Monday, March 11, 2024

How Many Seats Do Republicans Have In The Senate

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Republicans Senate Wins Will Help President Trump His Judicial And Cabinet Nominees And Gop Chances In 2020

WASHINGTON – Republicans held on strongly Tuesday to their second-most important bastion of power: the United States Senate.

That means President Donald Trump, who holds the most important power center, can continue getting conservative federal judges confirmed – something he has done in record numbers already. And he is in a strong position should another vacancy materialize on the Supreme Court.

It means Trump’s anticipated shakeup of his administration should go relatively smoothly: Senate Republicans will be able to rubber-stamp new Cabinet nominees for posts ranging from attorney general to, possibly, defense secretary.


It means that no matter what the new Democratic House of Representatives does in terms of investigating Trump, the Senate is poised to beat back impeachment, as it did for President Bill Clinton in 1998.

And by gaining rather than losing Senate seats, it means Republicans have a vastly improved chance of keeping control through 2020, when they will be defending 22 of 34 seats up for grabs. That represents a table-turning from this year’s election, when Democrats had to defend 26 of 35 seats. 

Even Sen. Mitch McConnell, the normally stone-faced GOP leader of the Senate, showed a glimpse of glee Wednesday.

“I had one of the cable networks on this morning, and they said, “This is probably a rare opportunity to see McConnell smile,’” the Kentucky Republican told reporters.


Republicans Are Expected To Gain Seats In Redrawn 2022 Congressional Maps But Democrats Could Be Worse Off

U.S. Census data released Monday will shift political power in Congress, reapportioning two House seats to Texas and one each to Florida, North Carolina, Oregon, Colorado, and Montana — and stripping a seat from California , New York , Illinois, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, and West Virginia. Florida, Texas, and Arizona — each controlled entirely by Republicans — had been expecting to pick up an additional seat.

“On balance, I think this reapportionment offers a small boost for Republicans, but the bigger boost is likely to come from how Republicans draw these seats in Florida, Texas, North Carolina, and Georgia,” the Cook Political Report‘s Dave Wasserman tells Axios. “Reapportionment itself means little compared to the redistricting fights to come.” It won’t exactly be a level playing field.

“Republicans control the redistricting process in far more states than do Democrats, because of GOP dominance in down-ballot elections,”The New York Times reports. “Democrats, meanwhile, have shifted redistricting decisions in states where they have controlled the government — such as California, Colorado, and Virginia — to independent commissions intended to create fair maps.”

House seats broken down by final redistricting authority :

– Republican: 187

— Dave Wasserman April 26, 2021

More stories from theweek.com


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Republicans and Democrats traded Senate seat pickups Tuesday, but control of the chamber was still very much in doubt as the clock ticked over into Wednesday.

Sen. Cory Gardner, a Republican, was ousted in Colorado, while Sen. Doug Jones, a Democrat, lost his seat in Alabama.


The two parties held serve elsewhere in early returns, with Democrats winning along the mid-Atlantic and Republicans defending seats throughout much of the heartland.

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That included Iowa, where Sen. Joni Ernst fended off a stiff challenge. In North Carolina, Sen. Thom Tillis claimed victory, holding a 2-point lead with nearly all ballots counted. His opponent hadn’t conceded.

Sen. Mitch McConnell, the top-ranking Republican on Capitol Hill, won a seventh term and handily fended off a challenge by Democrat Amy McGrath, despite being vastly outspent.

Money flowed to Ms. McGrath from Democrats across the country eager to oust the man who sidelined their attempt to impeach President Trump, then pushed through his third Supreme Court nominee just a week ago.


“Democrats threw everything they had at him and he vanquished his opponent in typical fashion,” said Sen. Todd Young, chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

Should that result hold, Ms. McSally will have lost Senate races in 2018 and 2020.

Mr. Kelly didn’t exactly claim victory Tuesday, but came close.

Five of those seats were in play this year.


The Bottom Line: Republicans Pick Up Many Seats In State House And State Senate Growing Supermajorities

On Tuesday night, Kentucky’s election results showed a huge sweep for Republicans at the state level as they brought their majorities to 75 of 100 members in the House and 30 of 38 members in the Senate.

