Democrats take U.S. Congress as voters rebuke Trump

‘GENERATIONAL REMAKE’: The Democrats, who focused their campaigns on Trump corruption and affordability, took over huge swaths of the country from Republicans

Democrats on Tuesday and early yesterday seized control of both the US Senate and House of Representatives, scoring sweeping victories in Republican strongholds for the first time in generations as tens of millions of voters delivered a scathing rebuke to US President Donald Trump.

Voters in conservative bastions who had propelled the president to his second term in office just two years ago swung dramatically toward Democrats, fueled by deep frustration over the unpopular war with Iran, anxiety over the high cost of living and anger at Trump’s stewardship of the country.

In Texas, the biggest Republican state, Democrats ended a decades-long losing streak in seismic fashion, winning a Senate seat and ousting three-term Governor Greg Abbott.

Supporters react after media outlets projected Democratic US Senate candidate James Talarico’s victory in the US midterm elections in Austin, Texas, on Tuesday night.

Photo: Reuters

Kansas elected its first Democratic senator since the Great Depression nearly a century ago, and in South Carolina, a state that Trump carried by nearly 18 points in 2024, Democrats turned aside his handpicked Senate candidate.

The results would usher in a new era of divided government in Washington, following two years in which the Republican-controlled Congress rarely exercised its power to rein in Trump.

Once seated in January, Democrats are expected to use their power to investigate Trump’s administration, family and allies and demand concessions on major legislation. The Democratic Senate can block Trump’s nominees, including any US Supreme Court justices should a vacancy arise.

“There is now a generational remake of the Senate map that is going to change America,” US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said. “Americans voted for change, and now Democrats must deliver.”

Trump, who is barred by the US Constitution from seeking a third term, has exercised an iron grip on his party for most of the past decade, but the new balance of power in Washington might accelerate his lame-duck status, as attention turns toward the 2028 presidential race and potential successors begin competing for political influence in a post-Trump world.

Despite worries from Democrats that Trump might seek to overturn the election results, as he did in 2020, the president accepted the outcome, congratulating Democrats in an interview with Fox News. He also said he would work with Democrats on issues such as immigration, although he threatened to veto any “insane” bills they passed.

Democrats focused their campaign on corruption and affordability, blaming Trump’s tariff policy and the war with Iran for driving up costs while highlighting the billions of dollars the Trump family has made since he returned to the White House.

The Democratic wave flooded huge swaths of the country. Republicans lost ground in all but a handful of the approximately 2,100 counties where most votes had been counted, according to tallies compiled by Reuters and USA Today.

In media interviews, Trump acknowledged that the conflict with Iran had played a role in his party’s losses, but stood by his decision to go to war.

According to exit polls conducted by SSRS on behalf of a consortium of US media outlets including major television networks and The Associated Press, half of voters nationwide said they saw the midterm elections as an opportunity to rebuke the president, and three-quarters said they are “angry” or “dissatisfied” with the way the country is headed.

In addition, 70 percent of voters surveyed said they want Congress to provide more checks and balances on the president.

“In sweeping and decisive victories, the American people have rebuked the depravity, corruption and incompetence of the man named President Donald J. Trump,” incumbent Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia told supporters at a victory party.

In Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan continues to enjoy bipartisan support in the US Congress and would continue to work with both major parties to enhance ties with Washington following the midterms.