Midterm elections 2026 live updates: Talarico projected to win Texas Senate seat

In the US midterms, media projections indicated that Democrats were set to flip a Senate seat in North Carolina and maintain control of Georgia, though the outcome remained uncertain as millions of votes were still uncounted. In North Carolina, former Governor Roy Cooper won a Republican-held Senate seat from Michael Whatley, securing Democrats one of the four net pickups necessary for a majority.

Meanwhile, Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff defeated Republican Mike Collins in Georgia, a race that had become uncompetitive due to declining approval ratings for then-President Donald Trump.

Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms won Georgia's gubernatorial race, becoming the first Black woman elected to that office in US history. In New Hampshire, Democrat Chris Pappas retained the state's open Senate seat, while Republican incumbent Jon Sununu lost his bid for re-election.

Florida's Republican Senator Ashley Moody narrowly beat Democratic opponent Angie Nixon, though the margin was only about three percentage points. Democrats retained three House districts, which had been redrawn by Republicans. As of 9pm ET, many crucial races were still being tallied.

Exit polls showed that half of voters nationwide saw the midterms as a chance to criticize the president, with 75% expressing anger or dissatisfaction with the country's direction. Additionally, 70% of voters wanted Congress to impose more checks on the president's power. Democrats were projected to win the House, while the Senate battle remained closely contested across several states.

The electoral results served as a referendum on the first two years of Trump's second term. Trump urged his supporters to view him as a candidate in the election. Historically, the president's party has lost congressional seats in all but two midterm elections since World War II. Trump's approval ratings were near their lowest, with voters frustrated by issues like the war in Iran, higher fuel prices, and economic concerns.

Republicans portrayed Democratic candidates as radical, un-American, and even communist, labels they rejected. Trump campaigned heavily across the nation, particularly in states he won easily in 2024, amplifying the Republican defensive stance. Opinion polls indicated that voters were most concerned about affordability and disapproved of Trump's handling of the issue, particularly due to his tariffs and the military attack on Iran.

As Republicans sought to defend their seats, they needed to win at least two states that voted for Trump by a double-digit margin in 2024, such as Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Ohio, South Carolina, and Texas. Democrats held the advantage in these states, where opinion polls showed them either narrowly leading or within striking distance.

Legal observers and Democrats warned that Trump, who falsely claimed US elections were rigged, might attempt to challenge the results if Republicans lost. The US Justice Department deployed 1,000 election monitors in all 50 states, though Democrats criticized this plan as potential voter intimidation.