Answer in brief
As of 4 November 2026, CBS News and other outlets project that Democrats won the House and the Senate. The Senate stands at 54 Democratic seats with Alaska and Mississippi uncalled, and House projections range from about 250 to 268 seats. The new Congress is seated at noon on 3 January 2027.
Midterm results as of 4 November: both chambers projected for Democrats
The midterm results of 3 November 2026 show Democrats winning control of both chambers of Congress, according to projections by news organisations. CBS News projected a Democratic House at 10:15 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday and a Democratic Senate shortly after 11:30 p.m. Yahoo News reported on Wednesday that Democrats had won both chambers. Every number below is as of 4 November and belongs to the outlet that published it, because counting was still under way.
Before the vote Republicans held 218 House seats and Democrats 214, and Democrats needed a net gain of three, according to Yahoo News. In the Senate Republicans held 53 of 100 seats, and Democrats needed a net gain of at least four. President Trump wrote on Truth Social that he was not on the ballot and that, if he had been, Republicans would have won in a landslide. Asked whether he would accept the results, he answered, as CBS News recorded it, "Yes, sure I'll accept them."
The Senate count: 54 Democratic seats, with Alaska and Mississippi open
CBS News and Northeastern University list seven Republican-held Senate seats that went to Democrats: Kansas, Iowa, Texas, Ohio, Maine, North Carolina and South Carolina. Democrats also held seats in Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota and New Hampshire, while Republicans held Florida and Nebraska, according to CBS News. As of 6 a.m. Eastern on 4 November, Yahoo News counted 54 Democratic seats and 44 Republican seats. CBS News says Democrats have at least 54, with two races uncalled.
Two races decide whether the total rises. In Alaska, with 74 percent counted, Yahoo News showed Democrat Mary Peltola ahead of Republican Dan Sullivan, 102,701 votes to 102,075. In Mississippi, with 96 percent counted, Democrat Scott Colom led Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith by 43 votes, 462,821 to 462,778. CBS News adds that Colom says about 15,000 affidavit ballots remain, and a CBS headline says the Alaska outcome could take weeks.
Both party leaders spoke after the projection. Chuck Schumer said, as CBS News quoted him, that against all odds Democrats had won the Senate. John Thune said, in a remark CBS News recorded at 12:37 a.m., that Republicans still have President Trump in the White House, and that they would work with him to counter Democratic policies.
The House count: from 228 called seats to a 268-seat estimate
The House is less settled than the Senate, and the outlets use different yardsticks. At 8 a.m. Eastern the Associated Press, as Yahoo News reported, had Democrats at 228 seats, Republicans at 139 and 68 seats uncalled. MS NOW estimated Democrats at a margin of at least 250 of 435 seats. CBS News projected that Democrats will hold between 251 and 268 seats once every vote is counted, with about 75 races undecided at 4:19 a.m.
Those figures are not in conflict. One counts races already called, the others estimate where the uncalled races will land. A majority is 218 seats, the figure Hakeem Jeffries named to supporters on Tuesday night. Two undecided examples from Yahoo News show how close some races are: Colorado's 4th District, where Democrat Eileen Laubacher led Republican Lauren Boebert with 83 percent of precincts reporting, and New York's 21st District, where Republican Anthony Constantino led.
How the House chooses a Speaker and who is in line
The Constitution says only that the House of Representatives shall choose its Speaker and other officers, as the National Archives transcript puts it. The Congressional Research Service describes the practice. Each new House elects a Speaker by roll call when it first meets, and the winner needs an absolute majority of the votes cast for individuals. Members may vote for anyone, and customarily each party conference first selects a candidate whose name is placed in nomination.
Because absences and votes of present lower the total, a Speaker can be elected with fewer than 218 votes. The same report lists Mike Johnson with 218 votes and Hakeem Jeffries with 215 in the most recent election it covers. It also records 15 ballots in January 2023 before Kevin McCarthy won, and nine ballots in 1923. If nobody reaches a majority, the roll call is repeated until someone does.
On the Democratic side, Yahoo News writes that Jeffries is in line to become Speaker. On the Republican side, Yahoo News and CBS News report that Johnson will not seek another term as House Republican leader. Yahoo News adds that Jim Jordan announced a bid for minority leader, and that Steve Scalise had not said whether he would run. Jordan described the day in a letter to colleagues as a staggering one for the Republican conference.
