Democrats won the incoming U.S. Senate majority in Tuesday’s midterm elections, according to race calls by The Associated Press, positioning them to scrutinize President Donald Trump’s nominees and administration.
AP called at least seven Republican-held seats for Democrats: Kansas, Iowa, Texas, Ohio, Maine, North Carolina and South Carolina. In Texas, it called the race for Texas state Rep. James Talarico over Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The results await state certification.
When the new Congress convenes, the Democratic majority will be able to review presidential nominees and conduct Senate investigations.
In the AP Voter Poll, about four in 10 voters said their congressional vote expressed opposition to Trump, while fewer than two in 10 said it expressed support. Roughly half rated living costs as “crucial” to their decision, and roughly half gave government corruption the same rating. The survey covered about 80,000 voters. Those responses do not establish what caused individual Senate outcomes.
Trump had urged supporters to turn out during a Sept. 17 Virginia telerally. “Pretend that I’m on the ballot,” he told them, according to the official transcript. EconoTimes previously covered his appeal for supporters to vote as though he were on the ballot. After the election, Trump told Fox News, “I think the Democrats did a good job.”
The Texas state canvass must take place between Nov. 21 and Dec. 7, according to the secretary of state’s canvass advisory.
