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Democratic Party flips US Senate in 2026 midterm elections

The outcome is widely seen as a rebuke to Trump’s Republican Party which took control of the upper chamber in 2024 race.

Al JazeeraAl Jazeera Staff查看原文 ↗
For nearly two years, the Republican Party has had majorities in both chambers of the US Congress [AFP]
For nearly two years, the Republican Party has had majorities in both chambers of the US Congress [AFP]

The outcome is widely seen as a rebuke to Trump’s Republican Party, which took control of the upper chamber in the 2024 election.

For nearly two years, the Republican Party has had majorities in both chambers of the US Congress [AFP]

The Democratic Party has regained control of upper chamber of the United States Congress in the 2026 midterm elections.

On Tuesday night, the Senate was called in the left-wing party’s favour.

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Democrats needed to gain four seats in the upper chamber of Congress to wrest control from the Republicans.

Some of those gains were dramatic. In South Carolina, for instance, Democratic doctor Annie Andrews nabbed a seat held by Republican Darline Graham, the sister of the late longtime Senator Lindsey Graham. The last time a Democrat won a Senate seat in the state was 1998.

Neighbouring North Carolina saw a similar Senate flip, with Democrat Roy Cooper, a former governor, beating his Republican rival Michael Whatley.

In deep-red Texas, meanwhile, Democrat seminarian James Talarico delivered an upset against state Attorney General Ken Paxton. The last time a Democrat won a statewide election in Texas was 1994.

Democrat Sherrod Brown also defeated incumbent Republican Senator Jon Husted in Ohio, flipping that seat as well. And in Kansas, Adam Hamilton, the Democratic pastor of a mega-church, beat another sitting senator, Republican Roger Marshall.

Currently, in the outgoing 119th Congress, Republicans have a 53-person majority in the 100-seat chamber. The Democrats have a 45-member minority, with two independents in their caucus.

But with Tuesday’s results, the Senate majority will shift hands.

The outcome is also slated to end the Republican “trifecta”, achieved during the 2024 election, which saw the right-wing party win leadership over three major bodies of power in Washington, DC: the Senate, the House of Representatives and the presidency.

The Senate was projected to be harder to flip than the House in Tuesday’s midterm elections, given the smaller number of seats on the ballot.

Senate terms last six years, unlike the two-year terms given to elected members in the House of Representatives. And elections for senators are staggered, meaning that only a third of all Senate seats will be voted upon at at time.

This midterm election cycle saw 35 Senate races unfold: 33 regular elections, and two special elections in Ohio and Florida. Those two states were left with Senate vacancies when Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio joined President Donald Trump’s second administration in 2025.

At least seven Senate races on Tuesday were considered key toss-ups. They included contests in Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Ohio, Texas and Michigan.

States like Texas and Kansas, however, rarely fall within the toss-up category, as they are considered right-wing strongholds. The last time a Democratic senator was elected in Kansas was 1932.

The Democratic Party also successfully defended several seats, including in Jon Ossoff’s race in the swing state of Georgia. Mark Warner, a 17-year veteran of the Senate, also retained his position representing Virginia.

More updates to come…

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