Senate leaders are party choices, and 60 votes still ends most debates
The Constitution gives the Senate two named presiding roles: the Vice President, who votes only in a tie, and a president pro tempore chosen by the Senate. The majority leader is not one of them. Each party conference picks its own leader, as the Senate Republicans did on 13 November 2024, when Thune won a secret ballot 29 to 24 in the second round, according to Wikipedia. As of 4 November, the outlets cited here give no date for the Democratic or the Republican leadership vote.
Seat count is not the only number in the Senate. The Congressional Research Service reports that ending debate on most matters needs three fifths of senators, which is 60 when there is no more than one vacancy. Nominations can be advanced by a majority of senators voting, and a rules change needs two thirds of those present and voting. So 54 seats give Democrats control of the floor schedule and committees, but not 60 votes on their own.
What a congressional majority can do beside a president of the other party
A bill must pass both chambers and then reach the president. Under Article I, a president who returns a bill unsigned sends it back, and Congress can pass it over the objection with two thirds of each chamber. That is 67 of 100 senators if all vote, and 290 of 435 representatives if all vote. Neither projected total is near those numbers. President Trump told CBS News he would work with Democrats for the good of the country, and MS NOW noted he also posted an image of a cap reading VETO.
Other powers are separate from lawmaking. The Constitution gives the House the sole power of impeachment and the Senate the sole power to try it, with conviction needing two thirds of members present. Revenue bills must originate in the House, and no money leaves the Treasury except through appropriations made by law. Presidential appointments need the advice and consent of the Senate, so the Senate majority sets the pace for confirmations.
Oversight also changes hands. Co-Equal reports that House committee chairs can issue subpoenas unilaterally, and that a simple House majority can vote to hold someone in contempt or authorize a lawsuit to enforce one. Senate committees usually need the ranking member or a majority to agree. In the Senate a contempt vote is subject to a filibuster, so it would need 60 votes.
The last time the House changed hands and what the record shows
The most recent change of House control before this one came in 2018. Wikipedia records a net gain of 41 seats for Democrats, from 194 to 235, the largest gain since the 49 seats of 1974. Nancy Pelosi was elected Speaker in January 2019. The Senate flipped most recently in 2024, when Republicans took it, according to a Fox News guide to the races published before the vote.
Northeastern University reports that the House has historically swung away from the party in power by an average of 25 seats. Its scholars read the 2026 result differently. Costas Panagopoulos called it a full-blown repudiation of Donald Trump and Republican policies. Martha Johnson said it was not a clear endorsement of the Democratic agenda, and pointed to candidate quality on the Republican side. Yahoo News quotes Vice President JD Vance as writing that the reason Republicans lost is the war.
The calendar to 3 January 2027 and what is still unknown
The Twentieth Amendment fixes the clock. Terms of senators and representatives end at noon on 3 January, and the new Congress assembles at noon that day unless a law appoints another date, as the Cornell Legal Information Institute text shows. Until then the sitting Congress, with its current majorities, remains in office. At the start of each Congress the House elects its Speaker by roll call, as the Congressional Research Service describes it.
Several things are not known as of 4 November. The final House total, the Alaska and Mississippi results, the date of each party's leadership vote and the name of the next Republican House leader had not been reported by the outlets cited here. Official totals come from state counting, and a margin of 43 votes can still move. Anyone who needs an exact figure should wait for the certified results.
Practical checklist
- Check the House total against at least two outlets and note which are projections.
- Watch the Alaska and Mississippi Senate counts for a final call.
- Note the date of the Democratic and Republican leadership votes in each chamber.
- Mark noon on 3 January 2027 as the day the new Congress is seated.
- Remember that a veto override needs two thirds of both chambers.
Questions and answers
Who won the Senate in the 2026 midterms?
CBS News and other outlets project that Democrats won it. As of 4 November they hold at least 54 of 100 seats, and Alaska and Mississippi were still uncalled, so the final figure can change.
How many seats do Democrats need for a House majority?
A majority of the 435 seats is 218, the figure Jeffries named on election night. Projections vary: AP had 228 called seats with 68 undecided, and CBS News estimates 251 to 268 at the end.
Who will be Speaker of the House in the new Congress?
Nobody is chosen until the vote after 3 January 2027. Yahoo News says Hakeem Jeffries is in line. The House picks by a majority of votes cast for named people, repeating the roll call if needed.
When does the new Congress start?
At noon on 3 January 2027, under the Twentieth Amendment, unless a law sets another day. Terms of current members end at that moment, and the new members are sworn in.
Can Congress pass laws if the president vetoes them?
Yes, with two thirds of both chambers. That is 67 senators and 290 representatives if everyone votes. The projected Democratic totals are below both, so a veto override would need Republican votes.