WASHINGTON—The Republican Party gained control of the United States Senate in the 119th Congress by winning key battleground races in the 2024 election, an outcome that will substantially influence U.S. politics over the next two years, regardless of who wins the presidential election.
The Associated Press has projected that GOP winning 51 seats.
In 2024, elections were scheduled for 34 Senate seats, with nine considered battleground races that the controlling party could reasonably lose. In these contests, GOP candidates defeated several Democratic incumbents. Republicans will now control the U.S. Senate, which has the power to approve or reject all nominations to the federal judiciary, cabinet, and sub-cabinet offices, as well as general legislation.
In Ohio, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), a three-term incumbent, lost to Republican nominee and businessman Bernie Moreno, whose candidacy was strongly backed by Republican vice-presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio). Moreno defeated Brown by four percentage points in a manufacturing-heavy state that has voted for former President Donald Trump in the last three presidential elections.
In Montana, another three-term incumbent, Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) lost to another Republican businessman and former Navy SEAL officer, Tim Sheehy. Tester had been widely expected to lose the race, with opinion polls showing him behind Sheehy by up to eight percentage points.
Complementing these victories, several Republican incumbents defended their seats in battleground states. In Nebraska, Sen. Deb Fischer held her seat against an unexpectedly competitive challenge from Independent candidate Dan Osborn, a union leader who closed the polling gap between himself and Fischer in the final weeks of the race. Fischer benefitted from a multimillion-dollar advertising blitz launched by the Senate Leadership Fund, a pro-Republican group that sought to rescue her campaign.
In Texas, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) comfortably won a third term against the Democratic nominee, Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas). Despite Texas’s heavy Republican lean, the race was considered competitive due to large net migration into Texas from progressive states such as California, as well as the state’s controversial abortion law, which prohibits the procedure at all stages of pregnancy with no exceptions for rape or incest. Cruz was ahead in all major opinion polls before Election Day.
By Arjun Singh
