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Skip next section What you need to know
What you need to know
- Democratic Party candidates secure control of the US Senate
- James Talarico wins Democrats’ first Senate seat in Texas in decades
- Annie Andrews stuns Republicans in South Carolina
- Democrats are also on course to win control of the House of Representatives
- Democrats also notch wins in gubernatorial contests in Ohio and Georgia
- Exit polls show widespread discontent and disapproval of US President Donald Trump
Follow the latest developments from the US midterm elections on November 3, 2026:
Skip next section Live election resultsPublished 11/04/2026Published November 4, 2026last updated 11/04/2026last updated November 4, 2026
Live election results
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2MUSkip next section Fact check: No, fraudulent ballots were not discovered by the FBI in Houston11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Fact check: No, fraudulent ballots were not discovered by the FBI in Houston
Claim: “Over twenty thousand fraudulent ballots uncovered in FBI raid of Houston storage locker warehouse all for Democrats,” a viral post claimed on X, viewed more than 400,000 times, along with a photo of an FBI truck at a crime scene.
This claim is not true.
“That information is false and no election-related operation occurred,” a Houston FBI public affairs officer told the AFP news agency.
The first image is clearly borrowed from a different news story. The truck says “FBI Atlanta,” which is a city in the state of Georgia, and a reverse image search reveals that the photo is from an FBI raid of the Fulton County, Georgia, elections warehouse earlier this year.
The account that posted the fabricated story belongs to a comedian named Jonathan Gregory. His Twitter bio reads, “digital content creator for pro Trump administration” — it links to a Facebook page marked “comedian,” with earlier posts advertising comedy shows.
Edited by:Sean Sinicohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2bLSkip next section Fact check: Maine interpreters are allowed to help voters, contrary to fraud claims11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Fact check: Maine interpreters are allowed to help voters, contrary to fraud claims
Claim: “A highly coordinated scheme to steal an election is happening in real time…,” a right-wing media outlet said in a X post, viewed more than 600,000 times.
Attached was a CCTV video, showing a man helping people who appear to be Somali-American voters at the polling booth, flipping through papers, marking ballots, and speaking to them as they write.
If the video is authentic, nothing shown in it appears to be illegal. Maine’s election law expressly permits “assistance in reading or marking a ballot” because of a voter’s “physical disability, illiteracy, or religious faith.”
The Maine Secretary of State’s office told Snopes that the office hasn’t received any credible reports of interpreters committing election fraud.
That hasn’t stopped users from calling the practice a “blatant violation of state law” or claiming that Somalis were “rigging the election in broad daylight.” The Maine Wire — the outlet that shared the video — has been accused in the past of harassing Somali voters at the polls.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2a5Skip next section Democrats gain control of the US Senate11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Democrats gain control of the US Senate
Jenipher Camino Gonzalez
Democrats are projected to gain control of the Senate, according to AP data. The development could hand both houses of Congress to Trump’s opponents, with Republicans losing in both battleground and traditionally Republican states.
As the day ended, Democrats managed to flip Senate seats in at least six states, including shock wins in Texas, Kansas and South Carolina.
Many more statewide results are still expected, but for now, the midterm elections have changed the balance of power in Washington, in a major rebuke to Donald Trump.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2ZySkip next section Democrats win in Kansas, in major blow to Trump11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Democrats win in Kansas, in major blow to Trump
Jenipher Camino Gonzalez
Democrat and Methodist megachurch pastor Adam Hamilton pulled off a stunning upset in the state of Kansas, defeating Republican Senator Roger Marshall.
The win flips another seat once believed to be safely Republican, after shock Democratic victories in states like South Carolina.
Hamilton’s was historic victory, as Kansas Democrats had not won a Senate race in 94 years.
To win, Hamilton ran as a centrist, seeking to appeal to moderate Republicans and independent voters, frustrated with the rising cost of living and unhappy with Trump’s handling of the economy and the war with Iran.
The Democrat managed to raise more money than Marshall, as he recieved from Kansas residents and Democratic groups, which poured tens of millions of dollars into the state.
