US midterm results 2026: Democrats win control of the House and Senate in a rebuke of Trump

Democrats have won control of both chambers of the US Congress, ending two years in which Republicans held the White House, the House and the Senate together.

The Associated Press called the House for Democrats after polls closed on Tuesday, Al Jazeera reported. The AP also called the Senate for the party, after Democrat Josh Turek won the Senate race in Iowa, according to Forbes.

All 435 House seats and about a third of the Senate were on the ballot. Before the vote, Republicans held 218 House seats to the Democrats' 214, CBS News reported.

A vote about Trump

Early exit polls put Donald Trump's approval rating at 38%, which CBS News said was on track to be the lowest for any president at a midterm election. About six in ten voters said Trump was a factor in how they voted for the House, CBS News reported.

Trump struck a calm tone after the results. "I think the Democrats did a good job. I really do," he told Fox News, according to Al Jazeera.

Former president Barack Obama wrote on X: "Tonight, the American people sent a clear message."

Seats that changed hands

Several Republicans lost seats they had held for years. In Pennsylvania, Democrat Janelle Stelson defeated seven-term Republican Scott Perry, and in Iowa, Democrat Sarah Trone Garriott beat Republican Zach Nunn, Al Jazeera reported.

In the Senate, Forbes reported that Republican Susan Collins lost her seat in Maine to Democrat Troy Jackson, and that former North Carolina governor Roy Cooper won the seat left open by retiring Republican Thom Tillis.

A new speaker

Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic leader in the House, is expected to become speaker, replacing Republican Mike Johnson. He would be the first Black person to hold the job, which is third in line to the presidency, according to both Al Jazeera and Forbes. The House has to elect him formally when the new Congress meets.

What changes now

With a majority in both chambers, Democrats can stop bills from the White House and set the agenda for committee hearings. Forbes reported that Democrats are already looking at investigations into Trump and his allies, though they have shown little interest in another impeachment, since removing a president needs a two-thirds vote in the Senate.

Still being counted

Not every race is over. Faulty ballot scanners in Westchester County, New York, have delayed results in the 17th District, where Republican Mike Lawler faces Democrat Cait Conley, CBS News reported. New York's elections board said "every valid vote will be counted."

The new Congress will be sworn in on 3 January 2027, Al Jazeera reported.