The president called to congratulate the other party. Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate on Tuesday night, and the Democratic Congress sweep is now the story of the 2026 midterms. Networks called the House first, then the Senate, and by Wednesday morning even President Trump was on the phone offering congratulations.
Here’s what we know, what’s still moving, and what it means for your wallet, your ballot and the next two years.
How the Democratic Congress sweep unfolded
MS NOW called the House just before 10 p.m. ET, with CNN, NBC and CBS following. The AP made its House call early Wednesday. In the Senate, Variety reports NewsNation called it first, with CNN projecting at least 51 seats at 11:35 p.m. ET.
Democrats needed a net gain of four seats to flip the Senate. According to Forbes, they stood at 54 seats to the GOP’s 44 early Wednesday. CNN lists seven Republican-held seats that flipped: Ohio, Iowa, South Carolina, Maine, North Carolina, Kansas and Texas.
Two of those results stand out. In Maine, Democrat Troy Jackson beat incumbent Susan Collins, who conceded, according to the AP. And in Texas, James Talarico won a seat Republicans had held since 1988, per Yahoo News. Our look at Texas Democrats’ statewide breakthrough has more on that one. Jon Ossoff also won re-election in Georgia, according to Time.
The midterm sweep is not fully counted yet
Here’s the part the victory laps skip: nobody has a final count yet. Senate projections range from 51 called seats to 55 per Decision Desk HQ. On the House side, estimates run from at least 250 Democratic seats (MS NOW) to 258 (NBC and Decision Desk HQ). NBC says 258 would be the most for Democrats since 1993.
CBS said roughly 75 House races were still undecided. The AP has also warned that Alaska and Maine could involve ranked-choice tabulation, so the House could take up to a week to settle. Keep in mind that race calls are not certified results.
So treat every seat total you see this week as a projection. Even a Democratic sweep of this size needs a final tally, and we’ll update as the AP count firms up.
Why Democrats win Congress: voters’ reasons
Reporting points to the kitchen table. Fox News cites gas prices and the war in Iran. MS NOW points to rising costs and Trump administration policies. Trump himself told CBS that the Iran war may have played a part.
History also helped Democrats. The president’s party usually loses ground in midterms, and Democrats gained 41 House seats in 2018 under Trump.
What makes this one different is the Senate map. Republicans were defending mostly states Trump won, and Collins held the only GOP seat in a state Harris carried. When Democrats flip the House and Senate with seven Senate pickups, that is a very big deal. For the pre-election math, see why forecasters called the Senate a toss-up.
What it means for you
Here’s the thing: divided government changes how Washington works, and it changes what lands in your life. Anything Republicans wanted to pass on a party-line vote just got much harder. Anything Democrats want to pass still faces a presidential veto. That is the practical bite of the Democratic Congress sweep.
Trump has been blunt about that. “I have the ultimate power — it’s called ‘veto,'” he told CBS before the election, according to Fox News. His tone since the results has been softer: “My message is congratulations to the Democrats, and I look forward to working with you for the good of our country.”
He also pushed back on the idea that the loss was about him. Asked about not being on the ballot, he said, “If I was, we would have won,” per Yahoo News.
Wall Street shrugged. US stock futures recovered from overnight losses after the results, CNN reports. Markets generally like gridlock, because gridlock means fewer surprises.
What happens next after the Democratic sweep
The new Congress is seated in January. Hakeem Jeffries is in line to become Speaker, but the full House has to elect him first.
Expect investigations. Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), the incoming House Oversight chair, has already sent a two-word message to the administration: “Lawyer up.” Whether the White House can simply work around the new Congress is a fair question, and Reuters has an answer in our breakdown of how Trump can govern without Congress.
Then comes the real test of a presidential pledge to work together. Trump says he can cooperate with Democrats on “many things.”
Real deals, or just a nicer tone before the first veto? Washington will be asking that all winter.
