Fierce competition in US midterm elections puts congressional control in the air as Republicans chase profits – National

Republicans appeared poised to take control of the U.S. House of Representatives following Tuesday’s midterm elections, according to the Associated Press forecast, but some races were so close that there will be no final results on the night. finished.

Both parties have won some of the most competitive races in the nation as Democrats sought to defeat Republican backlash against President Joe Biden’s agenda. But the expected Republican sweep predicted by multiple polls didn’t look all that strong as Tuesday drew to a close.

Meanwhile, control of the Senate also remained up in the air due to many fierce competitions that could take days to decide.

A high-profile Georgia campaign between Republican Herschel Walker and Democratic incumbent Raphael Warnock heads for a runoff in December after neither candidate wins more than 50% of the vote. is expected.

In Pennsylvania, Democrat John Fetterman was in a close race with Republican candidate Mehmet Oz, a famous doctor. The Associated Press had yet to call the campaign at 1:30 a.m. ET, with thousands of votes remaining.

The results of the House and Senate campaigns will determine the future of Biden’s agenda and serve as a referendum on his administration as the country reels from record-high inflation and concerns over the country’s direction. Control of the House would likely launch a series of investigations into Biden and his family, while a Republican takeover of the Senate could undermine Biden’s ability to make judicial appointments.

Among the populist members and candidates aligned with former President Donald Trump are the influx of illegal immigration, rising crime, stagnating domestic energy production, and other problems.

Republicans have also indicated that they may even cut or freeze US military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine as the European nation continues to fight Russia’s aggression more than eight months after it began. That would severely limit Washington’s ability to help Ukrainians who believe it was US arms that took back their territories from Russia in recent weeks.

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Several Republicans who were expected to win House, Senate, or gubernatorial elections have questioned the results of the 2020 election, denied them outright, and questioned whether this year’s results can be trusted. I am throwing

But other lawmakers who agreed with Trump’s false claims about election fraud lost, including Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano and Michigan gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon.

Democrats faced historic headwinds. The party in power almost always loses in the president’s first midterm elections, but Democrats say their outrage over the Supreme Court’s decision to eradicate abortion rights has pushed voters against a historic trend. I wanted to encourage you to do so.

Which party controls the Senate will further determine what Biden can accomplish in the second half of his current term. Before the midterm elections, the Senate was evenly split, with Vice President Kamala Harris’ tie vote giving control to Democrats. It remained a headache for the White House, which struggled to get enough support for its priorities.

Trump-backed candidate J.D. Vance won a bitter battle for Ohio’s Senate seat against longtime Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan. And Republican Marco Rubio faced a tough challenge from Val Demings to represent Florida and win his third term.

But Democrats have also fought back against strong Republican challenges in Oregon and Colorado, which were seen as under threat despite being relatively liberal strongholds.

In other gubernatorial races, Republican Ron DeSantis, who was considered by many to be Trump’s successor and possible presidential candidate, easily won a second term in Florida. He called the victory “historic”.

And Georgia Governor Brian Kemp defeated Democrat Stacey Abrams in two straight victories. Abrams, the primary voter organizer who handed her state over to Biden in the 2020 election, had her sights set on becoming the first black female governor in the United States.

In Arizona, Republican Kari Lake overtook Democrat Katie Hobbs in one of the night’s most watched races. Lake spread baseless conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and fully embraced Trump’s populist tactics.

Election deniers were also poised to win the race for secretary of state to oversee the next presidential election.

Alabama voters elected Rep. Wes Allen as secretary of state, who backed a baseless lawsuit to overturn Biden’s victory. In Indiana, Diego Morales, who ousted Republican incumbent for repeating Trump’s election lies in the Republican primary, defeated Democrat Destiny Scott Wells to win the race for secretary of state.

Wyoming Republican state legislator Chuck Gray, who also supported efforts to overturn the 2020 election, ran as an independent for secretary of state.

Overall, half of the 22 Republicans vying for state secretary and overseeing elections in most states have repeated Trump’s election lies. Seven supported his attempts to maintain power by overturning the will of the people.

Sporadic problems occurred during the day, frustrating voters, but did not appear to affect their ability to accurately tally votes. In Maricopa County, Arizona, including Phoenix, some automated counting machines were unable to scan ballots immediately. This temporary glitch caused conspiracy theories to start circulating from Mr. Lake and his supporters. Some voters in Detroit were delayed when their voter rolls got snagged at check-in.

The cyberattack also affected some state government websites, including one for the secretary of state, but state and federal officials said the DDoS attack could affect vote tallying and results. I emphasized that there is no

— Using files from The Associated Press

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