Trump complains as Democrats savour US election success

US President Donald Trump has criticised midterm election results as the Democratic Party looks set to gain another Senate seat in Mississippi, underlining the heavy defeat dealt to Republicans.

The electorate overwhelmingly chose to hand control of Congress to Democrats, turning their backs on the decade-long Trump era and the Republican Party.

On social media, the president hit out at the still-undecided race to fill a senate seat in Alaska, describing it as unfair, and saying the votes for two minor candidates "should be immediately given" to the Republican candidate, who is trailing in the count.

Democrats are set to hold 54 Senate seats to the Republicans' 44, and 240 seats in the House of Representatives to 147 for Republicans.

The only question is how much higher these majorities might go.

Mississippi, Alaska nail-biters

The biggest nail-biter is in Mississippi, one of the most solidly Republican states in the US, where Scott Colom, a 43-year-old black man, appears to be close to winning a Senate seat.

Against all expectations, he is ahead of incumbent Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith by 1,138 votes, with only a handful of ballots left to count.

Mr Colom would become the first Democrat from the southern state to win a Senate seat since 1982, and the first African American to do so since 1874.

In Alaska, Democrat Mary Peltola is moving ahead of the pack with 48.17% of the vote, followed by Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan with 47.88%.

President Trump's post, on Truth Social, referred to a fringe candidate - also named Dan Sullivan - who Republicans accuse of being a plant aimed at taking votes from their candidate, and another minor contender, Gerald Heikes, who is registered as a Republican.

At the latest count, the second Dan Sullivan had won only 1.68% of the vote, while Mr Heikes had 2.27%.

Mr Trump - who initially stood out for an uncharacteristically quick acceptance of the midterm results - posted that all the votes for the "Fake" Mr Sullivan and Mr Heikes "should be immediately given to the REAL Dan Sullivan, and the Election is over".

"There is no other fair solution!"

If Mr Colom wins in Mississippi, he would join a host of new faces smashing racial and cultural barriers in the elections.

The election of Keisha Lance Bottoms in Georgia, a great-great-granddaughter of a slave, makes her the first black female governor in the United States.

Deb Haaland, in New Mexico, was elected to be the country's first Native American female governor.

Michigan's Abdul El-Sayed beat a Trump ally to become the first Muslim to enter the Senate.

Chris Pappas, who easily won in New Hampshire, is the first openly gay senator.

In purely political terms, Tuesday's elections were no less dramatic, featuring wins for Democrats in territory where President Trump had previously been so dominant that it was all but written off by the left.

James Talarico broke a 38-year hoodoo by winning a Senate seat in ultra-Republican Texas and Adam Hamilton did even better, becoming the first Democratic senator from Kansas in 94 years.

The verdict from one of the country's most senior Republicans, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, was bleak.

"This is close to an extinction-level event for Republicans in many parts of the country as we have seen probably in the last 100 years," he said.

Democrats pledge to rein in Trump

Democrats have vowed to use their resounding victory to rein in Mr Trump, setting up two years of possible deadlock in Washington.

A wave of anger over his policies, particularly the US-Iran war's role in pushing the cost of living higher, helped to secure the resounding victory.

It will be the first time that Mr Trump will have to contend with a Democrat control in both Congress chambers.

House of Representatives Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said the incoming majority will be focused on affordability and accountability.

"We don't work for Donald Trump," said Mr Jeffries, a New York politician who is on track to become the chamber's first black speaker.

"We work for the American people. And the days of the House of Representatives functioning like a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Trump administration are over."

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who has emerged as a national Democratic figure since his election a year ago, released a video on social media urging his party to address the concerns of voters burdened by rising prices who want schools and roads.

"It is not enough to simply win power. We must use it," Mr Mamdani said. "Now, it's time for us in the Democratic Party to deliver."

President Trump, who devoted his last pre-election public appearance on Monday to talking about his renovations of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, called in reporters to show off the ballroom he is building at the White House.

"When I get criticised, like, 'Why are you working on the White House?' I'm doing it because the White House is the ultimate symbol of America, and it's got to be pristine, it's got to be perfect," he said. "For me, it's relaxing."

We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences

Mr Trump turned only briefly to the elections during his nearly hour-long appearance, telling reporters: "I'll get along probably with the Democrats, unless they want to be destructive, but I have the power of the veto".

He had cast the midterms as a referendum on the first half of his second four-year stint as president, repeatedly urging his Republican base to "pretend I'm on the ballot", a message that Democrats were happy to amplify.

Once seated in January, Democrats are expected to use their power to investigate Mr Trump's administration, family and allies, and demand concessions on major legislation.

The Senate can block his nominees, including any US Supreme Court justices, should a vacancy arise.

The Democratic victory is fuelling questions about the longevity of the court's two eldest justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, and the durability of its conservative majority.

In the meantime, Republicans hold the reins and will have at least one must-pass piece of legislation ahead - a measure to fund the federal government past December - that they could use to enact conservative priorities during the so-called lame-duck period.

The loss also upended the leadership of the House of Representatives with Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, saying that he would not continue in the job.

President Trump, who is barred by the US Constitution from seeking a third term, acknowledged the war with Iran had played a role in his party's losses but stood by his decision.

Vice President JD Vance, who may run as a successor in the 2028 election, piled blame on the decision to attack Iran in February.

"The reason we lost is the war," Mr Vance wrote in a long social media post. "The president himself said so.

"If you'd like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next six years was worth it, then do so. Argue it was a worthwhile cost to pay."

---

Read more:
Blue tsunami: Victory washes over Democrats in midterms
Democratic takeover of US Congress: What happens next?
5 leadership firsts for minorities after US vote

---

Democrats focused their campaign on corruption and affordability, blaming Mr Trump's expensive tariffs on imports and the war with Iran for driving up costs while highlighting the billions of dollars that his family has made since he returned to the White House.

Republicans, led by the president, attacked Democrats for defending transgender people's rights and similar social issues, portraying them as radical and extreme.

Voters made it clear they were more concerned with cost-of-living issues.