Democrats are projected to flip control of the U.S. Senate in Tuesday’s midterm elections, CNBC’s Election Desk projected, wresting the chamber from Republicans after a string of victories in seats the party had been defending.
The majority was secured, CNBC reported, when Democrats were projected to win in Iowa — the result that put them over the top. Because the Senate has 100 seats and Vice President JD Vance, a Republican, holds the tie-breaking vote, Democrats needed at least 51 seats to take outright control, and CNBC’s desk projected they would reach that threshold. Earlier in the evening, the party had been on track with 49 seats before the Iowa call pushed it past the line, according to CNBC’s Dan Mangan.
The Democratic gains came across several states.
In Texas, Democrat James Talarico was projected to defeat Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, part of a night in which the party also captured the governor’s office there. In Ohio, Sherrod Brown was projected to defeat the incumbent Republican, Jon Husted — the fourth Democrat of the evening to flip a Republican-held Senate seat, according to Associated Press projections cited by CNBC.
Those wins followed Democratic victories reported by CNBC in North Carolina, where Roy Cooper flipped a seat, and in South Carolina, where Annie Andrews won her Senate race. In Georgia, Democrat Jon Ossoff was projected to win his race, holding a seat the party already controlled. Not every contest broke the Democrats’ way: CNBC reported that the Florida Senate seat was “leaning Republican” as results came in.
The Texas result also marked a costly defeat for one of the party’s biggest financial backers. Elon Musk’s roughly $224 million effort to keep Texas in Republican hands failed, CNBC reported, as Democrats flipped both the state’s Senate seat and its governor’s mansion. The Tesla and SpaceX chief executive directed about $212 million toward Paxton’s unsuccessful Senate bid and another $12.3 million to Texas political groups, including at least $5.5 million tied to Governor Greg Abbott, who also lost, according to filings from the Federal Election Commission, the Internal Revenue Service and state campaign-finance systems cited by CNBC.
The losses were a significant setback for Musk, who has moved much of his business empire to Texas and spent roughly $474 million nationwide this cycle, making him the largest known donor, CNBC reported, noting that the true figure is likely higher because of undisclosed spending and donations made after the October 14 federal reporting cutoff.
A Senate majority would give Democrats control of the chamber’s floor and its committees, along with the power to shape confirmations of judicial and executive-branch nominees and to set the terms of debate on legislation. The full margin remained unsettled as counting continued; polls began closing at 6 p.m. Eastern, CNBC noted, with Alaska the last state to close at 1 a.m. Eastern. The Associated Press provides the vote data and race projections that underpin CNBC’s coverage.
https://ctninfo.com/democrats-flip-t…ing-the-majority/
Source: CNBC
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