Republicans take control of US Senate from Democrats

Republicans secure 51 Senate seats as they are set to regain control of chamber for first time in four years

Republicans took control of the US Senate from Democrats in Tuesday's congressional elections, according to The Associated Press. The win came after Senator Deb Fischer secured reelection in Nebraska. Currently, Republicans have secured 51 Senate seats as they are set to regain control of the chamber for the first time in four years. Democrats have 42 seats as of now, but more states are yet to be announced. In the Senate, 34 seats were up for election. Senators are elected to six-year terms and one-third are elected every two years. In the 100-seat chamber, due to procedural rules, parties often need 60 rather than just 50 votes to pass legislation. During Tuesday's race, all 435 seats in the House of Representatives were up for election, and as in the Senate, most forecasts have the chamber near-evenly split. A couple dozen competitive elections will determine whether Republicans or Democrats will control the House. The Associated Press also reported that 150 Democrats have seats in the House chamber, while 179 have secured their seats. At the state and local levels, voters also decided on a range of initiatives and races, from school boards to state-level ballot measures that can hold the weight of law. A total of 11 governor’s races were also contested. According to the agency's initial results, Republicans held 27 gubernatorial seats and the Democrats 23. As for the presidential elections, Republican candidate and former President Donald Trump has so far secured 230 Electoral votes while Democratic challenger and Vice President Kamala Harris has won 210.