Republicans have secured a majority in the US Senate, meaning they now control half of Congress, while the outcome in the House of Representatives is still unclear. The victory in the Senate, confirmed by several US media outlets, could affect future legislative processes in the country.
After wins in the states of West Virginia and Ohio, it is clear that Republicans have enough seats to take over the Senate, AP reports. In West Virginia, Republican Jim Justice defeated Democratic candidate Glenn Elliot, after former Democratic Senator Joe Manchin declined re-election. In Ohio, Republican Bernie Moreno defeated incumbent Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown.
Significant shift in power in Congress
Since the 2022 midterm elections, Democrats have held a narrow majority in the Senate. In this year’s election, with 34 out of 100 seats at stake, Republicans needed to either win two net seats or win the presidential election and one seat to gain a majority. Republicans also secured senators in states like Florida, Tennessee and Indiana.
Democrats retained seats in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island, among others, and independent Senator Bernie Sanders, a former Democrat, continues to represent Vermont.
Unclear outcome in the House of Representatives
The situation in the House of Representatives remains uncertain. Before the election, the Republicans had a majority in this chamber with 435 seats, all of which are at stake this year. The Republicans have so far won four seats from the Democrats, while the Democrats have only taken one seat from the Republicans.
The Republicans taking power in the Senate means that Congress is now divided. This could affect the incumbent president’s ability to push through legislation. For example, after the Democrats lost their majority in the House of Representatives in 2022, President Biden has had difficulties passing aid packages for Ukraine.
The outcome of this year’s congressional elections will therefore have a major impact on the political future of the United States and the ability of the next president to gain support for his policies.
