Roy Cooper wins North Carolina Senate race
The Democrat says Republican Michael Whatley acknowledged the result, confirming the seat change.
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The Democrat says Republican Michael Whatley acknowledged the result, confirming the seat change.
Democrat Roy Cooper has won North Carolina’s Senate race against Republican Michael Whatley, taking a seat previously held by Republicans. Cooper confirmed that Whatley acknowledged the result, Al Jazeera said.
The victory was Democrats' first pickup of a Republican-held Senate seat in the 3 November 2026, midterms. Republicans held narrow majorities in both the Senate and the House of Representatives before the election.
Democrats had also taken 4 House seats held by Republicans, based on Associated Press calls used by DW, although that partial count does not establish a net gain or the final House majority. Before the election, France 24 said Democrats needed a net gain of 3 House seats and 4 Senate seats to overtake the Republican majorities.
Both chambers must consent to legislation, so losing either majority would affect President Donald Trump’s ability to pass laws. House members serve two-year terms; senators serve staggered six-year terms, with about a third of Senate seats ordinarily contested every two years. The vice president can vote in the Senate only to break a tie.
Republicans narrowly maintained House control with 220 seats in the 2024 election and regained the Senate by winning an independent-held seat in West Virginia, defeating Democratic incumbents in Montana, Ohio and Pennsylvania, and holding their own seats.
Flash floods, torrential rain and tornadoes disrupted voting in several states. Officials moved polling sites and arranged alternative voting for people displaced or stranded by the weather.
Before voting, Democrats were widely projected to retake the House, while Senate control was uncertain. In Michigan’s Senate race, Democratic Representative Haley Stevens endorsed Republican Mike Rogers rather than Democrat Abdul Al-Sayed, who had defeated her in the primary.
The court denied the Trump administration’s emergency request on 2 November after lower courts rejected its bid. The administration alleges the mail ballots came from noncitizens.
On 2 November, the US Supreme Court rejected a request to have California set aside 20,000 mail ballots. The Trump administration alleged that the ballots were from people who were not citizens.
The next congressional term begins on 3 January 2027.
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