Democrats take control of Congress as 2026 midterm elections wrap up
Written by Jake Diaferio on November 5, 2026
The Democratic Party responded in a big way to President Donald Trump and the rest of the Republican Party by flipping the House, as well as the Senate.
Some key takeaways from the midterm elections include results that have not occurred in decades.
Texas, in an unprecedented turn of events, elected James Talarico as its first Democratic senator in 38 years.
Senator Annie Andrews also became a surprise, as she defeated Republican-elect Darline Graham to become South Carolina’s first Democratic senator-elect since 1998.
In Kansas, Adam Hamilton came out on top to become Kansas’s first Democratic senator since 1932, seven years before the start of World War II.
Ohio flipped blue as well, with Democrat Sherrod Brown returning to Congress after he lost his seat in 2025.
President Trump fell short in a number of ways, as Democrats made their way to the polls to express their unhappy thoughts on his policies.
Two-thirds of the voters have placed blame on Trump as to why prices have risen, and almost three-quarters stated that they are not happy with the current direction of the United States.
In Illinois, JB Pritzker won his third term as governor, beating out Republican Darren Bailey for the second consecutive time and senator Juliana Stratton took control of the Illinois Senate, joining Democrat Tammy Duckworth in the process. This also makes Illinois the first state in U.S. history to have two women of color in the Senate.
The Prairie State took home all four districts in the House in convincing fashion too, with all four representatives winning at least 70% of the votes.
McLean County was overall split, with four county board district candidate races going towards the Democrats, as well as four for the Republicans.
Democrat Joshua Crockett prevailed as McLean County Clerk over Kathy Michael, who has held the position for 16 years.
Look online for more election results.
