Democrats Win Control of Both the House and Senate as Dozens of Races Remain Uncalled

November 4, 2026 · Category: Field & Elections

The question that hung over Election Day was answered faster than in recent cycles. Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate, the Associated Press reported early Wednesday, ending unified Republican control of Washington for the last two years of President Donald Trump's term. AP, which calls all 435 House races and the 35 Senate contests on this year's ballot, noted that unlike in 2018, 2020 and 2022, control did not take days to determine.

The Senate result reached well past the usual battlegrounds. According to AP's live coverage, Democrats flipped at least seven seats, in Kansas, Iowa, Texas, Ohio, Maine, North Carolina and South Carolina, while holding contested seats in Georgia and Michigan. Republicans had entered the night with a 53-47 majority. In Texas, AP called the race for Democrat James Talarico over Republican Ken Paxton shortly after 10 p.m. Central, and Paxton conceded about 20 minutes later, Houston Public Media reported. AP described the overall result as a rebuke driven by frustration over high prices, the Iran war and concerns about government corruption.

The House count is further from finished. As of Wednesday morning, Democrats had 228 called seats to Republicans' 139, with 68 races still uncalled, according to Politico Playbook and The Guardian's AP-sourced results. That already clears the 218 needed for a majority. Close contests still being counted include North Carolina's 9th District, Colorado's 4th and Florida's 13th, Politico noted. States that count large volumes of mail ballots after Election Day, including California, account for many of the outstanding seats.

Governorships moved too. Democrats flipped Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio and Texas, where Gina Hinojosa defeated three-term Gov. Greg Abbott, according to ABC10's summary of AP results and CNBC. Alaska and Kansas remained too close to call: in Kansas, Democrat Cindy Holscher led Republican Ty Masterson 50.3% to 49.7% with about 98% of the expected vote counted, per AP estimates.

Trump said overnight that he is "absolutely willing to accept" the results and "will work with the Democrats on many things," CNBC reported.

Why it matters

A divided government changes the arithmetic for everything from spending bills to oversight hearings starting in January. For campaigns and voters, the work is not over: dozens of House seats, two governorships and many ballot measures are still being counted, and state canvass, cure and recount rules will decide when those results become final. A slower count in close races is normal, not a sign of problems.

Sources

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