WASHINGTON — Republicans won control of the U.S. Senate with victories in Montana, Ohio and West Virginia on Wednesday, ensuring President-elect Donald Trump’s party will control at least one chamber of Congress next year, but the battle for control of the House might not be known for days.
Republicans also won several races that could allow them to expand their 220-212 majority in the House, including a Democratic-held district in Pennsylvania that includes Scranton, Democratic President Joe Biden’s hometown. They also picked up seats from Democrats in North Carolina, where Republicans had redrawn district lines to their advantage, and secured another victory in Michigan.
Democrats won a Republican-held seat in upstate New York and a seat in Alabama that had been redrawn to comply with a U.S. Supreme Court order to create a Black majority district.
Democrats now need to flip at least seven seats to take control of the 435-seat chamber. But their opportunities to do so were gradually diminishing, as Republican incumbents won competitive reelection races in Colorado, Iowa, New Jersey and Virginia.
In Delaware, voters made history by electing Democrat Sarah McBride, the first openly transgender member of Congress. In Texas, Julie Johnson won the 32nd Congressional District seat that was held by Colin Allred to become the first openly LGBTQ person to represent that state in Congress. The Dallas Morning News has full election results online from Dallas, Texas and the nation.
With at least 200 seats safe for each party, the winning side will likely end up with a narrow majority that could make governing difficult. That has been evident in the past two years as Republican infighting has led to failed votes and leadership turmoil and undercut the party’s efforts to cut spending and tighten immigration.
Tight races in the heavily Democratic states of New York and California could determine House control, and California typically takes several days to count its ballots.
Republicans were set to hold a majority of at least 52-48 in the U.S. Senate.
If Republicans ultimately prevail in the House, they would be in a position to dictate the agenda in Washington, helping Trump deliver on his promise to slash taxes and restrict immigration, for at least the next two years until the 2026 midterm elections.
The results also ensured Republicans in the Senate would be able to help Trump, who secured a comeback presidential election victory over Democrat Kamala Harris, appoint conservative judges and other government personnel.