At the national level, U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell won his re-election race by a large margin and all of Kentucky’s congressmen easily won their re-election races.

As we wait to see the final results in the presidential race and learn who will control the U.S. Senate, here is a look at how many state races played out.

Much of the following is written based on unofficial election results but many of the margins are safe.


Some of the most notable races people had been watching closely include:

  • Rep. Jason Nemes holding his seat in Louisville after winning 54.4% of the vote with 94.29% of precincts reporting
  • Sen. Chris McDaniel winning his re-election race in northern Kentucky by 8,644 votes by the end of the night with 83.13% of precincts reporting
  • The Republican Johnnie L. Turner beating longtime incumbent Democrat Sen. Johnny Ray Turner .
  • A Republican will hold a longtime Democratic Senate seat as Adrienne Southworth ended up with 52.6% of the vote over current state Rep. Joe Graviss and the son of retiring state Sen. and former Governor Julian Carroll, Ken Carroll . 95.88% of precincts had reported in this race at the time this story was written.
  • Democratic Rep. Maria Sorolis narrowly losing her Louisville race to GOP candidate and former legislator Ken Fleming .

In 18 Months Republicans Are Very Likely To Control Congress Being In Denial Makes It Worse

Much ado about nothing

To prevent such disastrous results, Democrats would need to replicate what happened the last time the president’s party didn’t lose House or Senate seats in a midterm election.

Since the Civil War, midterm elections have enabled the president’s party to gain ground in the House of Representatives only three times, and those were in single digits. The last few midterms have been typical: In 2006, with Republican George W. Bush in the White House, his party lost 31 House seats. Under Democrat Barack Obama, his party lost 63 seats in 2010 and then 13 seats in 2014. Under Donald Trump, in 2018, Republicans lost 41 seats. Overall, since World War II, losses have averaged 27 seats in the House.

Next year, if Republicans gain just five House seats, Rep. Kevin McCarthy or some other right-wing ideologue will become the House speaker, giving the GOP control over all committees and legislation. In the Senate, where the historic midterm pattern has been similar, a Republican gain of just one seat will reinstall Mitch McConnell as Senate majority leader.


It’s not just history that foreshadows a return to Capitol power for the likes of McCarthy and McConnell. All year, Republican officeholders have been methodically doing all they can to asphyxiate democracy. And they can do a lot more.

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Pelosi Says It Doesn’t Matter Right Now If She’ll Seek Another Term As Speaker Beyond 2022

 In a press call, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi shot down a question about whether this upcoming term would be her last as speaker, calling it the “least important question you could ask today.” She added that “the fate of our nation, the soul of the nation” is at stake in the election.

“Elections are about the future,” Pelosi said. “One of these days I’ll let you know what my plans are, when it is appropriate and when it matters. It doesn’t matter right now.”


After the 2018 election, Pelosi agreed to term limits on Democratic leaders that would prevent her from serving as speaker beyond 2022.

Pelosi Says It Doesnt Matter Right Now If Shell Seek Another Term As Speaker Beyond 2022

 In a press call, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi shot down a question about whether this upcoming term would be her last as speaker, calling it the “least important question you could ask today.” She added that “the fate of our nation, the soul of the nation” is at stake in the election.

“Elections are about the future,” Pelosi said. “One of these days I’ll let you know what my plans are, when it is appropriate and when it matters. It doesn’t matter right now.”

After the 2018 election, Pelosi agreed to term limits on Democratic leaders that would prevent her from serving as speaker beyond 2022.

Incoming Biden Administration And Democratic House Wont Have To Deal With A Republican

Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff wave to supporters during a joint rally on Nov. 15 in Marietta, Ga.

Democratic challengers Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock have defeated Georgia’s two incumbent Republican U.S. senators in the state’s runoff elections, the Associated Press said Wednesday, in a development that gives their party effective control of the Senate.

Ossoff and Warnock were projected the winners over Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler by the AP following campaigns that drew massive spending and worldwide attention because the runoffs were set to determine the balance of power in Washington. The AP , at about 2 a.m. Eastern, then followed with the call for Ossoff over Perdue on Wednesday afternoon.

President-elect Joe Biden’s incoming administration and the Democratic-run House of Representatives now won’t face the same checks on their policy priorities that they would have faced with a Republican-controlled Senate, though analysts have said the slim Democratic majority in the chamber could mean more power for moderate senators from either party.

