US midterm poll results: Democrats clinch the 'House', Republicans save Senate; Trump says 'tremendous victory'

Democrat's takeover of the House of Representatives will now allow them to block Donald Trump’s laws and launch a string of investigations into his administration.

File Photo/ by SAUL LOEB / AFP

New Delhi: In the most-closely watched US mid-term polls, the Democrats gained control of the lower house of Congress the House of Representatives and while Republican buoyed to victory in the Senate. Though Republicans keeping control of the Senate is not an unexpected result, it, however, was not assured as the polls had reached an unpredictable point after the halfway stage.  Citing networks, the AFP news agency reported that the polls have concluded with Democrats retaking control of US House of Representatives while Republicans maintain their grip over the Senate.  As per other networks, the counting of votes have concluded and both the parties take control of each of the chambers of the bicameral US legislature, respectively. Democrats taking over the House of Representatives will now allow them to block Donald Trump’s laws and launch a string of investigations into his administration, US broadcasters said. The Republicans holding the majority in the Senate would boost Trump that the predictions of results against him, in fact fizzled out. US President Donald Trump tweeted to call the mid-term polls a ‘tremendous success’.

Tremendous success tonight. Thank you to all!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 7, 2018

According to projections based on exit polls, having snatched at least 23 seats from Republicans, the Democrats were set to retake control of the House, splitting control of bicameral Congress with the Republicans, reports Xinhua news agency and Efe news. With swathes of congressional districts still waiting for voting results, it remained unclear how many seats the Democrats will eventually end up with in the next Congress. The Democratic Party's success has been widely anticipated by pre-voting polls though suspense remains as to how strong a "blue wave" is sweeping across the US. Democrats captured 13 Republican-held seats early, ejecting incumbents in the suburbs of Kansas City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Minneapolis, Miami and Washington D.C The Party also managed to win a number of gubernatorial races, including in the states of Illinois, New Mexico and Kansas, balancing out the Republicans who controlled 33 governorships prior to the election. All 50 states and Washington D.C. went to the polls on Tuesday as Republicans and Democrats battle for control of the two houses of Congress, with experts saying that voter turnout could be the highest for a midterm election in 50 years, CNN reported. Americans voted for all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of 100 seats in the Senate - the two bodies that make up Congress. Governors are also being chosen in 36 out of 50 states. By winning the House, Democrats will gain a powerful new pedestal to investigate President Donald Trump's administration, his personal finances, and the hotels, golf courses and other businesses he still owns. They were also likely to press for details about the 2016 election, asking whether Trump or his campaign colluded with the Russian government's efforts to sow misinformation and pro-Trump messages. But the Republicans snuffed out Democrats' hopes of winning the Senate. Projections have indicated that the Republicans were to gain at least three seats to increase their majority to a minimum of 51-42 per cent with 94 per cent of seats declared, Efe news reported. Although it was not yet possible to confirm the number of seats the Republicans will count from next January when the new Congress takes office, the projections confirm the surveys of the past months, which pointed to a conservative majority in the Upper House. The first big victory of the night for Republicans in the Senate was that of Mike Braun, who won the seat of the Senate for Indiana, which had been in the hands of Democrat Joe Donnelly. Texas Republican Ted Cruz, who was challenged in the last few months by Democrat Beto O'Rourke, managed to keep his seat, although by a narrower margin than the conservatives ever have historically recorded in the Lone Star state. On the final day of campaigning, Trump had said ‘Everything we have achieved is at stake’. Republicans though anxious of slipping control had expressed confidence of a narrow majority in the state. The initial hours of voting in some precincts, including Georgia, were marred by long line sand malfunctioning machines. Senators Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts easily won re-election as they consider bids for the Democratic presidential nomination. Other 2020 prospects on the ballot included New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, Associated Press reported. Trump had called the election as a referendum on his leadership as he proudly pointed to the surging economy at recent rallies. In the polls, the Democrats needed to clinch two dozen seats to seize the House majority and two seats to control the Senate. All 435 seats in the US House were up for re-election, although fewer than 90 were considered competitive. 35 Senate seats were in play, as were almost 40 governorships and the balance of power in almost all the state legislatures. (With input from agencies)