How Democratic leaders reflect on midterm results and what's next for the party

A sweeping set of victories

Democrats took control of the House and Senate by considerable margins, according to the report. Senate races in Texas, Kansas and Iowa went to Democratic candidates, marking a shift in states described as traditionally deep red.

Democratic candidates also won a convincing majority of House races, including in districts redrawn to favor Republicans. In gubernatorial contests, Democrats won in Georgia, Ohio and Texas.

Candidates and voter priorities

Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed became the first Muslim elected to the Senate. He said Republican Mike Rogers focused on El-Sayed’s name and faith rather than issues such as Medicare for All and everyday costs.

El-Sayed also discussed legislation related to the war in Iran and agreed with Trump’s scheduled end to about $4 billion in annual military aid to Israel. Asked about limited support from some Jewish and Black voters, he said, “There’s always more work to do,” and pointed to the need for further conversations.

Redistricting and Georgia gains

Eric Holder, who leads the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, said Republican redistricting efforts backfired. He told Michel Martin, “The redistricting efforts that [Republicans] had didn’t just fail — they were dismantled.” Georgia Democrats won races across the ballot. Stacey Abrams, founder of Fair Fight Action, said the party had been building toward this outcome since 2010.

Party leaders weigh next steps

Democratic National Committee chairman Ken Martin called the election his party’s biggest win in more than a century. He said voters had given Democrats a mandate to address affordability, health care and systems that benefit wealthy Americans.

Martin said Democratic candidates offered voters a positive vision of what they would do in power. Pollster and Democratic strategist Margie Omero said the results reflected voters’ distrust of leaders in Washington, and noted that contested races consistently favored Democrats despite high Republican spending.