Republicans attempted to rescue Marshall’s campaign, with Trump flying to Kansas to hold two rallies in October.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2ZsSkip next section Democrat James Talarico wins Texas Senate seat11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Democrat James Talarico wins Texas Senate seat
Democrat James Talarico won the Texas US Senate race, defeating President Donald Trump-backed Republican Ken Paxton, according to AP data.
The win was monumental for Democrats who had not won a Senate election in Texas in 38 years. Talarico’s win also moves Democrats closer to clinching control of the Senate.
Trump carried Texas by 14% in 2024. He endorsed Paxton, the Texas attorney general, despite the fact that he was at the center of many controversies, including a 2023 impeachment and a securities fraud case.
Talarico, a four-term state legislator, overcame a flood of heavy outside spending, in what became the most expensive Senate race of the cycle. Billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk poured over $200 million in support of Paxton’s campaign.
Supporters of the Talarico campaign in Austin, Texas were jubilant, DW correspondent Mischa Komadovsky reported.
The night was a political earthquake in Texas, as Democrat Gina Hinojosa captured the governorship, unseating incumbent Governor Greg Abbott.
The 52-year-old attorney and state lawmaker, courted independents and voters disillusioned by Trump’s unpopular war in Iran and skyrocketing prices.
The two victories could signal that Texas, the country’s second most populous state could become competitive in national elections.
Texas has long been a safe Republican state in presidential elections, with 40 electoral votes. A shift to Democrats could reshape the electoral map for president in the future.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2ZJSkip next section Democrat Amy Acton beats Ramaswamy for Ohio governor11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Democrat Amy Acton beats Ramaswamy for Ohio governor
Amy Acton will be the first woman to become Ohio governor after defeating Donald Trump-backed Republican Vivek Ramaswamy.
Acton’s win also ends 16 years of Republicans holding the Midwestern state’s top post.
Acton, a public health physician and former state health director during the COVID-19 pandemic, beat biotech billionaire Ramaswamy, who had run for the 2024 presidential election.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this post incorrectly stated that Acton was the first Democrat to hold the Ohio governorship. She is the second Democrat elected to the Ohio governor’s office in 35 years. We apologize for the error.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2ZDSkip next section Trump reacts to Democratic gains, says he was ‘not on the ballot’11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Trump reacts to Democratic gains, says he was ‘not on the ballot’
Jenipher Camino Gonzalez
US President Donald Trump spoke for the first time about the ongoing election results, as sweeping Democratic victories continued.
Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that the Republican Party would have won in a “landslide” if he had been running, appearing to distance himself from the results, implying that the election was not related to his performance as president.
“I wasn’t on the Ballot and if I was, we would have won IN A LANDSLIDE! Thank you for your attention to this matter,” Trump said.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2Z6Skip next section Democrats stun Republicans with Senate win in South Carolina11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Democrats stun Republicans with Senate win in South Carolina
Democrat Annie Andrews has narrowly beaten Republican Darline Graham, in one of the biggest upsets of election night so far, according to AP projections.
Graham, who was hand-picked by US President Donald Trump, was seeking to take over from her brother, Lindsey Graham, after he suddenly died this year.
Andrews’ victory is particularly notable because Graham had prevailed by nearly 18 percentage points two years ago.
Andrews’ win and that of Roy Cooper in neighboring North Carolina mean the Democratic Party has secured two of the four seats it needs to gain a majority in the Senate.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2VkSkip next section Keisha Lance Bottoms becomes first Black woman governor11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Keisha Lance Bottoms becomes first Black woman governor
Jenipher Camino Gonzalez
Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms made history by capturing the governorship in the state of Georgia, becoming the first Black woman elected to the top office in any US state, according to Associated Press election projections.
A former Atlanta mayor, Bottoms defeated billionaire health care executive Republican Rick Jackson. The two were contesting the outgoing Republican Governor Brian Kemp, who was term-limited.
“What we do in this moment will echo through history,” Bottoms said ahead of election day.
The win is consequential, as Kemp himself fended off two challenges from Stacey Abrams, a prominent voting rights advocate and Democratic fundraiser. Abrams opted against a third run for governor, paving the way for Bottoms’ candidacy.
