Republicans have achieved their goal: control of the House and management of the troika. Everything you need to know about Congress
14 november 2024 в 19:37
Republicans have achieved their goal — they have taken control of the House of Representatives and secured a governing trio for themselves.
After the election night on November 5, Donald Trump was elected as the 47th President of the United States after a fierce battle with Vice President Kamala Harris. By mid-Wednesday, he had already secured over 290 electoral votes, winning key battleground states such as North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan. He also won the popular vote, marking the first time a Republican candidate achieved such a victory since 2004, when George Bush won re-election against Democratic opponent John Kerry.
The Republicans' success was not limited to the presidency. In addition to capturing the White House, Republicans regained control of the Senate and made significant strides towards regaining the House. Now that all the results are known, here is everything you need to know about the changing Congress.
Republicans took control of the House, securing exactly 218 seats, while Democrats have 208. The victory was sealed by key wins in Arizona, as well as a late surge in California, where results were coming in slowly earlier on Wednesday.
All 435 seats in the House of Representatives are up for re-election every two years, during midterm and presidential elections. This year, the focus was on states like New York and California, where Democrats tried to regain some of the approximately 10 seats that Republicans had won in recent years.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, had expressed confidence that Republicans would retain control of the lower chamber. «The latest data and trends indicate that, when all votes are counted, Republicans will maintain our majority, even as we faced a map where 18 seats were won by Biden», - Johnson said in a statement.
However, with nine undecided races in the House, the final size of the Republican majority remains unknown.
There were a total of 34 Senate seats up for election.
Democrats flipped two key seats in New York, defeating Representatives Mark Molinaro in Hudson Valley and Brandon Williams in Syracuse. They also held onto two critical seats — one in Michigan and another in New Mexico — that Republicans had hoped to gain. However, with major wins in Ohio, Montana, and Texas, Republicans took control of the upper chamber.
Republican senators are expected to elect a new leader this week, as longtime Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is retiring after a record 18 years in the position.
Republican senators John Thune of South Dakota, John Cornyn of Texas, and Rick Scott of Florida were vying for top leadership in the U.S. Senate. However, Thune was chosen as the winner in a closed vote on Wednesday.
Ahead of the tripartite elections, Trump expressed his intention to approach the process aggressively, emphasizing the need for swift action and loyalty from whoever takes on this role.
«Any Republican Senator vying for the coveted LEADERSHIP position in the United States Senate must agree to Temporary Appointments (in the Senate!), without which we cannot confirm people in a timely manner», - Trump said in a statement on X and Truth Social, adding that positions must be filled «IMMEDIATELY!»
Since 2014, when a Supreme Court decision limited the president’s authority to make so-called temporary appointments, the Senate has not allowed them. However, all three leadership candidates indicated that they may be open to reconsidering this practice.
In Trump’s second presidency, with the House of Representatives fully controlled by Republicans, the elected president has greater freedom to advance his agenda. Critical battles on government funding, tax policy, immigration, and corporate regulation are expected in the House in the next two years.
Johnson and Republican leaders in the Senate have already begun
After the election night on November 5, Donald Trump was elected as the 47th President of the United States after a fierce battle with Vice President Kamala Harris. By mid-Wednesday, he had already secured over 290 electoral votes, winning key battleground states such as North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan. He also won the popular vote, marking the first time a Republican candidate achieved such a victory since 2004, when George Bush won re-election against Democratic opponent John Kerry.
The Republicans' success was not limited to the presidency. In addition to capturing the White House, Republicans regained control of the Senate and made significant strides towards regaining the House. Now that all the results are known, here is everything you need to know about the changing Congress.
Republicans took control of the House, securing exactly 218 seats, while Democrats have 208. The victory was sealed by key wins in Arizona, as well as a late surge in California, where results were coming in slowly earlier on Wednesday.
All 435 seats in the House of Representatives are up for re-election every two years, during midterm and presidential elections. This year, the focus was on states like New York and California, where Democrats tried to regain some of the approximately 10 seats that Republicans had won in recent years.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, had expressed confidence that Republicans would retain control of the lower chamber. «The latest data and trends indicate that, when all votes are counted, Republicans will maintain our majority, even as we faced a map where 18 seats were won by Biden», - Johnson said in a statement.
However, with nine undecided races in the House, the final size of the Republican majority remains unknown.
There were a total of 34 Senate seats up for election.
Democrats flipped two key seats in New York, defeating Representatives Mark Molinaro in Hudson Valley and Brandon Williams in Syracuse. They also held onto two critical seats — one in Michigan and another in New Mexico — that Republicans had hoped to gain. However, with major wins in Ohio, Montana, and Texas, Republicans took control of the upper chamber.
Republican senators are expected to elect a new leader this week, as longtime Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is retiring after a record 18 years in the position.
Republican senators John Thune of South Dakota, John Cornyn of Texas, and Rick Scott of Florida were vying for top leadership in the U.S. Senate. However, Thune was chosen as the winner in a closed vote on Wednesday.
Ahead of the tripartite elections, Trump expressed his intention to approach the process aggressively, emphasizing the need for swift action and loyalty from whoever takes on this role.
«Any Republican Senator vying for the coveted LEADERSHIP position in the United States Senate must agree to Temporary Appointments (in the Senate!), without which we cannot confirm people in a timely manner», - Trump said in a statement on X and Truth Social, adding that positions must be filled «IMMEDIATELY!»
Since 2014, when a Supreme Court decision limited the president’s authority to make so-called temporary appointments, the Senate has not allowed them. However, all three leadership candidates indicated that they may be open to reconsidering this practice.
In Trump’s second presidency, with the House of Representatives fully controlled by Republicans, the elected president has greater freedom to advance his agenda. Critical battles on government funding, tax policy, immigration, and corporate regulation are expected in the House in the next two years.
Johnson and Republican leaders in the Senate have already begun
© Artemenko Olga
