PHOENIX, Nov 12 (Reuters) – Edison Research on Saturday expected Democrats to take control of the U.S. Senate after Senator Katherine Cortez Masto wins re-election in Nevada A major victory goes to President Joe Biden.
Still, Republicans remain close to winning control of the U.S. House of Representatives as officials continue to count votes in Tuesday’s U.S. midterm elections.
Cortez Masto narrowly defeated Republican challenger Adam Laxart, a former state attorney general backed by former President Donald Trump.
After Democratic Senator Mark Kelly won re-election in Arizona late Friday, Masto won and Democrats will take control of at least 50 Senate seats, with Vice President Kamala Harris able to take control in the 100-member chamber break up the relationship.
“America has shown that we believe in our democracy, which has deep and strong roots,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, said at a news conference.
The Senate is currently split 50-50 between Democrats and Republicans. The newly elected Senate will be sworn in in January next year. 3.
Continued control of the Senate means Democrats will still be able to approve Biden’s nominees, such as federal judges. If there are vacancies over the next two years, that would mean any Supreme Court appointment.
If Democratic Senator Rafael Warnock wins the December election. 6 Georgia’s runoff against Republican challenger Herschel Walker, which would expand the Democratic majority to 51-49. That would give Democrats an extra edge in passing a handful of bills that can advance with a simple majority, rather than the 60 votes needed for most legislation.
It would also weaken the influence of Senators Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kirsten Sinema of Arizona, whose “swing” votes blocked or delayed some of Biden’s major initiatives, including the expansion of some social programs .
Uneasy in Washington State
It could take days or more to know the outcome of enough House races to determine which side will hold the majority in the 435-seat chamber. Republicans continued to hold the upper hand, but still paid off in several races, including many in liberal-leaning California.
Speaking in Cambodia, Biden said his party would focus on winning the Georgia Senate race, but on the prospect of maintaining control of the House of Representatives, he said: “It’s a little far-fetched.”
House Republicans, if they win, have pledged to try to overturn Biden’s victory on climate change and want to permanently implement a series of tax cuts that expire in 2017. They also plan to investigate the activities of the Biden administration and investigate the president’s son, who has business dealings with Ukraine and China.
[1/4] Democratic Senator Katherine Cortez Masto leads a rally ahead of the midterm elections in Henderson, Nevada, U.S., November 7, 2022.REUTERS/David Swanson
Democrats scored a major victory in Washington’s 3rd congressional district on Saturday, with Democrat Mary Grusenkamp Perez defeating Trump-backed Joe Kent.
In Nevada, Democrat Cisco Aguilar won the race to be the state’s next secretary of state, the top election official. He defeated Republican Jim Marchant, who backed Trump’s false claim that he lost the 2020 election to Biden due to voter fraud.
Democrats also defeated Republican candidates who backed Trump’s false claims and sought to become the state’s top election official in Michigan and Arizona.
Democrats got a major boost late Friday, when Sen. Kelly, D-Ariz., was expected to keep his seat, beating Republican Blake Masters, who, like Laxalter, got the nod. Trump’s support. The Masters didn’t budge.
“We’ve seen the consequences when leaders refuse to accept the truth and focus more on the conspiracies of the past than on addressing the challenges we face today,” Kelly, a former Navy combat pilot and astronaut, said in a brief victory speech. ‘ greeted his supporters in Phoenix on Saturday.
In Arizona’s gubernatorial race, with no winner yet expected, Democrat Katie Hobbs narrowly edged Republican Cary Lake, another Trump-backed election denier.
(Live election results from across the country are here)
involving judicial nominations
The Democratic-controlled Senate will provide Biden with insurance that dozens of his nominees for federal judges will be confirmed. That’s especially important for Democrats if the Supreme Court seat, which now holds a 6-3 conservative majority, opens in the final two years of Biden’s term.
When the outgoing Senate returns Monday for a post-election working session that could last into late December, Schumer is aiming to immediately confirm two other federal judges awaiting final votes.
Every year in the 2022 midterm elections is Trump, who has used his continued popularity among far-right conservatives to influence Republican candidates for congressional, gubernatorial and local races.
With Republicans underperforming on Tuesday — even if they did win a narrow majority in the House — Trump was accused of boosting candidates who failed to attract a broad enough electorate.
The Republican loss in Georgia could further dent Trump’s popularity, as advisers say he is considering announcing this week for a third presidential bid in 2024.
Reporting by Tim Reid in Phoenix and Richard, Cowan, Jason Lange and Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Daniel Wallis, Ross Colvin and William Mallard
Our Standard: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.