Bottoms is a descendant of enslaved Georgians, but she did not lean on the historic nature of her candidacy during the campaign, but did recount her family’s history.
“I am at least a fifth-generation Georgian,” she said. “I say ‘at least’ because we can only trace our family back five generations — to a plantation in Crawfordville.”
Bottoms said that her grandfather moved to Atlanta from rural Georgia and had to “walk through these back doors” of downtown buildings she would later enter through the front as mayor.
The Georgia governor’s office had been held by Republicans for over two decades, and the result represents a major setback for President Donald Trump, who endorsed Jackson in July and campaigned with him in the Atlanta area in the closing weeks of the race.
Bottoms focused her campaign on promises to expand Medicaid health benefits for those of lower income, to lower costs for families and to protect voting rights.
Meanwhile, Jackson presented himself as a political outsider who had grown up in Georgia’s foster care system. He spent more than $100 million (€88 million) of his own fortune on the gubernatorial campaign.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2VcSkip next section Republicans hold Marco Rubio’s Florida Senate seat11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Republicans hold Marco Rubio’s Florida Senate seat
Jenipher Camino Gonzalez
Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s old Senate seat in Florida was also up for grabs in this election, with Republican Ashley Moody having been appointed to the seat after Rubio took his job in Donald Trump’s cabinet.
Moody, who has previously served as Florida’s attorney general, was the favorite to win the seat in Florida, where Trump is a resident. The state voted for him by double digits in 2024.
Despite a heavy advantage, Moody had to fend off an unusual challenge from Democrat Angie Nixon and in the end prevailed 51% to 48%, with 99% of ballots reporting, according to Associated Press data.
Trump ally Byron Donalds also succeeded outgoing Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, fighting off a surprisingly strong challenge from Democrat David Jolly. With the win, Donalds became Florida’s first African American governor.
Jolly, a former Republican congressman who switched parties and ran a centrist campaign, fell short of a win, with Donalds defeating him by roughly 1.5 percentage points with 99% of ballots reporting.
Ultimately, Republicans held a roughly 1.5 million voter registration advantage over Democrats and both Nixon and Jolly were vastly outspent.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2V9Skip next section Ossoff: Voters reject Trump’s ‘depravity, corruption and incompetence’11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Ossoff: Voters reject Trump’s ‘depravity, corruption and incompetence’
Jon Ossoff, the 39-year-old Democrat who has won reelection in the southern state of Georgia, has said that his party’s “sweeping and decisive” victories in several midterm races on Tuesday show that American voters reject US President Donald Trump.
“The American people have rebuked the depravity, corruption and incompetence of the failed lame duck President Donald J. Trump,” Ossoff told supporters after retaining his seat against Republican challenger Mike Collins.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2VNSkip next section WATCH: What matters most to Texan voters?11/04/2026November 4, 2026
WATCH: What matters most to Texan voters?
As Texans head to the polls in a closely watched Senate race, what matters most to them?
The economy, political division, and domestic issues have dominated the conversation ahead of the vote, which is pitting Republican Ken Paxton against Democrat James Talarico.
But where do Europe, NATO and Ukraine fit into the picture? I put those questions to voters in Texas.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2SPSkip next section Polls close in Michigan, Texas Senate races11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Polls close in Michigan, Texas Senate races
Polls have now closed in a swath of central states, including in the closely watched Senate races in Michigan and Texas.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2SKSkip next section Young voters move away from Republicans11/04/2026November 4, 2026
Young voters move away from Republicans
Jenipher Camino Gonzalez
According to the AP Voter Poll, young voters were among those demographics that swung away from Republicans in this election.
Young voters only make up about 10% of the electorate, according to the poll.
In 2024, Trump had managed to make inroads with voters under 30, who ended up evenly split between him and Kamala Harris.
But in this election, about 7 in 10 of voters under 30 nationally said they supported the Democratic House candidate in their area.
Edited by:Dmytro Hubenkohttps://p.dw.com/p/5P2RzShow more posts