“It is looking like the Democratic campaign machine was more effective at driving turnout than the Republican one,” said Eurasia Group analyst Jon Lieber in a note late Tuesday.

Warnock then made just before 8 a.m. Eastern time on Wednesday.

Election 2010: Republicans Net 60 House Seats 6 Senate Seats And 7 Governorships

The dust has — mostly — settled on the 2010 midterm election with Republicans claiming across-the-board victories in House, Senate and gubernatorial contests. Here’s a look at where things stand.

1. In the House, Republicans have gained 60 seats so far with 11 Democratic districts — Kentucky’s 6th, Georgia’s 2nd, Illinois’s 8th, Michigan’s 9th, Texas’s 27th, Arizona’s 7th and 8th, New York’s 25th, California’s 11th and 20th and Washington’s 2nd — too close too call. Most projections put the total GOP gain in the mid-60s although several of the uncalled contests are almost certainly headed for recounts.

The Republican House victory was vast and complete as GOP candidates bested not only Democratic incumbents who won their seats in 2006 or 2008 — two great elections for Democrats — but also long-serving incumbents such as Reps. John Spratt , Ike Skelton , Rick Boucher and Jim Oberstar .

Geographically, Republicans crushed Democrats in the Rust Belt — picking up five seats in Ohio, five seats in Pennsylvania, three seats in Illinois and two seats in Michigan.

The group most ravaged by losses last night were the 48 Democrats who represented districts Arizona Sen. John McCain won in 2008. Of those 48 members, a whopping 36 — 75 percent! — were defeated while 10 held on to win. Two Democrats in McCain districts — Kentucky Rep. Ben Chandler and Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords— are in tight races that have yet to be called by the Associated Press.

Cbs News Projects Hickenlooper Wins Colorado Senate Seat Democrats’ First Pickup

Democrats picked up their first Senate seat of the night, with CBS News projecting former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper has defeated incumbent GOP Senator Cory Gardner. Hickenlooper decided to run for Senate after running briefly in the Democratic presidential primary.

Gardner was considered one of the most vulnerable Republican senators up for reelection this year, especially since he’s the only major statewide elected GOP official. Gardner has also been trailing Hickenlooper in polls leading up to Election Day.

While this is a victory for Democrats, they will have to pick up several other seats to gain a majority in the Senate.

Cbs News Projects Hickenlooper Wins Colorado Senate Seat Democrats First Pickup

Democrats picked up their first Senate seat of the night, with CBS News projecting former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper has defeated incumbent GOP Senator Cory Gardner. Hickenlooper decided to run for Senate after running briefly in the Democratic presidential primary.

Gardner was considered one of the most vulnerable Republican senators up for reelection this year, especially since he’s the only major statewide elected GOP official. Gardner has also been trailing Hickenlooper in polls leading up to Election Day.

While this is a victory for Democrats, they will have to pick up several other seats to gain a majority in the Senate.

House Candidate In Georgia Who Promoted Qanon Conspiracy Theories Likely To Win

Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, a QAnon supporter who has promoted conspiracy theories, is likely to win her Georgia House race. The QAnon mindset purports that President Trump is fighting against a deep state cabal of satanists who abuse children.

Greene has referred to the election of Muslim members to the House as “an Islamic invasion of our government,” and spread conspiracy theories about 9/11 and the 2017 Las Vegas shooting.

Mr. Trump has expressed his support for Taylor and called her a “future Republican star.” Senator Kelly Loeffler of Georgia, who is locked in a tight reelection race, campaigned with Taylor last month.

The House passed a bipartisan resolution condemning QAnon in early October.

