Democrats Win Congress in Sweeping Midterm Defeat for Trump

Democrats win Congress in a sweeping midterm result, taking both the House of Representatives and the Senate from Donald Trump’s Republicans. US networks projected the outcome early on Wednesday, November 4. As of 7 PM PKT, counting is still going on in some races, but the overall result is no longer in doubt.

The win gives Democrats real power over the last two years of Trump’s second term. They will be able to block his bills, open investigations into his administration and slow down his choices for judges and senior posts.

Democrats win Congress by a wide margin

The scale is striking. According to the BBC results tracker, Democrats had won 54 Senate seats with two races still to be counted, a gain of seven. A party needs 51 seats to control the chamber.

In the House, Democrats had won 228 seats, well above the 218 needed, with about 70 seats still uncounted. Al Jazeera, citing the Associated Press tally, said Democrats were also leading in 34 more races. If those leads hold, the party could pass 260 House seats, its strongest position since 1990.

Not since George W Bush in 2006 has a Republican president lost both chambers in a midterm. However, Republican losses this time look much deeper than in that year.

Wins deep in Republican states

Several results came in states Trump won easily two years ago. In Texas, James Talarico beat Attorney General Ken Paxton for a Senate seat. The BBC says he is the first Democrat to win a Texas Senate race since 1988. Gina Hinojosa also defeated Governor Greg Abbott, becoming the first Latina elected governor of the state.

In Kansas, Methodist pastor Adam Hamilton unseated Senator Roger Marshall. The state had not elected a Democratic senator since 1932, AFP reported via Dawn. Democrats also flipped Senate seats in Iowa, North Carolina and South Carolina.

Meanwhile, in Maine, veteran Republican Susan Collins lost after 30 years in the Senate. She conceded and called her service “the honour of my life”, according to US media reports cited by the BBC.

Historic firsts on election night

The night also produced a series of firsts. In Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed defeated Republican Mike Rogers and became the first Muslim elected to the US Senate. During the campaign, Trump had called him a “jihadist” without evidence, which drew accusations of Islamophobia.

Keisha Lance Bottoms, a former mayor of Atlanta, won in Georgia. She is the first Black woman ever voted in as a US state governor. Deb Haaland, a former interior secretary, became the first Native American woman to win a governor’s race, in New Mexico. In addition, Chris Pappas of New Hampshire became the first openly gay man to win a Senate seat.

Republicans did have some bright spots. Most notably, Byron Donalds won the Florida governor’s race and became the state’s first Black governor.

How Trump reacted

Trump struck an unusually calm tone at first. He told The New York Times he was “absolutely willing to accept” the results. He also told Fox News that “the Democrats did a good job”.

Even so, he blamed some candidates and attacked Abbott on social media. He also admitted the war with Iran had played a part, mainly through higher fuel prices. “I think a part of it was Iran,” he told Fox News.

He made clear, too, that he would use his veto against what he called “insane” bills. Shortly afterwards, he posted an image of a red cap with the word “VETO” on it.

What happens next

The new Congress takes office in January. Hakeem Jeffries, the top House Democrat, is expected to become Speaker. If his colleagues confirm him, he would be the first Black person to hold the post.

A Democratic Congress cannot override a presidential veto without a two-thirds majority, which it does not have. As a result, the next two years are likely to bring stand-offs over spending, tariffs and the Iran war, rather than sweeping new laws.

For Pakistan and the Gulf, the result matters as well. Investors and governments are watching to see whether a weaker Trump at home changes his approach to Iran, oil prices and trade.