Democrats Win Control of House and Senate in 2026 Midterm Elections

Democrats won control of both the U.S. House and the Senate in the midterm elections on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. NBC News projected they would take at least 244 House seats, well above the 218 needed for a majority, while another tally had them at 228 seats secured at the time of publication. Democrats hold a 54-seat Senate majority after flipping seats in South Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Iowa, Kansas, North Carolina and Maine. In Texas, Democrat James Talarico defeated Republican Ken Paxton. The Alaska Senate race was too close to call.

A Fox News Voter Poll of more than 100,000 registered voters, taken Oct. 19 to Nov. 3, and an AP Voter Poll of all 50 states cited inflation, government corruption, the war in Iran and negative views of President Donald Trump's job performance. In Texas, about 2 in 10 voters reported severe inflation hardship, and about three-quarters of them backed Talarico. Suburban and urban voters, women and Hispanics favored Democrats, while rural voters, men and voters without a college degree favored Republicans.

The right-leaning Blaze and Fox News both call it a "blue tsunami" or "blue wave." The Blaze leads with the House falling early on election night and the 218-seat threshold, while Fox emphasizes its own poll, the economy, corruption and Iran, demographic splits, and the Alaska race still pending. The left-leaning New Republic leads with the breadth of the wins in the South, Great Plains and Midwest, and frames the night as leaving Trump's presidency weakened. It also looks ahead to JD Vance and a changing Democratic Party. All agree on the Democratic sweep and the 54 Senate seats. TRT World, from the alternative side, focuses on voter-survey explanations, with inflation and tariffs prominent.