Republicans took control of the US Senate from Democrats in Tuesday’s election, with former President Donald Trump leading the race for the White House.
In the House of Representatives, Democrats won 161 seats, compared to 188 for Republicans. The majority is 218 seats.
Republicans took control of the Senate, winning at least two Democratic seats and protecting their own embattled lawmakers to end four years of Democratic control.
In Ohio, the Republican tide was consecrated by the victory of Bernie Moreno over his Democratic rival Sherrod Brown who was trying to run for a fourth term.
Separately, West Virginia’s Jim Justice easily won the vacancy left by the retirement of Sen. Joe Manchin, who spent most of his Senate career as a Democrat before becoming an independent this year.
The two defeats overturned the 51 to 49 majority held by the Democrats.
In its analysis of these results, the New York Times expects that Republicans, whose campaigns appear to benefit from former President Donald Trump’s strength in key states, could strengthen their new majority through very close elections. close in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan and to a Republican advantage in Montana.
Thanks to this victory, Republicans will have a leading role in shaping federal policy, particularly in the event of Trump’s return to the White House. According to the latest projections from the Associated Press, Trump now has 248 electoral votes against 214 for his Democratic rival, Kamala Harris.
“Voters are trusting Senate Republicans with an extraordinary opportunity,” said Sen. John Barrasso, the No. 3 Republican who won re-election in his own race in Wyoming.
He explained that the new Republican majority in the Senate will aim to implement an agenda that “reflects America’s priorities: lower prices, less spending, secure borders and American dominance in the field of ‘energy “.
For Democrats, the loss of the majority constitutes a major setback in their quest to remain in power.
The fight for control of the Senate has largely focused on Ohio and Montana, two states controlled by Democrats and won by Trump in 2016 and 2020 – and which he also won handily again in the current election.
With MAP
