US-Parlamentswahl: Trumps Republikaner verlieren US-Parlamentswahl deutlich

In a decisive blow to former President Donald Trump's administration, US voters have handed full control of Congress to the Democrats. Trump's Republican Party lost their majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate - a scenario that seemed improbable just a few months ago. The voting served as a referendum on Trump, who was blamed by Americans for rising prices among other issues.

The Democrats celebrated historic victories in states they hadn't won in decades. The midterm elections decided all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 Senate seats. The Republicans entered the election with a majority of 53 Senate seats. Before the votes were counted, the Democrats had calculated a lead of 54 seats, with potential for more.

In Kansas, Adam Hamilton became the first Democrat to win a Senate seat since 1932. In Texas, James Talarico became the first Democrat to serve as a senator there in nearly 40 years. In Ohio, Sherrod Brown reclaimed the seat held by the current Republican vice president JD Vance just two years ago. In a hard-fought race in Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed became the first Muslim in the Senate.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk, who spent over $150 million on Talarico's campaign and $440 million on Republicans overall, joked about his million-dollar firehose failing to influence the election. In response to the Republican party's crushing defeat, Musk quipped, "I guess my space lasers for influencing the election didn't work this time."

In the House of Representatives, where the Republicans held a razor-thin majority, the overwhelming results suggest a clear lead for the Democrats. Democrat Hakeem Jeffries is now poised to become the first Black Speaker of the House. The loss of Congress majorities is a severe setback for Trump, making governance in the final two years of his term more challenging.

The Democrats will set the tone for legislation starting in January. In the Senate, they can confirm key government officials and judges, as well as initiate investigations against the president and his administration. They have long targeted numerous business activities of the Trump family, as well as raids on migrants and controversial projects by the president in Washington.

"Get yourself lawyers," wrote Democratic Representative Robert Garcia on the platform X to the Republicans. The House can also initiate impeachment proceedings against the president, which the Senate would then decide on - but a two-thirds majority is required for impeachment, which is difficult to achieve. The Democrats had previously shown little ambition to launch another impeachment against Trump.

During his first term, impeachments failed in the Senate. Trump announced he would accept the election results and congratulate the Democrats, whom he had accused for months of being dangerous and "crazy." On Fox News, he also announced he would use his veto power generously. To override a presidential veto, two-thirds of the members in both congressional chambers are needed.

Trump can continue to rule by decree. Brutal reckoning with Trump US voters went to the polls with immense dissatisfaction with Trump's policies. In a large survey, 62% blamed the president's policies for rising prices in the country. 37% were dissatisfied with the state of the country, and 38% were angry. The economy was the central issue for 39% of voters, with 40% saying the state of the US economy was "not so good" and 35% calling it "bad."

Almost two-thirds believed Trump's import tariffs had harmed the economy. Unlike before, 43% now trust the Democrats to get the economy moving, compared to 38% for the Republicans. For the survey conducted on behalf of major media, around 100,000 voters were polled, combining responses from early and mail-in voters with those who voted on Election Day.