Democrats win control of Congress in US midterms
Jon Ossoff and Josh Shapiro win by wide margins, Texas elects a Democratic governor, and JD Vance blames the Iran war for Republican losses.
Democrats won control of Congress in the US midterm elections held on Tuesday 3 November, a result that lands two years into President Donald Trump's second term and turns attention at once to the 2028 presidential race. Ballots were still being counted on Friday, the BBC reported.
Exit polls pointed to voter anger over the cost of living and to falling Republican support among groups that backed Trump in 2024, the Kathmandu Post reported. The BBC said exit polls suggested the swing against Republicans was partly driven by anger at the actions of the Trump administration.
Rappler framed the night around the president himself, reporting that Trump asked voters to pretend he was on the ballot, and that Republicans paid the price.
Senate and governors' races produced some of the clearest outcomes. Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff won Georgia by a sizeable margin in a state Trump carried in 2024, the BBC reported. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro swept aside his Republican challenger, and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker also won. Texas elected a Democratic governor, Gina Hinojosa, leaving the state with a single Republican in statewide office and putting its 40 electoral college votes in contention, according to the BBC.
In Arkansas, Republican Senator Tom Cotton and Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a former Trump White House press secretary, both held their seats with just above half the vote, narrower margins than before, the BBC reported.
Vice-President JD Vance moved to distance himself from the defeat. "The reason we lost is the war," he wrote on X, according to the BBC, referring to a foreign policy venture in Iran that the outlet described as politically disastrous for his party. Karen Beckwith, a political science professor at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio, told the BBC that Vance was "the one person who has been hurt badly by this election campaign".
Secretary of State Marco Rubio denied reports that he was considering leaving his post ahead of a 2028 run, the BBC reported. Senator Ted Cruz, who was not on the ballot this year, wrote on X that too many Republican politicians appeared not to care about the economic problems voters faced. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was also critical and pointed to Republican victories in his state.
Both wings of the Democratic Party claimed the results. The Blue Dog Caucus of moderate and conservative Democrats gained at least 14 seats, nearly doubling its size, the BBC reported. El-Sayed's win in Michigan was a breakthrough for the left in a swing state, according to the BBC, and Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, said "the old notions of electability are out the door".
Jim Messina, a former adviser to Barack Obama, told the BBC that dozens of people were already making moves towards 2028. Driena Sixto, a former Turning Point USA spokesperson, said Republican messaging after Trump took office concentrated too heavily on deportations.
How the reports differ
The BBC led on what the result means for 2028, naming Ossoff, Shapiro, Pritzker and Vance as the figures whose standing shifted, and it was alone among the three in quoting party strategists and academics on the Democratic Party's internal wings. The Kathmandu Post led with the exit polls, reporting that discontent over the cost of living and declining Republican support among several groups that helped Trump in 2024 drove the swing. Rappler put Trump at the centre, reporting that he asked voters to pretend he was on the ballot and that Republicans paid the price.
Trump defends Iran war after Republicans lose Congress
The US president said the war was needed to stop Tehran obtaining a nuclear weapon and that he would have done nothing different.
US votes in midterms as Seoul stocks fall and Brazil watches
Seoul shares opened sharply lower on AI concerns, while Brazil tracks the count with its exports facing some of the steepest US tariffs.
Democrats open wide 2028 race after midterm victories
No candidate has emerged as a favourite, while Republicans weigh how JD Vance or Marco Rubio can succeed Donald Trump.
Trump backs Hegseth as Democrats take Congress after Iran war
A Trump adviser says the defence secretary 'could be on the chopping block' after the midterm losses; the Pentagon says he is '100 per cent committed'.
Democrats' midterm sweep puts US data center boom in doubt
Texas governor-elect Gina Hinojosa wants a pause on construction, and Nikkei Asia reports the result could weigh on Japanese projects by Honda and Nippon Steel.
Nasdaq falls 5.5% as Democratic midterm sweep stokes AI rules fear
Chip stocks led a sell-off that spread to Tokyo and Seoul after projections put both chambers of Congress in Democratic hands.
US agencies warn of cyber threat to industrial refrigeration
The FBI, CISA and three departments say hackers could change temperatures in cold storage, causing fires and spoiling inventory.
California's Newsom says he will commute all death sentences
The governor said condemned prisoners in California would serve life without parole instead, in a decision the AP reported without giving a number affected.