US elections: Republicans regain control of the Senate and fight to keep the House of Representatives national

Republicans were expected to win control of the US Senate for the first time in four years in Tuesday's US elections after the party flipped two seats previously held by Democrats.

It remained too early to determine which party will control the US House of Representatives, where Republicans currently have a narrow majority.

Both chambers of Congress will ultimately set the legislative agenda for the country and announce the winner of the presidential race between Donald Trump and US Vice President Kamala Harris.

For live coverage of the US elections, GlobalNews.ca has up-to-date results, reporting and analysis.

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Early in the night, Republicans lost one seat in West Virginia with the election of former Governor Jim Justice, who easily replaced retiring Democratic Senator Joe Manchin.

Later, Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown in Ohio was expected to lose his re-election bid to Republican Bernie Moreno, a wealthy newcomer from the Trump era. The Ohio race was the most expensive of the cycle, with an estimated $400 million spent by both parties.

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The unexpected battleground of Nebraska pushed Republicans over the 51-seat majority threshold. Incumbent Republican Sen. Deb Fischer has rejected a surprisingly strong challenge from independent newcomer Dan Osborn.

The new Republican majority will not be led by the party's longtime Senate leader, Mitch McConnell, who announced in February that he would step down after this year's elections.

Democratic efforts to oust notable Republicans Ted Cruz of Texas and Rick Scott of Florida failed.

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2024 US elections: Ted Cruz is re-elected to the US Senate

The focus now turns to the Democratic “blue wall” states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, where Democrats are fighting to protect seats in what remains of their narrow grip on the Senate.

Voters elected two Black women to the Senate, Democrat Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware and Democrat Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland, in a historic first.

Blunt Rochester won her state's open seat, while Alsobrooks defeated popular former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan. Only three black women have served in the Senate, and never before have two served at the same time.

And in New Jersey, Andy Kim became the first Korean American elected to the Senate, defeating Republican businessman Curtis Bashaw. The seat opened when Bob Menendez resigned this year following his federal conviction on bribery charges.

3:12
US elections 2024: Bernie Sanders wins Senate re-election and warns that the foundation of democracy is at stake

Popular independent Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, who has aligned with Democrats and helped lead the party further to the left, easily won reelection in his race.

Elsewhere, House Speaker Sarah McBride, a Democratic state lawmaker from Delaware who is close to the Biden family, won her race and became the first openly transgender person elected to Congress.

If Democrats take the House of Representatives and Republicans take the Senate, it would be the first time that the chambers of Congress will both switch to opposing political parties.

—With files from the Associated Press

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