Democrats won control of both the Senate and House in the 2026 US midterms, securing at least 54 Senate seats and a House majority. Speaker Mike Johnson plans to step aside as Republican leader.

Democrats have won control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives in this week's US midterm elections, according to projections from CBS News and other US outlets, delivering a sharp rebuke to President Donald Trump's second term.

Democrats reached at least 54 Senate seats, flipping a series of Republican-held seats including Texas, Kansas, South Carolina, Maine, Iowa, North Carolina and Ohio. Two races remain unresolved: Alaska and Mississippi. In Mississippi, Democratic challenger Scott Colom led Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith by 1,138 votes with about 96 percent counted, a margin too narrow to call.

In the House, CBS News projected Democrats would hold between 251 and 268 seats after flipping dozens of districts and limiting losses from Republican redistricting.

Leadership reshaped on both sides

House Speaker Mike Johnson plans to step aside as Republican leader. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Democrats would wrap the president in "legislative razor wire," though some new senators signaled a preference for legislating over confrontation. Senator-elect Adam Hamilton of Kansas told CBS News: "I do not want to spend the next two years in trials."

The Republican recrimination began within hours. Vice President JD Vance attributed the losses to the war with Iran, while the president said his party lost because he was not on the ballot. Outgoing Senator John Cornyn, writing in the Wall Street Journal, argued his party had "forgot how to win elections," citing candidate quality and unaddressed concerns about corruption.

CBS News also reported that the president has asked advisers whether Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth should remain in post.

Ballot measures

Measures on reproductive rights largely favored advocates, with Nevada and Virginia approving constitutional protections.

Why it matters

A Democratic Congress creates divided government for the president's final two years, with oversight investigations and budget fights likely. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he hoped the results would bring greater US support for Kyiv.

Vote counts in Alaska and Mississippi are incomplete, and control margins could shift as remaining ballots are tallied.