The Morning After: Democrats Sweep Congress as the Blue Wave Reaches Texas, California and Ohio
Editorial illustration — Press Pass USAThe morning after. America woke up Wednesday to a new balance of power in Washington. The Associated Press (AP) has declared that Democrats retook control of the U.S. Senate, flipping at least six Republican-held seats, and the AP reported in the early hours of Wednesday that Democrats had won the U.S. House as well — completing a sweep of Congress in a midterm election that doubled as a referendum on President Donald Trump's second term. The wave reached deep into Republican territory: Texas elected a Democratic senator and governor on the same night, California chose its first Latino governor in more than 150 years, and Ohio flipped its governor's office and a Senate seat. All results are unofficial until certified.
The Senate flips. Republicans entered the night holding the Senate 53-47, and Democrats needed a net gain of four seats. They got there state by state: Roy Cooper in North Carolina, Annie Andrews in South Carolina, Sherrod Brown in Ohio, James Talarico in Texas, Adam Hamilton in Kansas — the first Democrat Kansas has sent to the Senate in nearly a century — and Josh Turek in Iowa, whose race the AP called at 11:35 p.m. ET, the sixth flip, at which point the AP declared Democrats had won the chamber, at least 51-49. A seventh flip followed in Maine, where Troy Jackson unseated Republican Sen. Susan Collins after nearly 30 years in office. Chuck Schumer is in line to return as majority leader. A handful of Senate races — including Michigan, Alaska and Nebraska — were still being counted Wednesday morning.
The House: projected during the night, reported won by morning. NBC News projected a Democratic House majority at 10:08 p.m. ET and CBS News projected the same during the night — network projections, made hours before the AP weighed in. In the early hours of Wednesday, the AP reported that Democrats had won the House, ending Republican control of the chamber held since 2023 and giving Democrats both houses of Congress for the final two years of Trump's term, as reported by The Wall Street Journal and Reuters. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries is positioned to become Speaker — he would be the first Black Speaker in U.S. history. The size of the Democratic majority is still being counted, with dozens of House races unfinished overnight.
Texas turns blue. The biggest state on the map delivered the night's biggest shock. The AP called the governor's race for state Rep. Gina Hinojosa at 10:17 p.m. ET, and Republican Gov. Greg Abbott — seeking a record fourth term — conceded. With 81% of the vote counted, Hinojosa held 4,285,291 votes (53.65%) to Abbott's 3,598,205 (45.05%). Hinojosa will be the first Latina governor in Texas history and the first Democrat to hold the office since Ann Richards, elected in 1990. In the Senate race, state Rep. James Talarico defeated Attorney General Ken Paxton for the seat of retiring Sen. John Cornyn, with about 55% to 43% in the AP count — the first Democrat to win a U.S. Senate race in Texas since Lloyd Bentsen in 1988, and the party's first win in any Texas statewide race since 1994.
California makes history. The AP called the California governor's race for Xavier Becerra at 11:00 p.m. ET: with about 52% of precincts reporting, Becerra held 4,407,523 votes to Republican Steve Hilton's 2,416,691. Becerra, the son of Mexican immigrants and a former U.S. health secretary, will be the first Latino governor of California since Romualdo Pacheco in 1875, succeeding the term-limited Gavin Newsom in the nation's most populous state.
Ohio completes the sweep. In Ohio, the two races still open at midnight were both called by the AP: Amy Acton defeated Vivek Ramaswamy 2,404,178 to 2,039,730 to become the state's first woman elected governor, and Sherrod Brown beat Jon Husted 2,301,042 to 2,077,748 to return to the U.S. Senate. Ohio voters also approved Issue 3, locking the state's photo-ID voting requirement into the state constitution. Full results are in our Ohio story: Ohio Has Its Winners: Acton Takes the Governor's Office, Brown Returns to the Senate.
Historic firsts in the South. In Georgia, the AP called the governor's race for Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former Atlanta mayor, over Republican businessman Rick Jackson: she will be the first Black woman elected governor of any U.S. state, Georgia's first woman and first Black governor, ending 24 years of Republican control of the office. In Florida, the AP called the race for Republican Rep. Byron Donalds, who narrowly defeated Democrat David Jolly to succeed the term-limited Ron DeSantis — becoming Florida's first Black governor and the first Black Republican elected governor in U.S. history.
What drove it — and what is still out. Exit polling pointed to prices and the cost of living: voters angry over high prices and the war in Iran cast ballots in an election widely seen as a verdict on the president, and exit polls conducted for the networks and the AP found about half of voters nationwide saying they saw the midterms as an opportunity to rebuke Trump. What remains is the count: final margins in the House, the last Senate races, and then certification. The new Congress convenes in January 2027, and until then, every number on this page is unofficial.
Sources: Associated Press, 2026 election results and race calls (Senate control declared after the Iowa call for Josh Turek at 11:35 p.m. ET, the sixth Republican-held seat flipped, per AP reporting tallied by NPR — flips in North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Kansas and Iowa, with Maine called for Troy Jackson in the early hours; Texas governor called for Gina Hinojosa at 10:17 p.m. ET; Texas Senate called for James Talarico at about 10 p.m. ET; California governor called for Xavier Becerra at 11:00 p.m. ET, Becerra 4,407,523 / Hilton 2,416,691 with about 52% of precincts reporting; Ohio governor Acton 2,404,178 / Ramaswamy 2,039,730 and Ohio Senate Brown 2,301,042 / Husted 2,077,748, 98.79% of precincts; Georgia and Florida governor's races called for Keisha Lance Bottoms and Byron Donalds); Reuters, “Democrats seize Congress in sweeping midterm repudiation of Trump,” November 4, 2026 (both chambers; historic firsts for Bottoms, Donalds, Hinojosa and Becerra); The Wall Street Journal live coverage (the AP on the House majority; historic firsts); NBC News (House majority projected 10:08 p.m. ET) and CBS News (House projection during the night; Georgia count) — network projections, flagged as such where they appear; KWBU/NPR Texas (AP Texas calls and times; Talarico first Democrat to win a Texas Senate race since 1988); El Paso Times (AP Texas Senate results, Talarico about 55% to Paxton about 43%); Newsmax (Texas governor's count at 81%: Hinojosa 4,285,291 / 53.65%, Abbott 3,598,205 / 45.05%); USA Today (historic firsts; Jeffries positioned to become the first Black Speaker); exit-poll findings as reported by Reuters and the AP. Results are unofficial until certified.
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