By Dara Ojomo
Democrats scored a string of early victories in Tuesday’s US midterm elections, flipping a Republican-held Senate seat and making inroads in conservative House districts, according to AFP. Control of Congress had not yet been decided.
In North Carolina, former governor Roy Cooper defeated Trump-backed Michael Whatley, the ex-chairman of the Republican National Committee, for the Senate seat held by retiring Republican Thom Tillis. Georgia’s Jon Ossoff kept his Senate seat, and Democrats held an open seat in New Hampshire, where Chris Pappas won. Democrats also took a Republican-held House seat in North Carolina, in a district Trump won comfortably in 2024.
Republicans had bright spots too. Trump-backed Byron Donalds won Florida’s governor’s race, and Republican Ashley Moody kept her Senate seat. In Georgia, former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms was projected to win the governorship, which would make her the first Black woman elected governor of a US state.
Republicans started the night with 53 of the 100 Senate seats, so Democrats needed a net gain of four to take control. In the House, where all 435 seats were contested, they needed to flip just three. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said the country was “on the brink of a dramatic change of direction.”
The vote was widely seen as a verdict on President Donald Trump’s second term, with voters citing living costs, tariffs and higher fuel prices linked to the US war against Iran. If Democrats win the House, they could block his legislative agenda and launch investigations. A Senate win would also let them block judicial nominees and senior appointments.
Trump said Tuesday he would accept the election results.
