Democrats Win the House as Speaker Johnson Concedes the Majority Is Gone

Democrats had a sweeping night on Tuesday, Nov. 3, and Republicans lost the House. CBS News projected that Democrats will gain control of the House, with a CBS live blog noting this effectively halts President Trump's legislative agenda for his last two years in office. NBC News and CNN were also projecting a Democratic takeover, according to the New York Post. The Associated Press had not made the call, saying it would wait until a party reaches 218 seats.

Democrats needed a net gain of three seats. By 11 p.m., the AP had called 143 races for Democrats and 86 for Republicans out of 293 on the ballot, according to the New York Post's tally. The extent of the Democratic majority is unclear, CBS News said, because votes in several competitive races were still being counted.

Johnson concedes

Speaker Mike Johnson acknowledged the loss in a speech from his hometown of Shreveport, Louisiana. "From the first day of this election, we knew that to keep the House and sustain our majority, we would have to defy more than a century of midterm history," he said. "It's only happened twice in 90 years that a sitting president has picked up or held seats for his party in that first two-year cycle."

President Trump took a different line on Truth Social: "I wasn't on the Ballot and if I was, we would have won IN A LANDSLIDE!" On the campaign trail he had told voters to "pretend" he was on the ballot.

A senior Republican party strategist directly involved in GOP midterm strategy placed the blame on Trump, telling CBS News the story of the night was the president's low approval ratings. A separate senior Republican Party official involved in House GOP midterm strategy called the night a "bloodbath." CBS reported that early exit polls put Trump's approval at 38%, on track for the lowest of any president in a midterm election, and that about 60% of voters said the president was a factor in their House vote.

Where the seats came from

Democrats flipped Republican-held seats in several states:

• New Jersey 7th: Rebecca Bennett beat Rep. Tom Kean Jr. by more than 20 percentage points. Kean missed months of votes earlier this year while being treated for depression, and did not disclose the diagnosis or his hospitalization until he returned to Washington in late June.
• Pennsylvania: CBS News projected Paige Cognetti over Rep. Rob Bresnahan Jr. in the 8th District, Janelle Stelson over Rep. Scott Perry in the 10th, and Bob Brooks over Rep. Ryan Mackenzie in the 7th.
• North Carolina 11th: Jamie Ager beat Jennifer Capps Balkcom, 60.1% to 38.5% when the AP called the race. The seat belonged to Rep. Chuck Edwards, who abandoned his re-election campaign after a House ethics report found he engaged in "inappropriate conduct" with female staffers. CBS News said it was the first Democratic win in the seat since 2010.
• Colorado 8th: CBS News projected Manny Rutinel over GOP Rep. Gabe Evans, who had flipped the district in 2024.
• Kentucky 6th: CBS News projected Zach Dembo over Ralph Alvarado for the seat held by Rep. Andy Barr, who won his Senate race.

CBS News also rated North Carolina's 9th District, held by NRCC chairman Rep. Richard Hudson, as likely Democratic, with Richard Ojeda challenging him.

Republican mid-decade redistricting did not save the majority. In Florida, Democrats beat back Republicans in at least four of the five districts expected to give the GOP breathing room, according to the New York Post. In Texas, CBS News projected Rep. Vicente Gonzalez held his redrawn 34th District, and in Alabama it projected Rep. Shomari Figures won re-election under a map more favorable to Republicans.

Senate and governors

Republicans entered the night defending a 53-47 majority, according to Breitbart, with Democrats needing a net of four Senate seats to take control.

New York Post reported that Democrats "quickly racked up dramatic victories" in the Senate battle. Sen. Jon Ossoff won in Georgia, and former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper was declared the winner in North Carolina in a flip for Democrats. Democrat Annie Andrews defeated Republican Sen. Darline Graham in South Carolina, in what CBS News called a major upset. Graham was appointed to fill her brother Lindsey Graham's seat.

CBS News projected James Talarico will defeat Ken Paxton in Texas. Sen. John Cornyn, who lost the primary to Paxton, wrote on X: "The voters have spoken, and I want to extend my congratulations to James Talarico on his election to the U.S. Senate." In Ohio, CBS News projected Sherrod Brown over Sen. Jon Husted.

The Fox News Decision Desk projected Rep. Chris Pappas will defeat former Sen. John Sununu in New Hampshire. Sununu conceded in a phone call, saying, "This has been an incredible campaign, but it is not our night." Pappas aimed his remarks at "the cowards in Congress who have enabled health care cuts, tariffs and war."

The Post said there is still a path for Republicans to hold the Senate, though a rapidly narrowing one. Republicans were trailing in Kansas and Nebraska, according to the Post. CBS News rated Kansas's Senate race as leaning Democratic, with Adam Hamilton leading GOP Sen. Roger Marshall, and rated the Iowa Senate race, between Josh Turek and Rep. Ashley Hinson, as leaning Democratic. CBS described the Michigan race, in which Abdul El-Sayed faces Mike Rogers, as a toss-up.

The governor's races went badly for the GOP too. CBS News projected Democrat Gina Hinojosa over Gov. Greg Abbott in Texas, and two sources told CBS that Abbott called to concede. CBS also projected Amy Acton over Vivek Ramaswamy in Ohio and Rob Sand over Zach Lahn in Iowa.

What a Democratic House can and cannot do

Democratic control of the House means subpoena and investigative power for Democrats, CBS News said, which will characterize Trump's final two years in office. The New York Post reported that Trump's allies have been bracing for multimillion-dollar legal bills if House Democrats follow through on investigations into the first family's business dealings.

Trump has signaled he will use his veto. "I have the ultimate power — it's called 'veto,'" he told CBS News in a phone interview on Tuesday. "Historically, you veto for a couple of months, and then they come and say, 'We've got to make a deal,'" he said.

After CBS News and other outlets projected a Democratic House, Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries posted on X: "Victory for America!" CBS said he will likely be the next speaker of the House. The New York Post said that if projections hold, Jeffries and his party could have their largest majority in more than a decade, fueled largely by voters' frustrations with the economy and the rising cost of fuel and food, according to public polls.

Pete Buttigieg called the results "absolutely tectonic" on CBS News' election broadcast. "We are seeing the early signs of something that is less of a result than it is a revolt," he said.

Election-law fights continue

The Justice Department has sent more than 20 letters in a criminal probe tied to the Alaska Senate race, according to a source familiar with the matter who spoke to CNBC. Some letters identify recipients as potential targets and others tell recipients to preserve records. The probe concerns how a candidate with the same name as incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan ended up on the ballot.

The New York Times reported that election lawyer Marc Elias and at least one Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee official received target letters. Receiving a target letter does not mean a person has been charged. Elias said no one should be surprised that Trump's Justice Department is targeting him on Election Day. Trump said on Fox and Friends that Elias "should go to jail, in my opinion."

A federal judge on Sunday dismissed a separate DOJ suit seeking to delay certification of Alaska's Senate result. The department is appealing.

Still to be settled are the AP's call on the House, the final seat count, and the remaining Senate races, including Michigan, Iowa and Kansas.