The Republican Party won the majority in the US House of Representatives, helping Trump control Congress
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Republicans have won a majority in the House of Representatives, giving Donald Trump’s party full control of both houses of the US Congress and wide latitude to push a progressive agenda through the legislature. .
Democratic House Leader Hakeem Jeffries congratulated Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson late Wednesday, after several television networks predicted Trump’s party would retain control of the House.
“House Democrats gave it their all, running aggressive, forward-looking and people-centered campaigns,” Jeffries said. “While we won’t regain control of Congress in January, just a few seats short, House Democrats will hold Republicans to a razor-thin majority.”
The House ruling comes more than a week after Trump won a convincing victory over Kamala Harris in the presidential race and means that when he takes office in January, his party will control the House and Senate. institute.
A unified government would give Trump significant freedom to advance his legislative agenda, including plans to renew and expand sweeping tax cuts.
The House results, which came after more than a week of vote counting in California and other states, are a blow to Democrats, who will be in the minority in both the Senate and House of Representatives and cannot take the lead. directs powerful congressional committees to oversee investigations into the Trump administration’s actions. .
Eleven House races have yet to be called and the Republican majority has yet to be confirmed. But television networks claim Trump’s party will retain control of the House because Republicans won the 218 seats needed for a majority in the 435-member body. The Financial Times’ tally of House results, based on calls on the race by the Associated Press, showed Republicans remained behind a majority as of 6.45pm on Wednesday.
Republicans will also firmly hold the Senate – where Democrats have a slim majority in the current Congress – after winning four seats in Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia and Montana.
Republican senators on Wednesday elected John Thune to replace Mitch McConnell as the party’s leader in the upper chamber. McConnell, 82, remains a senator but last year said he would step down as leader after a series of health problems.
Johnson, a Republican congressman from Louisiana and a close Trump ally who became Speaker of the House last year, said he intends to continue in the position.
Trump also presided over a unity government during the first two years of his first administration, in 2017 and 2018, before Democrats regained control of the House in the 2018 midterm elections.
Still, many in Washington expect Trump to exert tighter control over Congress this time around, thanks to the unwavering loyalty he enjoys from many top lawmakers, including the leaders of both chambers. . During his first administration, he often faced opposition from McConnell and then-House Speaker Paul Ryan.
However, Trump would not have unchecked power over Congress, and Democrats could exert influence over his administration in limited but meaningful ways.
Although budget and tax changes only require a simple majority in both chambers, and presidential appointments can also be confirmed with the support of 50 senators, most legislation another would need to pass the Senate’s 60-vote threshold to become law.
That means Senate Democrats could block Trump’s other legislative priorities – including legislation to crack down on migrants at the US-Mexico border, or repeal the Affordable Care Act affordable, commonly known as Obamacare — unless Senate Republicans take the drastic step of eliminating the law entirely. Thune said Wednesday that the filibuster will “not change” as long as he is majority leader in the Senate.
