In a surprising turn of events during the United States midterm elections, the Democratic Party has successfully seized control over both the Senate and the House of Representatives. This unexpected victory surpassed even the highest expectations of Democrats, with the party managing to win a close race in Mississippi that was called more than a week after election day.
North Carolina, traditionally a Republican stronghold, was predicted to flip, but the deep red state of South Carolina and Kansas, which have not elected a Democratic senator since 1932, were unexpected wins. Texas, Iowa, Ohio, Maine, and Michigan also turned blue, while the Democrats held onto their seats in Michigan. The race in Alaska remains undecided, with a knife-edge vote likely to be decided by second-choice votes.
The shift from Republican to Democratic control was observed nationwide, with some of the most significant swings since the 2024 presidential election occurring in Texas where the Democrats took both the Senate seat and the governor. Counties on the state's southern border saw shifts of over 50 percentage points. The BBC's partner CBS News projected the Democrats would win the House just after 03:00 GMT on Wednesday (22:00 EST Tuesday).
The impact of women, Hispanic voters, and concerns about the economy and democracy played a significant role in these elections. According to a poll, women turned out in numbers and mostly voted Democrat. Hispanic voters were one of the key groups in Texas, with 68% backing the Democratic Senate candidate James Talerico over the Republican Ken Paxton. This is a marked shift from the estimated 50% of Hispanic voters who backed Donald Trump in 2024.
The poll also revealed that across the country, the economy was the biggest issue, followed by the state of democracy. When asked if Donald Trump's policies impacted economic conditions, the poll suggests that two-thirds believe they had made things worse. Turnout has been high at recent midterm elections, and 2026 is no exception, climbing nearly to the 50% seen in 2018. The figure is provisional and will rise as more votes come in.
This news was produced by Wesley Stephenson, Christine Jeavans, Daniel Wainwright, Becky Dale, Libby Rogers, Jess Carr, John Walton, and Rob England. For updates on the twists and turns of Trump's second term, sign up for North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher's US Politics Unspun newsletter. Readers in the UK can sign up here, while those outside the UK can sign up here.