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Speaker of the House

The leader of the House of Representatives, chosen by its members, usually from the majority party. Second in line to the presidency after the vice president.

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GOP

“Grand Old Party”: a nickname for the Republican Party, used since the 1870s. GOP and Republican mean the same thing.

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Attorney General

The head of the Justice Department and the government's chief lawyer. Each state has its own attorney general too.

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