I Do Not Buy That A Social Media Ban Hurts Trumps 2024 Aspirations: Nate Silver

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sarah: Yeah, Democrats might not have their worst Senate map in 2022, but it will by no means be easy, and how they fare will have a lot to do with the national environment. And as we touched on earlier, Biden’s overall approval rating will also make a big difference in Democrats’ midterm chances.

nrakich: Yeah, if the national environment is even a bit Republican-leaning, that could be enough to allow solid Republican recruits to flip even Nevada and New Hampshire. And then it wouldn’t even matter if Democrats win Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

One thing is for sure, though — whichever party wins the Senate will have only a narrow majority, so I think we’re stuck in this era of moderates like Sens. Joe Manchin and Lisa Murkowski controlling every bill’s fate for at least a while longer. 

sarah: Let’s talk about big picture strategy, then, and where that leaves us moving forward. It’s still early and far too easy to prescribe election narratives that aren’t grounded in anything, but one gambit the Republican Party seems to be making at this point is that attacking the Democratic Party for being too progressive or “woke” will help them win.

What do we make of that playbook headed into 2022? Likewise, as the party in charge, what are Democrats planning for?

With that being said, the GOP’s strategies could still gin up turnout among its base, in particular, but it’s hard to separate that from general dissatisfaction with Biden.

Lindsey Graham Wins Reelection In South Carolina Senate Race Cbs News Projects

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham won reelection, CBS News projects, after a contentious race. Although Democratic candidate Jaime Harrison outraised Graham by a significant amount, it was not enough to flip a Senate seat in the deep-red state.

Graham led the high-profile confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, and Harrison hit him for his reversal on confirming a Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year.

Meanwhile, Republican Roger Marshall has also won the Senate race in Kansas, defeating Democrat Barbara Bollier.

Mcconnell Not Troubled At All By Trump’s Suggestion Of Supreme Court Challenge

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell defended Mr. Trump for falsely claiming that he won reelection, although he acknowledged that the presidential race had not yet been decided.

“It’s not unusual for people to claim they have won the election. I can think of that happening on numerous occasions,” McConnell told reporters in Kentucky. “But, claiming to win the election is different from finishing the counting.”

“Claiming to win the election is different from finishing the counting,” Mitch McConnell says, adding that Americans “should not be shocked” that Democrats and Republicans are both lawyering up for the close races https://t.co/fxHKy8hSEppic.twitter.com/2pNlka2Jl4

— CBS News November 4, 2020

He also said he was “not troubled at all” by the president suggesting that the outcome of the election might be determined by the Supreme Court. The president cannot unilaterally bring a case to the Supreme Court, what it’s unclear what case the Trump campaign would have if it challenged the counting of legally cast absentee ballots.

McConnell, who won his own closely watched reelection race on Tuesday evening, expressed measured confidence about Republicans maintaining their majority in the Senate. He said he believed there is a “chance we will know by the end of the day” if Republicans won races in states like Georgia and North Carolina.

Mcconnell Not Troubled At All By Trumps Suggestion Of Supreme Court Challenge

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell defended Mr. Trump for falsely claiming that he won reelection, although he acknowledged that the presidential race had not yet been decided.

“It’s not unusual for people to claim they have won the election. I can think of that happening on numerous occasions,” McConnell told reporters in Kentucky. “But, claiming to win the election is different from finishing the counting.”

“Claiming to win the election is different from finishing the counting,” Mitch McConnell says, adding that Americans “should not be shocked” that Democrats and Republicans are both lawyering up for the close races https://t.co/fxHKy8hSEppic.twitter.com/2pNlka2Jl4

— CBS News November 4, 2020

He also said he was “not troubled at all” by the president suggesting that the outcome of the election might be determined by the Supreme Court. The president cannot unilaterally bring a case to the Supreme Court, what it’s unclear what case the Trump campaign would have if it challenged the counting of legally cast absentee ballots.

McConnell, who won his own closely watched reelection race on Tuesday evening, expressed measured confidence about Republicans maintaining their majority in the Senate. He said he believed there is a “chance we will know by the end of the day” if Republicans won races in states like Georgia and North Carolina.

Pelosi Says American People Have Made Their Choice Clear In Voting For Biden

 In a letter to her Democratic colleagues in the House, Speaker Nancy Pelosi expressed confidence that Biden would be elected president, even though several states have yet to be called.

“The American people have made their choice clear at the ballot box, and are sending Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to the White House,” Pelosi said.

She also praised House Democrats for keeping their majority, saying that the House will “now have the opportunity to deliver extraordinary progress.” However, she only obliquely referenced the heavy losses by several freshmen Democrats who had flipped red seats.

