A narrow Republican edge meets an unhappy electorate
Voters went to the polls on Tuesday to decide who controls Congress for the last two years of Donald Trump's presidency. Republicans entered election day holding the Senate 53-47 and the House 219-214. Every one of the 435 House seats was on the ballot, along with 35 Senate seats and 36 governorships.
The numbers look close, but the political weather does not. The latest NBC News poll put Trump's approval rating 22 points underwater, with inflation and the cost of living ranked as the top concerns for voters. Democrats needed a net gain of three seats to take the House and a net gain of four to take the Senate, a harder task because the Senate map runs through states Trump won comfortably in 2024.
Record money and a fight over ballots
Both parties spent heavily. BBC Verify projected the 2026 campaign would cost close to $12bn, making it the most expensive midterm cycle on record. Much of the money went into a small group of Senate races, including Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Maine, Ohio, Texas, Kansas and Alaska.
Legal fights ran alongside the voting. The administration asked the Supreme Court to require California officials to set aside thousands of disputed mail ballots. A judge dismissed a Justice Department lawsuit over two candidates named Dan Sullivan in Alaska's Senate race, a case the department had used to argue that results should not be certified quickly. State and local election officials said they were prepared for federal intervention and reported no major disruption at polling places.
What happens after the votes are counted
Control of the House would give the winning party the power to block or advance legislation, launch investigations and set the spending agenda. A Democratic House would end the administration's run of unobstructed domestic legislation. A Republican hold would keep the current agenda moving, including energy deregulation and the immigration enforcement build-up.
Senate control matters even more for appointments. A Democratic Senate could stall judicial and cabinet nominations for the rest of the term. A Republican Senate would keep confirming them.
Several states allow mail ballots to arrive after election day, and recounts are likely in the closest races. Officials in Michigan and Pennsylvania warned that final results could take days. Both parties had lawyers ready in swing states before polls closed. The first wave of results was expected late on Tuesday night, with the Senate picture likely to settle last.