WASHINGTON — The 2022 midterm elections are shaping up to be some of the most consequential in the nation’s history, with control of Congress at stake.
All 435 seats in the House and 35 of 100 seats in the Senate are on the ballot, as well as several influential gubernatorial elections in battleground states like Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
In the Georgia Senate race, ABC News reports no candidate will receive more than 50% of the vote, meaning there will be a runoff election between Democrat Raphael Warnock and Republican Herschel Walker on Dec. 6. This race is one of the most competitive in the country and will likely determine which party will control the Senate.
There are currently three other Senate races — Alaska, Arizona and Nevada — as well as a number of House races that have yet to be called. Most are separated by razor-thin margins and all will come down to counting the vote.
Democrats are defending their narrow majorities in both chambers. Republican control of either the House or Senate would be enough to curtail most of President Joe Biden’s legislative agenda and would likely result in investigations against his administration and even his family.
In a press conference at the White House on Wednesday, the president said despite the press and pundits predicting a “giant red wave” by the Republicans, “it didn’t happen,” he said.
“And I know you were somewhat miffed by my–my obsessive optimism, but I felt good during the whole process. I thought we were going to do fine,” he said.
He continues saying while any seat lost is painful, “some good Democrats didn’t win theirs last night.” He said Democrats had a strong night and lost fewer seats in the House of Representatives than any democratic president’s first midterm election in the last 40 years. “We had the best midterm for governor since 1986.”
The president said regardless of the final tally of these election, he is prepared to work with his Republican colleagues.
“The American people have made clear, I think, that they expect Republicans to be prepared to work with me as well. In the area of foreign policy, I hope we’ll continue this bipartisan approach of confronting Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.”
President Biden says he returns from the G20 meetings in Indonesia with other world leaders, he plans invite the leaders of both political parties to the White House to discuss how they can work together for the remainder of this year and into the next Congress to advance the economic and national security priorities of the United States.
Read Related Also: The priciest Transfer Per Club Inside the Ligue-1
U.S. Senate
Top headlines and key races
- On Wednesday morning, ABC News reports no candidate will receive more than 50% of the vote in the Georgia Senate race. There will be a runoff election between Democrat Raphael Warnock and Republican Herschel Walker on Dec. 6.
- Flipped seats: ABC News projects John Fetterman has defeated Dr. Mehmet Oz to win Pennsylvania’s Senate race, the first flipped seat in the chamber.
- Balance of power: Republicans are slightly favored to take control of the Senate, FiveThirtyEight is projecting.
- Seats held: Republicans are projected to retain control of 19 of 21 GOP seats on the ballot, and Democrats are projected to retain 12 of the 14 seats on the ballot. Democrats held down a close race in New Hampshire with U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan’s projected win, while Republican JD Vance held onto control for the GOP in Ohio.
Where outstanding Senate races stand
- Alaska: With 71% of the expected vote reporting, Republican challenger Kelly Tshibaka leads the Senate race with 44% of the vote, followed by Republican incumbent Lisa Murkowski with 43%. A third woman, Democrat Patricia Chesbro, has 10% of the vote.
- Arizona: With 69% of the expected vote reporting, Democratic incumbent Sen. Mark Kelly leads the Senate race with 51% of the vote. Republican challenger Blake Masters has 46%.
- Nevada: With 80% of the expected vote reporting, Republican Adam Laxalt leads the Senate race with 50% of the vote, followed by incumbent Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto with 47%.
SEE ALSO: Here are the candidates who will make history with projected midterm election wins
U.S. House
Top headlines and key races
- Balance of power: Republicans are favored to flip the House, FiveThirtyEight projects. Republicans need to pick up just five seats to win back the chamber.
- Where things stand: Republicans had boasted that they could enjoy a majority of at least 20 seats, overtaking Democrats’ current five-seat majority. Yet the GOP has only gained a half-dozen seats, according to ABC News’ projections. And while several competitive races — for each party — are yet to be called, Republicans had anticipated having the chamber locked up early.
Gubernatorial races
Top headlines and key races
- Wednesday morning, ABC News projected that Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly won a second term in Republican-leaning Kansas against three-term GOP state Attorney General Derek Schmidt.
- Democrats flipped two governors’ seats in Maryland and Massachusetts.
- Democrats also were successful in governors’ races in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania — battlegrounds critical to Biden’s 2020 win over former President Donald Trump.
- Republicans held on to governors’ mansions in Florida, Texas and Georgia, another battleground state Biden narrowly won two years ago.
Ballot measures
Abortion
Voters in battleground Michigan enshrined abortion rights in the state constitution, joining reliably Democratic California and Vermont in taking that step.
An anti-abortion measure in Kentucky was too early to call.
The Tuesday ballot measures came months after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and the constitutional right to abortion it guaranteed to women nationwide. The decision in June has led to near-total bans in a dozen states.
Recreational marijuana
Voters have approved recreational marijuana in Maryland and Missouri and rejected it in Arkansas and North Dakota. The measure also is on the ballot in South Dakota.
The elections are seen as a test of legalization’s support in even the most conservative parts of the country.
The state voting follows moves by President Joe Biden toward decriminalizing marijuana.
Heading into the election, recreational marijuana was legal in 19 states, and polls have shown opposition to legalization softening.
The Associated Press and ABC News contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2022 WLS-TV. All Rights Reserved.
