Several days after the US congressional elections, it is still unclear which party will control the two houses of parliament. So far, the Republicans are on course for a narrow majority in the House of Representatives. In the end, only a runoff election in Georgia could decide on control in the Senate.
Despite the impending loss of the Congress majority for the Democrats, US President Joe Biden sees confirmation of his policies - and a mandate from voters for both parties to cooperate. His predecessor Donald Trump is fighting for leadership among the Republicans.
On Friday night, the main focus was on counting the votes in Arizona and Nevada. Each state has one Senate seat at stake. The Republicans currently have 49 seats and the Democrats 48. With 50 votes each, the Democrats would retain control of the Congress Chamber, since Vice President Kamala Harris can cast the decisive vote in the event of a stalemate. If Arizona and Nevada do not bring clarity, a runoff in Georgia in December will decide.
218 seats bring the majority in the House of Representatives. According to the votes counted so far, the Republicans came up with 209 seats and the Democrats with 195 on Friday night.
Biden: "We've only just begun"
Biden spoke of "extraordinary results" when he appeared in front of campaign workers for the Democrats. In mid-term elections in a presidency, the ruling party is often punished. With the development so far, the Democrats have done better than they have in decades. This is also a success of his political initiatives, which he will continue, said Biden: "We've only just started."
The President reiterated his willingness to cooperate with Republicans. But the election also shows: "The American people have made it clear that they also expect the Republicans to work with me." Without support in Congress, Biden would not be able to pass any legislative initiatives for the remaining two years of his term. The party, previously dominated by Trump, was unforgiving towards Biden and the Democrats.
DeSantis is considered the new hope of the Republicans
But after the Republicans failed to achieve a clear victory in the general election, voices in the party calling for Trump to be left behind are increasing. Trump was written off as the "biggest loser" in media mogul Rupert Murdoch's influential conservative media, such as the Wall Street Journal and the New York Post.
Many Republicans regard Ron DeSantis, who was clearly re-elected as governor of Florida, as a new beacon of hope. Trump, who is expected to announce his candidacy in the 2024 presidential election next Tuesday, sharply attacked DeSantis. He was an "average Republican governor with great PR work," Trump wrote on his own Twitter copy Truth Social. He built DeSantis after it was "politically dead" in 2017. Among the Republicans, former Vice President Mike Pence, who distanced himself from Trump, is said to have ambitions for the presidential candidacy.
