The story of the night is the reverse Midas touch. Almost every candidate he tapped seems to have done worse than those he didn’t pick. The man who lost the last election and the popular vote in both of the last two elections seems to have been electoral kryptonite for Republicans in these midterms. Trump is ‘vibrant’ and angry with Melania – last US midterm Maybe now they have to find a way to exorcise his spirit from the party. This may not be easy. The opposite is true of his Republican foe. Ron DeSantis had a storming night, crushing Democratic challenger Charlie Crist, even in areas Republicans have failed to reach in the past. The Florida governor, who bookies say is the favorite to challenge Mr Trump for the party’s nomination, is well placed ahead of 2024 if he chooses to run. Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player 0:53 Republican governor tells Florida where ‘the wake is going to die’ It was also a very good night for Joe Biden. A president doing as poorly in the approval ratings as he has, somewhere in the 40s, should have lost the House by a Republican majority of at least 40 if you look at historical precedent. Democrats may still lose the House, but it will only be by a narrow margin. They may remain in the Senate after taking the key state of Pennsylvania in a victory against a Trump-backed candidate, celebrity TV doctor Mehmet Oz. Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player 0:26 Joe Biden urges voters to ‘remember who the hell we are’ Read more: Who is DeSantis, the man who could stop Trump? Who is in front and who is behind? Red wall doesn’t materialize Celebrations turn to disappointment in GOP Mr. Biden defied political gravity. Many questioned his strategy to focus on the threat to US democracy from hundreds of Trump-backed election liars running in this election. And it appears that the Democrats’ strategy of capitalizing on voters’ concerns about abortion has also paid off. Young voters and women turned out in large numbers, and exit polls show the issue mobilized many of them more than others such as crime and immigration.
