Democrats snatch North Carolina Senate seat as the battle over Congress stays unsettled
Select a version of the text written from a presumed ideological perspective. This is not the original text, but a hypothetical version — how someone with that viewpoint might have phrased it. Tapping the current version again will return to the original or select cleaned version.
Democrats managed to flip a Republican-held Senate seat in North Carolina while other key races were still being counted, keeping control of the Senate undecided. The narrow gains, amid heavy voter frustration and ongoing scrutiny of election administration, leave the final outcome unresolved.
Democrats claimed a victory in North Carolina when former Governor Roy Cooper defeated Republican Michael Whatley, flipping a seat that had been held by the party of President Donald Trump. The result adds one of the four net Senate pickups Democrats need for a majority, according to media projections, but the final balance is still in doubt.
In Georgia, Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff beat U.S. Representative Mike Collins, increasing the Democratic margin in that contest. By the evening, media outlets had called winners in roughly three dozen House and Senate races, yet none of those outcomes alone determines control of either chamber. Analysts say Democrats need net gains of three House seats and four Senate seats to secure majorities.
Exit polls conducted by SSRS for a consortium of U.S. media organizations found that half of voters saw the 2026 midterm elections as a chance to rebuke the president, and three-quarters said they were unhappy with the country’s direction. About 70% said they want Congress to provide more checks and balances on the president.
The Justice Department reported deploying about 1,000 election monitors and observers across all 50 states, describing the operation as the largest Election Day monitoring effort in history. Democrats criticized the move as possible voter intimidation, noting that in two-thirds of the jurisdictions listed, voters had supported Kamala Harris over President Trump in the 2024 presidential election.
A separate development in Alaska involved a report that the campaign of Democratic candidate Mary Peltola may have helped recruit an independent candidate who shares the name of her Republican opponent, Dan Sullivan. Peltola denied involvement, and a federal criminal probe has been opened. A judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Justice Department seeking to block certification of the Alaska results.
"They make it pretty obvious: It says 'incumbent' after his name," said Jake Wesley, a 27-year-old Air Force member stationed in Anchorage, referring to the presence of two candidates named Dan Sullivan on the ballot.
Legal observers warn that President Trump could challenge results if Republicans lose, echoing his repeated claims of election irregularities. The Senate races in several states that voted heavily for Trump in 2024, including Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Ohio, South Carolina and Texas, remain pivotal in determining the chamber’s final composition.