GOP holds Senate, Dems gain in House
WASHINGTON >> Democrats were gaining ground in the battle for House control Tuesday night, while setbacks in Indiana, Tennessee and Texas squeezed their already narrow path to a Senate majority.
With control of Congress, statehouses and President Donald Trump’s agenda at stake, some of the nation’s top elections were too close to call. Democrats won half of the seats they needed to claim House control with dozens additional competitive contests remaining. Victories in contested House races across Florida, New York, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Minnesota gave them cause for optimism.
The Democrats’ path to the Senate was increasingly narrow, however.
In Texas, Sen Ted Cruz staved off a far tougher than expected challenge from Democratic candidate Beto O’Rourke, whose recordsmashing fundraising and celebrity have set off buzz he could be a credible 2020 White House contender.
In Indiana, Trumpbacked businessman Mike Braun defeated Democratic incumbent Joe Donnelly. And in Tennessee, Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn defeated former Gov. Phil Bredesen, a top Democratic recruit.
The mixed results unfolded as an anxious nation watched to see whether voters would reward or reject the GOP in the first nationwide election of Trump’s turbulent presidency. In the leadup to the election, Republicans privately expressed confidence in their narrow Senate majority but feared the House could slip away. The GOP’s grip on high-profile governorships in Florida , Georgia and Wisconsin were at risk as well.
Fundraising, polls and
history were not on the president’s side.
“Everything we have achieved is at stake,” Trump declared in his final day of campaigning.
Long lines and malfunctioning machines marred the first hours of voting in some precincts, including in Georgia, where some voters reported waiting up to three hours to vote in a hotly contested gubernatorial election. More than 40 million Americans had already voted, either by mail or in person, breaking early
voting records across 37 states, according to an AP analysis.
Nearly 40 percent of voters cast their ballots to express opposition to the president, according to AP VoteCast, a national survey of the electorate, while one-infour said they voted to express support for Trump.
The nationwide survey indicated that nearly twothirds said Trump was a reason for their vote.
Overall, 6 in 10 voters said the country was headed in the wrong direction,
but roughly that same number described the national economy as excellent or good.