Democrats take both chambers of US Congress in 2026 midterm elections

According to a CBS projection, Democrats will win 259 seats in the House of Representatives, while Republicans will take 176; 218 seats are required for a majority. CNN projects the number of Democratic senators at 54 out of 100. As Deutsche Welle reports, citing the AP, vote counting is still under way, but the party has already secured at least 218 seats in the lower house and surpassed the 51-seat threshold in the upper chamber. Prior to the vote, Republicans controlled both chambers.

According to the same DW data, Democrats flipped six Senate seats from Republicans: in North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, Kansas, Texas, and Iowa. CNN notes that James Talarico became the first Democrat elected to the Senate from Texas since 1988, while Gina Hinojosa became the state's first Democratic governor in more than 30 years. In Kansas, Adam Hamilton defeated incumbent Republican Senator Roger Marshall.

Speaking to the New York Times, President Donald Trump said he was "absolutely ready" to accept his party's defeat. In a telephone interview with Fox News, he admitted that the results surprised him somewhat, attributing the Republican loss to his not being on the ballot himself. Trump added that he is willing to work with Democrats, but intends to use his veto power if sent "something crazy" to sign.

A survey of nearly 80,000 voters conducted by SSRS for the AP and other media outlets showed that roughly 75% of Americans aged 18–24 voted for Democrats. Nearly half of those surveyed said their families' financial situation had worsened over the past two years; among this group, 74% chose Democrats.