WASHINGTON: Donald Trump’s Republicans were projected to pick up another US Senate seat on Thursday and appeared to be retaining their narrow hold on the House of Representatives, putting them on track to control both chambers of Congress next year.

Several media outlets projected that Republican Dave McCormick would defeat Democratic Senator Bob Casey in Pennsylvania, giving Trump’s party at least 53 seats in the 100-seat chamber next year. That margin could climb as high as 55 seats if Republicans win close races in Arizona and Nevada, which remain uncalled.

In the battle for the House, Republicans were edging closer to victory after adding one seat to their 220-212 majority, though 25 races have yet to be called.

Republicans had secured at least 211 seats, seven short of a majority in the 435-seat chamber. Democrats would have to win 19 of the remaining uncalled races to take a House majority and maintain a toehold on power in Washington.

Trump wins 301 electoral votes, Kamala 226

The final House result may not be known for some time, as 11 of the outstanding races are in California, which typically takes several days to count ballots.

With control of the Senate, Republicans will be in a position to confirm Trump’s personnel and judicial appointments, though they will still be short of the 60 votes needed to quickly advance most legislation.

If they control the House as well, they would be able to help Trump deliver on campaign promises like cutting taxes and dramatically restricting immigration.

The other uncalled competitive Senate races are in Nevada, where incumbent Democrat Jacky Rosen led Republican challenger Sam Brown by just under 1 percentage point with 94 per cent of the estimated vote counted, and in Arizona, where Democrat Ruben Gallego was leading Republican Kari Lake by 1.7 percentage points with 74 per cent of the vote counted.

Trump wins 301 electoral votes

The final state calls are coming in for the US presidential election, with President-elect Donald Trump at 301 electoral votes, well past the 270 needed for victory, and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris at 226, US networks said.

Nevada was the latest to be called on Friday, with six electoral votes going to Trump -- yet another flip of a swing state that voted for Joe Biden in 2020.

US media have declared Trump the winner in more than half of the 50 states, including key battlegrounds Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, all of which voted for Democrats in the last election.

Putin calls Trump courageous

Trump’s crushing defeat of Democrat Kamala Harris is already shaking up US and world politics, just two days after election day and two-and-a-half months before he returns to the White House.

Putin, the Russian president, hailed Trump as “courageous” for the way he handled himself following an assassination attempt at a rally in July, and said he was “ready” to hold discussions with him.

Trump later told NBC News that he had not talked to Putin, the Russian leader whom he has repeatedly praised over the years, since his victory but “I think we’ll speak”. It marked a seismic shift from the icy silence that has existed between Biden and Putin since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, and underscored Trump’s criticism of US support for Kyiv.

The president-elect has previously said he would push through a peace deal in that conflict -- but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who spoke to Trump on Wednesday, said calls for a ceasefire were “dangerous”. Chinese President Xi Jinping had earlier joined the list of foreign leaders congratulating Trump, who was criticised by Harris during the election campaign for being too friendly with ‘autocrats’.

Published in Dawn, November 9th, 2024