| Democrats seized control of both chambers of the US Congress in a “blue tsunami” at the midterm elections, stripping President Donald Trump and his Republicans of their legislative power and signalling a turning of the page on the Trump era. While flipping the House was expected, it was the Democrats’ gain of at least seven seats in the Senate – particularly James Talarico in Texas, and Annie Andrews in South Carolina – that underlined the party’s surge and the widespread swing against the Republicans. Democrats also won the Senate race in Kansas, a state that had not sent a Democrat to the Senate in 94 years. |
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| Vice President JD Vance blamed the Iran war and fellow Republicans cast the election results as an “extinction level event” for their party. |
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| Vance, who was sceptical of the Iran war from the beginning but defended it publicly, said the war was almost solely responsible for the Republicans’ heavy defeat, and declared that it was not worth the cost. |
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| “The real reason we lost is obvious to almost everyone,” he wrote in a 600-word statement on X. “The reason we lost is the war … If you’d like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next six years was worth it, then do so. Argue it was a worthwhile cost to pay.” |
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| Political scientist Bob Shapiro said it was at least the biggest blue wave since Democrats swept Republicans out of Congress in 2006 towards the end of the Bush administration. “Its political and policy implications are of grave proportions in terms of the power it gives the Democrats to thwart Trump,” he said. |
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| Trump, having spent the campaign asking conservatives to pretend he was on the ballot in a bid to drive up turnout among MAGA supporters, distanced himself from the results following the rout. “I wasn’t on the Ballot and if I was, we would have won IN A LANDSLIDE!” he posted on Truth Social. Control of Congress will enable Democrats to investigate alleged corruption in the Trump administration, the war in Iran and members of Trump’s family, or begin impeachment proceedings against defence secretary Pete Hegseth or the president himself. Photo: James Talarico celebrates his win in Austin (AP/Eric Gay). |
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 Morning Edition podcast: Is Trumpism dead? What the Democrats’ sweep to power means for America and the world |
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| It’s official: a political blue tsunami has hit the United States, with the Democrats gaining control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate. This is seismic change, with wins in many states that have upended decades of political loyalty. Today, international and political editor Peter Hartcher on what this means for the US, whether “Trumpism” is dead, and if these results mark a national rebuke to the president, to billionaires – or if it’s something else altogether. |
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