Biden praises voting result

Dems hold back ‘red wave’

NEW YORK: Joe Biden will not change anything about his presidency even as he is on the verge of losing control of Congress, saying he had a “sigh of relief” that his Democrats defied expectations.

As the counting continues in the midterm elections, the Republicans remain in the box seat to claim a narrow majority in the House of Representatives, sparking two years of divided government in the US.

But the Democratic performance is the best result for a president in the midterms in two decades, prompting Mr Biden to declare: “It was a good day for democracy and I think it was a good day for America.”

“While the press and the pundits were predicting a giant red wave, it didn’t happen,” he said.

Donald Trump, who is preparing to launch his third presidential run next week, has reportedly been “screaming at everyone” after several of his candidates crashed out.

Mr Biden, in a rare press conference the day after the election, confirmed he intended to run again in 2024 but said it was “ultimately a family decision” he hoped to make early next year.

Asked about the two-thirds of Americans who said they did not want him to seek a second term, Mr Biden told them: “Watch me.”

He acknowledged voters were “frustrated” after a “really tough few years”, saying they had been clear about their concerns on inflation, crime, democracy and abortion.

Mr Biden said he would not change his approach because his agenda was popular and Americans were “just finding out what we’re doing”, although he offered to “work across the aisle” with the Republicans in control of the House.

“I’m open to any good ideas,” he said.

Control of the Senate may not be decided for a month, with voters in Georgia to be sent back to the polls in December after neither candidate reached 50 per cent, while the races in Arizona and Nevada remain too close to call.

The Republicans need to win two of those three to own 51 of the Senate’s 100 seats. If the pre-election 50-50 deadlock in the Senate is repeated, the Democrats will retain control as Vice President Kamala Harris holds a tie-breaking vote.

With 218 seats needed to control the 435-seat House of Representatives, 206 races have been called for the Republicans by the Associated Press and 182 for the Democrats, with 47 still up for grabs.

Democratic losses in New York proved central to their undoing in the House, with even Sean Patrick Maloney – the boss of the party’s campaign committee – knocked out of his seat.

Mr Trump was reported to be privately livid at the results, especially the defeat of his Pennsylvania Senate candidate Mehmet Oz in what was a Republican-held seat.

He reportedly blamed that on his wife Melania as “not her best decision”.