“Though it was a challenging election, all of our candidates – both Frontline and Red to Blue – made us proud,” Pelosi said.

Georgias Republican Us Senators Call On Gop State Election Chief To Resign

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, himself a Republican, called the claims “laughable” and refused to step aside.

The early rancor and fighting over the presidential election results, which are headed for a recount despite Biden’s growing lead, is a preview of the intense fight to come over the fate of the two Senate seats. Vice President Pence told GOP senators that he plans to campaign in the state, and national Democrats are already pouring money and support to their challengers, Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock.

The Georgia runoffs are slated for Jan. 5, after the Senate is scheduled to begin a new session. That uncertainty means the Senate will be unable to officially organize until the results of that election are finalized.

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A Decade Of Power: Statehouse Wins Position Gop To Dominate Redistricting

Democrats spent big to take control of state legislatures but lost their key targets. Now they’ll be on the sidelines as new maps are drawn.

Protestors march in front of the Capitol in Austin, Texas, on Wednesday to demand all votes in the general election be counted. Texas Republicans will have total authority over the drawing of as many as 39 congressional districts in the state. | Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via AP

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Here’s something else Republicans can be happy about after Tuesday.

An abysmal showing by Democrats in state legislative races on Tuesday not only denied them victories in Sun Belt and Rust Belt states that would have positioned them to advance their policy agenda — it also put the party at a disadvantage ahead of the redistricting that will determine the balance of power for the next decade.

The results could domino through politics in America, helping the GOP draw favorable congressional and state legislative maps by ensuring Democrats remain the minority party in key state legislatures. Ultimately, it could mean more Republicans in Washington — and in state capitals.

After months of record-breaking fundraising by their candidates and a constellation of outside groups, Democrats fell far short of their goals and failed to build upon their 2018 successes to capture state chambers they had been targeting for years. And they may have President Donald Trump to blame.

Business Insider

Democrats Got Millions More Votes So How Did Republicans Win The Senate

Senate electoral process means although Democrats received more overall votes for the Senate than Republicans, that does not translate to more seats

The 2018 midterm elections brought , who retook the House of Representatives and snatched several governorships from the grip of Republicans.

But some were left questioning why Democrats suffered a series of setbacks that prevented the party from picking up even more seats and, perhaps most consequentially, left the US Senate in Republican hands.

Among the most eye-catching was a statistic showing Democrats led Republicans by more than 12 million votes in Senate races, and yet still suffered losses on the night and failed to win a majority of seats in the chamber.

Constitutional experts said the discrepancy between votes cast and seats won was the result of misplaced ire that ignored the Senate electoral process.

Because each state gets two senators, irrespective of population, states such as Wyoming have as many seats as California, despite the latter having more than 60 times the population. The smaller states also tend to be the more rural, and rural areas traditionally favor Republicans.

This year, because Democrats were defending more seats, including California, they received more overall votes for the Senate than Republicans, but that does not translate to more seats.

However, some expressed frustration with a system they suggest gives an advantage to conservative-leaning states.

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Cori Bush Becomes Missouri’s First Black Congresswoman Cbs News Projects

House Seats in 113th vs to 114th Congress

Cori Bush, a progressive Democrat and activist, has become Missouri’s first Black congresswoman, according to CBS News projections. With 88% of votes reported, Bush is leading Republican Anthony Rogers 78.9% to 19% to represent the state’s first congressional district, which includes St. Louis and Ferguson.

Bush, 44, claimed victory on Tuesday, promising to bring change to the district. “As the first Black woman and also the first nurse and single mother to have the honor to represent Missouri in the United States Congress, let me say this: To the Black women, the Black girls, the nurses, the essential workers, the single mothers, this is our moment,” she told supporters in St. Louis.

Read more here

How Maine And Nebraska’s Split Electoral Votes Could Affect The Election

As the race drags into Wednesday, it appears two congressional districts in Maine and Nebraska could prove pivotal in deciding the outcome of the election.

Maine and Nebraska are the only states in the nation that split their electoral votes. Maine awards two of its four electoral votes to the statewide winner, but also allocates an electoral vote to the popular vote winner in each of its two congressional districts. Nebraska gives two of its five electoral votes to the statewide winner, with the remaining three going to the popular vote winner in each of its three congressional districts.


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