More than 24 hours after the polls closed in the United States midterm elections, many key questions remain unanswered – most importantly which party will control the House and Senate. While Republicans are still favored to take the 435-seat House — though likely by a smaller margin than they had predicted — the Senate is still a toss-up. For both halls, a handful of yet-to-be-named matches will decide control. As of Thursday, 184 House seats were up for Democrats, with 207 up for Republicans. A party must reach 218 seats to control the chamber. In the Senate, 48 seats were up for Democrats and 49 for Republicans, leaving only three up for grabs. Democrats need to reach 50 seats to have a majority because the vice president acts as a tie in the chamber. Several other key statewide races are still undecided. Here’s how things stand on Thursday, November 10:
Senate:
All eyes turned to Nevada, Arizona and the upcoming Georgia runoff that will determine control of the Senate. Arizona: Democrat Mark Kelly held a slight lead over Republican challenger Blake Masters, but hundreds of thousands of ballots had yet to be counted. Election officials said counting could take until Friday. Nevada: Republican Adam Laxalt in Nevada was leading Democratic state Sen. Kathryn Cortez Masto, but state election officials said tens of thousands of mail-in votes were still being counted. Mail-in ballots have historically been favored by Democrats, making them more likely to still win. Georgia: If Democrats win just one of the two races in Nevada and Arizona, a runoff election in December will decide control of the Senate. Neither Democratic candidate Raphael Warnock nor Republican challenger Herschel Walker broke the 50 percent threshold needed in the state to win Tuesday’s election.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock and Republican U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker will face off in a runoff on Dec. 6 [Bob Strong/Jonathan Ernst/Reuters]
Home:
Forty-four home sites remain unknown, with the races spread across Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Oregon and Washington. The vote count had Republicans ahead in enough races to take a modest majority in the House, though those victories were not yet assured. California: Twenty-two of the uncalled races were in California, with the closest watching being tight races between Democratic incumbent Katie Porter and Mike Levin in Southern California. Republican incumbent David Valladao and Democratic challenger Rudy Salas in the Central Valley. and Republican incumbent Ken Calvert against Democratic challenger Will Rollins near Los Angeles. Colorado: Among the closest races watched was between Republican incumbent Lauren Boebert – a Trump supporter – and Democratic challenger Adam Frisch. What was once expected to be an easy win for Bobert has turned into a razor-thin race. As of Wednesday night, fewer than 100 votes separated the two, putting the race on track for a possible recount.
President Joe Biden listens as Rep. Katie Porter, D-Calif., speaks at Irvine Valley Community College in Irvine, Calif. on Oct. 14, 2022. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
State and local competitions:
Key gubernatorial races in Arizona, Nevada and Oregon also had not been declared as of Thursday morning. Arizona: The race pits Democrat Katie Hobbs, Arizona’s secretary of state who has fought against former President Donald Trump’s unsubstantiated claims of 2020 election fraud in the state, and Kari Lake, a former pro-Trump TV host who has repeatedly spread misinformation by Trump and his allies. The race for secretary of state – the official who will oversee the electoral administration of the influential battleground state in 2024 – also remained very close. Nevada: Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak faces Republican Joe Lombardo, the Trump-endorsed Clark County sheriff. The foreign minister was also too close to call from Thursday. Oregon: The winner of a three-way race between Democrat Tina Kotek, Republican Christine Drazan and Independent Betsy Johnson has yet to be determined. The state had been a Democratic stronghold, but the renewed emphasis on crime was credited with an unexpected boost in Drazan’s support. Johnson was also expected to draw votes from Kotek.
Arizona Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake greets a member of the public during a campaign Arizona First GOTV Bus Tour ahead of the midterm elections in Phoenix, Arizona [Brian Snyder/Reuters]
