Democrats take control of both Congress chambers in US midterm elections

Democrats take both chambers

Democrats won control of both chambers of Congress in the midterm elections held on Tuesday, 3 November, ending Republican control of the House and Senate. The losses reached beyond the familiar coastal strongholds. Democrats won in Kansas, Iowa, North Carolina and South Carolina, states that had gone decades without electing senators from their party. Abdul El Sayed in Michigan and James Talarico in Texas won Senate seats, while Keisha Lance Bottoms and Jocelyn Benson were elected governors of Georgia and Michigan. Trump accepted the results and praised the 'good job' Democrats had done.

A referendum Trump could not escape

Trump had made the vote a referendum on himself, and it was fought against high petrol prices, an Iran war that lasted much longer than expected and a steep fall in his popularity. On Monday, 2 November, the eve of the vote, he appeared at the reflecting pool of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington to show restoration work and joke about naming it after himself. Vice President JD Vance and chief of staff Susie Wiles had organized meetings with pollsters and outside advisers in late 2025, which found losses among young people, workers and Hispanic voters, groups that had been decisive in 2024. Before the vote, Trump announced the suspension of $4 billion in annual aid to Israel. Trump and Vance have reportedly acknowledged that the war with Iran was the main cause of the Republican defeat.

The left flank and the next contest

The left wing of the Democratic Party is pressing for a bigger role in the new Congress. Zohran Mamdani, New York's mayor and a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, argued that Democrats must use their power to deliver change Americans feel in their pockets. He cited campaigns built on universal childcare in Texas, a pledge to cut housing bureaucracy in Georgia and a data center moratorium in Michigan. The presidential election falls exactly two years after the vote, and the Democratic primary race is expected to start within months. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York congresswoman, is set to play a bigger role in the next cycle, either as a senator or as a primary candidate, a path her local DSA chapter is pushing. A New York Times data visualization led by Martín González shows men aged 18 to 29 shifting 32 points toward Democrats since 2024, when most of them voted for Trump. That group makes up 15% of the electorate.

Europe reads the result with caution

European capitals received the result with caution and some relief, seeing an opposition Congress as an institutional brake on Trump, though they do not expect a sharp change in Washington's priorities abroad. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said American voters rejected policies that only impoverish people, while Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk celebrated the outcome as a victory for democracy. The European Commission stayed neutral. Trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic called the United States a close ally and partner and stressed the need to preserve the 2025 trade agreement. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius urged caution about the unclear future of the White House agenda. Jeremy Shapiro of the European Council on Foreign Relations said Europeans should prepare for a 'Trump 2.5', a president who keeps enormous power and faces very few constraints. Jörn Fleck of the Atlantic Council's Europe Center argued that Trump could push a frenetic effort to consolidate his legacy.

What Congress can and cannot do

The new Congress can condition funding for military operations and question some core alliances, La Vanguardia's editorial argues. Overriding a veto requires two-thirds majorities in both chambers, and Republicans loyal to Trump can still block attempts to revoke his executive decisions, Shapiro notes. The editorial lists the Iran war and support for Netanyahu, a possible intervention in Cuba, relations with Russia and Ukraine, a trade war with China, tariffs and NATO among the files on Trump's desk. It also says Netanyahu's inability to form a parliamentary majority makes a return to war with Iran a very risky move. Next come the organization of the new congressional committees, the Democratic primary race and the presidential vote two years away.