Trump strength vs. Dem resistance
Control of Congress and statehouses was still in doubt based on early returns
WASHINGTON — Votes were being counted Tuesday night as the energy and outrage of the Democratic resistance faced off against the strength of President Donald Trump’s GOP in a fight for control of Congress and statehouses across the nation.
Fundraising, polls and history were not on the president’s side.
But two years after an election that proved polls and prognosticators wrong, an air of uncertainty — and stormy weather across parts of the country — clouded the outcome of high-stakes elections from Florida to Alaska and everywhere in between.
Democrats seized early victories in contested House races in Florida and also in Virginia, where political newcomer Jennifer Wexton defeated two-term GOP Rep. Barbara Comstock. The Republican incumbent had been branded Barbara “Trumpstock” by Democrats in a race that pointed to Trump’s unpopularity among college-educated suburban women.
And in South Florida, former Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala fended off a stiff challenge from Republican Maria Elvira Salazar.
Both of those Democratic gains were in districts the party eyed for turnover in part because they were won by Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election.
But one of the top Democratic recruits, retired Marine fighter pilot Amy McGrath, lost her bid to oust to three-term Rep. Andy Barr in the Lexington, Ky.-area district.
Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts easily won re-election as they consider bids for the Democratic presidential nomination. Other 2020 prospects on the ballot included New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Democratic Sens. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Tom Carper of Delaware, Ben Cardin of Maryland, Tim Kaine of Virginia, Chris Murphy of Connecticut and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island were also reelected.
In Indiana, Trumpbacked businessman Mike Braun defeated Democratic incumbent Sen. Joe Donnelly
Anxious Republicans privately expressed confidence in their narrow Senate majority but feared the House was slipping away. The GOP’s grip on highprofile governorships in Florida, Georgia and Wisconsin were at risk as well.
“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 1 in 4 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.
Two issues more than any others were on voters’ minds: 25 percent described health care and immigration as the most important issues in the election.
Trump encouraged voters to view the first nationwide election of his presidency as a referendum on his leadership, pointing proudly to the surging economy at recent rallies.
He bet big on a xenophobic closing message, warning of an immigrant “invasion” that promised to spread violent crime and drugs across the nation.
The president’s job approval, set at 40 percent by Gallup, was the lowest at this point of any first-term president in the modern era. Both Barack Obama’s and Bill Clinton’s numbers were 5 points higher, and both suffered major midterm losses of 63 and 54 House seats, respectively.
Democrats needed to pick up two dozen seats to seize the House majority and three seats to control the Senate.
All 435 seats in the U.S. House were up for reelection, although fewer than 90 were considered competitive. Some 35 Senate seats were in play, as were almost 40 governorships and the balance of power in virtually every state legislature.
Trump spent Tuesday at the White House, tweeting, making calls, monitoring the races and meeting with his political team. He and the first lady hosted an evening watch party for family and friends.
Democrats, whose very relevance in the Trump era depended on winning at least one chamber of Congress, were laser-focused on health care as they predicted victories that would break up the GOP’s monopoly in Washington and state governments.
Democrats could derail Trump’s legislative agenda for the next two years should they win control of the House or the Senate. Perhaps more important, they would claim subpoena power to investigate Trump’s personal and professional shortcomings.