Ohio Republican Senate candidate Bernie Moreno during a watch party on election night, in Westlake, Ohio, with his wife Bridget.Sue Ogrocki/The Associated Press
Republicans won a majority in the Senate after flipping two seats from the Democrats on Tuesday, giving the party critical control of the chamber for the first time in four years as Donald Trump closed in on the presidency.
The Democrats entered the election with a slim majority in the Senate of 51-49, with 34 seats up for grabs, while all 435 members of the House were to be elected.
Early in the night, Republican Jim Justice defeated Democrat Glenn Elliott to capture the Senate seat in West Virginia vacated by retiring U.S. Senator Joe Manchin.
Trump-backed Cleveland businessman Bernie Moreno also defeated Democratic incumbent Senator Sherrod Brown in Ohio. With spending that hit US$500-million, it was the most expensive Senate race this year and one of the most expensive in U.S. history. The Ohio victory put the Republicans on track to win a 51-seat majority in the Senate.
The Senate race in Nebraska pushed Republicans over the top after GOP incumbent Deb Fischer fended off a challenge from independent Dan Osborn.
Meanwhile, House races unfolded in a state-by-state slog and polls closed in key states that could decide control of Congress. As of 5 a.m. ET on Wednesday, 196 Republicans and 176 Democrats had been elected to the House, with 63 seats still to be called.
Live updates about the U.S. election
Tuesday’s presidential election between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris had yet to be called early Wednesday morning after an exceptionally close and divisive campaign. Mr. Trump had taken two critical swing states from the Democrats, won a third and was leading in the other four.
Congress is crucial to whoever wins the presidency, as presidents whose parties have not controlled both chambers have struggled to pass major legislation over the past decade.
Sherrod Brown speaks during a watch party on election night, in Columbus, Ohio, next to his wife Connie Schultz, left, and his daughter Elizabeth Brown.Joshua A. Bickel/The Associated Press
In addition to its legislative role, the Senate confirms the appointments of federal judges, including Supreme Court justices. It also confirms many other high-level government officials, including cabinet officials and ambassadors.
Going into Tuesday’s election, the House of Representatives was controlled by Republicans by a margin of 220 to 212 Democrats. Republicans were favoured to capture a majority in the Senate while Democrats were seen as having an even chance of flipping Republicans’ narrow majority in the House of Representatives.
Of the 34 Senate seats up for election, Democrats held 19; Republicans, 11; and the remaining four were independents.
Top House races were focused in New York and California, with former House of Representatives speaker, Democrat Nancy Pelosi, winning re-election.
There were also 11 state governor races, including eight with no incumbents, although they were not expected to yield many surprises. Those states include eight Republicans and three Democrat governors.
The state governor races to watch included New Hampshire, where Republican Kelly Ayotte defeated Democrat Joyce Craig in a race that focused on Ms. Ayotte’s previous tough stands on abortion. Ms. Ayotte replaces Republican incumbent Chris Sununu, who did not seek a fifth term.
In North Carolina, Republican Mark Robinson lost to his Democratic competitor, Josh Stein, the state’s attorney-general. Mr. Robinson, the lieutenant-governor who was vying to become the first Black governor of North Carolina, remained on the ticket despite Mr. Trump distancing himself from the campaign after a controversy about Mr. Robinson’s apparent posts on a pornography website about slavery and Nazis, which he denies.
After winning re-election, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz speaks to supporters at his election watch party at the Marriott Marquis on Nov. 5, in Houston, Texas.Danielle Villasana/Getty Images
In the Texas Senate race, Ted Cruz, a one-time presidential hopeful known for his combative style of MAGA-aligned politics, has won a third term. He was up against Democrat Colin Allred, a lawyer and former professional football player, in a hard-fought race that drew national attention. Mr. Cruz’s home state now enforces one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country. Mr. Cruz played a key role in nominating district court judges whose decisions altered the course of abortion law.
Several notable Senate races that have yet to be called include Arizona, where Independent U.S. Senator Kyrsten Sinema did not run for re-election.
Ms. Sinema’s decision cleared the way for an expected head-to-head contest between Democratic Representative Ruben Gallego, a former Marine veteran who served in Iraq, and Kari Lake, a far-right Republican who lost a bid for Arizona governor in 2022 and has espoused election denialism.
The Senate race in swing-state Michigan is considered among the most competitive in the country. Republican Mike Rogers, a former U.S. representative, is running against Elissa Slotkin, who currently represents Michigan in the House.
In Pennsylvania, long-time Democratic incumbent Bob Casey defended his Senate seat against David McCormick, an investment management executive and former George W. Bush administration official who has been endorsed by Mr. Trump.
Elsewhere, House candidate Sarah McBride, a Democratic state lawmaker from Delaware who is close to the Biden family, won her race, becoming the first openly transgender person elected to Congress.
With reports from Reuters, Associated Press and Steve Kupferman