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US Politics

Democrats win control of both House and Senate in midterm elections

Trump tells Fox News he does not like to consider the result a defeat for himself, saying he was not on the ballot.

The U.S. Capitol in Washington
The U.S. Capitol in Washington. Photo: Architect of the Capitol, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
9 news outlets reported this
Liberal4 outletsRebuke of Trump across red and blue statesCenter3 outletsSenate majority won, oversight powers and coming conflictsConservative2 outletsVoter backlash and shifting demographics behind the sweep
Published 3 min read
Overview

Democrats won control of both chambers of in the elections on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Republicans had held 53 of the 100 seats. Democrats won Senate races in Texas, Kansas, North Carolina, South Carolina and Ohio.

In Texas, James Talarico beat Republican Ken Paxton. In Kansas, pastor Adam Hamilton became the first Democrat elected to the Senate from the state in 94 years. In , Democrats flipped at least 25 seats, with some races still undecided.

An exit poll put Trump's approval at 38 percent, according to the Boston Globe. Yahoo News reports that voters blamed the Iran war and for higher prices. Trump told Fox News late Tuesday, "I don't like to consider it a defeat for me.

I wasn't on the ballot." The White House said in a statement that Trump had promoted many candidates more effectively than they promoted themselves. The Epoch Times reports Trump also told Fox News he accepted the results and could work with Democrats on some issues, but foresaw conflict on others, including border security and transgender issues.

He said he would not make Cabinet changes based on the results. The Hill reports that the Senate majority will give Democrats added oversight powers.

Key figures
  • at least 25 House seats Democrats flipped so far, with some races undecided — Yahoo News
  • 53 seats out of 100 Republicans' Senate majority before the election — The Guardian (US)
  • 38 percent Trump's overall approval in the exit poll — The Boston Globe
  • 55% to 43% Talarico over Paxton in Texas, per Axios — Axios
  • around $4.15 per gallon average gas price on Nov. 3, per AAA — The Epoch Times

Three sides of the story

Liberal4 outlets

Rebuke of Trump across red and blue states

Axios's "Behind the Curtain" column is titled "The Trump obliteration" and reads the result as a "massive repudiation of Trump, his agenda, his style, his rhetoric and his presidency." Yahoo News opens with Trump urging Americans for two months to pretend he was on the ballot, and "On Tuesday, they did just that." It quotes Republican consultant Mike Murphy calling it "a complete repudiation of the party as defined by Donald Trump."

It also says White House advisers put the entire blame for the losses on the Republican candidates. The Guardian's visual analysis maps the swings county by county. It counts seven Senate seats, 25 House districts and five governorships lost by Republicans, and ties the result to high fuel prices and dissatisfaction with the president.

The Boston Globe's five takeaways say candidates Trump backed generally lost, with Louisiana's Julia Letlow, who won by less than a percent, the one exception. It adds that Republican efforts failed. Axios also expects a fight between socialists and center-leftists inside the Democratic Party.

Center3 outlets

Senate majority won, oversight powers and coming conflicts

The Hill and Border Report run the same text, headlined "Democrats win Senate majority." It says Republican candidates fell in states Trump carried two years ago, with his failing approval ratings "a huge drag on the ," and that the majority brings Democrats added oversight powers. The Wall Street Journal's short item says the Democratic victories in both chambers point to clashes during the president's remaining two years, and previews the party's top priorities. Border Report also posted an interactive results map for the Texas Senate race.

Conservative2 outlets

Voter backlash and shifting demographics behind the sweep

The Washington Examiner's news report says Democrats swept both chambers by wider margins than most polls had shown, "effectively making President Donald Trump a lame duck." It ties much of the result to voter backlash over the Iran war, tariffs and corruption allegations. It then walks through exit polls by group, including NBC's finding that Latino men favored Democrats 56% to 41%, after favoring Republicans 54% to 44% in 2024.

The Epoch Times opens with "Democrats won a sweeping victory on Nov. 3," then lists the Senate seats flipped from North Carolina to Texas. It cites a Reuters/Ipsos poll in which 48 percent of registered voters named cost of living their top issue. It quotes Notre Dame's Ken Kollman and SMU's Matthew Wilson and describes Trump as mostly defiant on Truth Social and more pragmatic on Fox News.

A Washington Examiner opinion piece argues Trump bears "significant responsibility" and expects him to act more erratically.

All sources: 22 articles from 9 outlets

Liberal (14)

Center (5)

Conservative (3)

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