The key facts

  • According to US media projections, the Democrats won 53 Senate seats against 42 for the Republicans
  • Seats were flipped in Kansas, Texas, Maine, South Carolina, North Carolina, Iowa and Ohio
  • Abdul El-Sayed became the first Muslim senator, and Peggy Flanagan the first Native American woman senator

Democrats take both chambers of Congress

The Democratic Party has secured a majority in the US Senate following the midterm elections held on Tuesday. According to Anadolu, citing projections by American media outlets, as of 07:00 GMT the Democrats led 53–42, having won at least seven seats from the Republicans. This dealt a tangible blow to the second half of Donald Trump's presidential term.

Seats not won by Democrats for decades

The Democratic victories touched at least six states that had not elected a Democratic senator for decades. In Kansas, Adam Hamilton won a seat held by Republicans since 1932. In Texas, James Talarico defeated Republican Ken Paxton — the first Democrat from that state in the Senate since 1988. In Maine, Troy Jackson that same year took a seat from longtime Republican Senator Susan Collins for the first time since 1988.

Precedents and comebacks

In South Carolina, Annie Andrews defeated Darlene Graham, who had been appointed to the seat after the death of her brother Lindsey Graham: the Democrats reclaimed the position for the first time since 1998, and Andrews became the first elected female senator in the state's history. Roy Cooper flipped the North Carolina seat, and Josh Turek flipped Iowa's, becoming the first former Paralympian to serve as a US senator in history; in both states, Democrats had last won a Senate race in 2008. In Ohio, Sherrod Brown regained his Senate seat, defeating Republican Jon Husted after losing his 2024 reelection bid.

'Firsts' and held seats

In Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed, according to media projections, defeated Republican Mike Rogers and became the first Muslim US senator in history. Peggy Flanagan won in Minnesota, becoming the first Native American woman in the upper chamber; Jeff Merkley was reelected in Oregon, while Jon Ossoff convincingly defeated Mike Collins in Georgia. The Republicans held a number of seats: Tom Cotton was reelected in Arkansas, Kevin Hern in Oklahoma, Ashley Moody defeated Angie Nixon in a special election in Florida, and Julia Letlow narrowly defended her party's seat in Louisiana against Jamie Davis.

What this changes in practical terms

The majority won in the Senate is complemented by a parallel Democratic majority in the House of Representatives. As Anadolu notes, this limits the administration's legislative powers and its ability to confirm appointments for the remainder of Trump's presidential term. It is worth emphasizing separately: the figures and results cited are projections by American media outlets at the time of publication, not officially certified election results.