Toss-ups in the Senate
COLUMBIA —In Texas, James Talarico (D) took on Ken Paxton (R) to represent Texas in the Senate, winning roughly 58% of the voters as of 9:21 p.m.
Talarico ran on a platform centered around reducing the cost of living and addressing corruption in government. As a former sixth-grade teacher, Talarico promised to keep public money in public schools, hire more teachers and bring universal Pre-K for Texas families.
Elected as attorney general in 2015, Ken Paxton (R) has survived a career of scandals while building a strong conservative following. During his time as attorney general, Paxton has filed more than 100 lawsuits against former President Joe Biden. Paxton has long been a Trump loyalist, speaking at a pro-Trump rally moments before the Jan. 6 attacks on the Capitol in 2021. In 2023, Paxton was impeached by the Republican-led Texas legislature, but after Trump took to Truth Social, Paxton was acquitted of all 16 articles of impeachment levied against him.
In South Carolina, Annie Andrews (D) flipped the state with a decisive victory over incumbent Sen. Darline Graham (R). After the death of Lindsey Graham (R) in July, his sister Darline took his place in this Senate race.
Andrews, a 45-year-old pediatrician, campaigned on making healthcare more accessible, along with combating corruption in DC. South Carolina hasn’t sent a Democrat to the Senate since 1998. Trump won this state by 18 points in the 2024 presidential election, making this win a huge upset for the Democrats.
In Kansas,
In Ohio,
In Michigan,
In Maine,
In Iowa,
In Alaska,
Toss-ups in the House
Maine, North Carolina, Ohio and others saw heavily contested races to represent their state in the House of Representatives. Before these midterms, Republicans held control over the House with 219 seats. Now the Democrats have control with a projected 248 seats.
In Colorado, Melat Kiros won the race to represent District 1, securing roughly 78% of the votes as of 9:23 p.m.
Kiros has become the first Gen Z woman elected to office, running on a democratic socialist platform, advocating for abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement and ending US military aid to Israel.
Kiros ousted 15-term incumbent Diana DeGette, her true opponent in this deep-blue district. Kiros is a 29-year-old Ethiopian immigrant and lawyer and will become a sitting member of a Congress that features just one other member under the age of 30.
Gubernatorial Toss-ups
36 states saw elections for governor this year, with Ohio, Georgia and Nevada seeing heavily contested races for governor. Many of these states are key in elections, with the governor having the power to dictate the political future of their state.
In Georgia, Keisha Lance Bottoms (D) defeated Rick Jackson (R) and flipped the office for the Democrats. Bottoms has become the first woman and first Black person to be elected governor of Georgia, overcoming a massive spending disadvantage. Jackson, a wealthy healthcare executive, spent $100 million of his own money on this race.
Bottoms emphasized affordability and addressing economic issues faced by Georgia voters, while making sure Jackson’s ties to Trump and support for data centers were known before they went to the ballot box.
Jackson often compared himself to Trump, not realizing he wasn’t making the point he thought he was. Despite winning Georgia in his 2024 presidential election, polls found 55% of Georgians disapprove of Trump since he took office.
In Ohio, Amy Acton (D) won the race for Governor, securing roughly 50% of the votes as of 9:54 p.m.
Her opponent, Vivek Ramaswamy, lost this election following a controversial campaign ad which featured Acton’s estranged mother calling her a “liar.”
Acton had been estranged from her mother most her life, after her stepfather was indicted for the rape of 12-year-old Acton in 1978.
In Iowa,
In Nevada,
Republican seats flipped
In the House,
In the Senate,
