Democrats keep Senate as control of House remains undecided

By Matt Meyer and Maureen Chowdhury, CNN

Updated 7:04 a.m. ET, November 14, 2022
14 Posts
Sort byDropdown arrow
5:24 p.m. ET, November 13, 2022

GOP Sen. Scott calls for delay in leadership election: It doesn't make sense to have them this week

From CNN’s Daniella Diaz

GOP Sen. Rick Scott, who is the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, called for a delay in the Senate leadership election scheduled for Wednesday, saying it "doesn't make any sense" to have them this week.

"What is our plan, what are we running on? What do we stand for? What are we hellbent ... to get done? There's no plan to do that," Scott said on Fox News. "The leadership in the Republican Senate says you cannot have a plan, we're just gonna run against how bad the Democrats are. And actually they cave into the Democrats. Now they want to rush through an election. We haven't even finished what's happened in Georgia."

He added: "They want to rush through an election because they don't want to do any assessment of what we've done wrong. Insanity is doing the exact same thing and thinking you're gonna get different results. We won't."

Scott also said "a lot of people" have asked him to run for minority leader. 

"A lot of people have called me to see if I'll run," Scott said. "Here's my focus, is: We still got to win Georgia. I'm not going to take anything off the table."

Some background: Several Republican senators in addition to Scott are calling for a delay in next week’s Senate GOP leadership elections, arguing the party needs to regroup after lackluster midterm results and with a Georgia runoff still underway.

While Mitch McConnell is widely expected to easily win the top spot again, making him the longest Senate party leader in history, he is facing some dissension in the ranks. That includes a campaign against his candidacy by former President Donald Trump.

6:07 p.m. ET, November 13, 2022

Here are candidates CNN projects will make history this midterm cycle

Several candidates made historic runs this midterm cycle and CNN projects that many will win their respective races.

In New York and Arkansas, Democrat Kathy Hochul and Republican Sarah Huckabee Sanders will be the first elected female governors in their respective states.

In Alabama, Republican Katie Britt will be the first woman elected to serve as a senator.

In Maryland, Democrat Wes Moore will be the first elected Black governor in the state.

In Oklahoma, Republican Markwayne Mullin will be the first Native American senator from the state in 100 years.

In Ohio, Rep. Marcy Katpur will become the longest-serving woman in congressional history, once she's sworn in next year.

View more history-making candidates here:

Correction: An earlier version of this post included the wrong political office for Katie Britt. She is the projected winner of Alabama's Senate race.

2:46 p.m. ET, November 13, 2022

Trump adviser: Former president will announce his 2024 campaign at Tuesday event

From CNN's Kristen Holmes

Former president Donald Trump arrives to speak at Mar-a-lago on November 8, in Palm Beach, Florida.
Former president Donald Trump arrives to speak at Mar-a-lago on November 8, in Palm Beach, Florida. (Andrew Harnik/AP/FIle)

Trump adviser Jason Miller said in a podcast appearance that the former president will announce his 2024 presidential campaign at an event Tuesday.

Speaking on Steve Bannon’s podcast Friday, Miller added that the announcement would be “very professional, very buttoned up,” and that Trump’s team ran through the logistics on Friday of last week.

Miller said he spoke to Trump and the former president told him “there doesn’t need to be any question. Of course I’m running. I’m going to do this and I want to make sure people know that I’m fired up.”

Some advisers continue to try and persuade the former president to hold off on any sort of announcement, but most acknowledge their pleas aren’t likely to have an impact on Trump’s decision. 

Amid backlash over lackluster midterm results and poor performances by many Trump-endorsed candidates, Trump has recently reminded those around him that Republicans and some conservative media turned their backs on him in 2016 and he still won.

However, many are concerned he doesn’t have the same magnetism that swept him into the White House six years ago, particularly as he continues to focus on promoting conspiracies around elections, a strategy that largely fizzled last Tuesday. 

It remains unclear who will be in attendance at Tuesday's event. Some of Trump’s biggest supporters like Reps. Elise Stefanik, Matt Gaetz and Jim Banks will be wrapped up in their own House leadership elections in Washington that day.

2:40 p.m. ET, November 13, 2022

Jayapal dodges questions about whether the House Progressive Caucus will support Pelosi for speaker

From CNN’s Daniella Diaz

Rep. Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, speaks during a news conference in Washington, DC, on Sunday, November 13.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, speaks during a news conference in Washington, DC, on Sunday, November 13. (Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/AP)

Rep. Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, dodged a question Sunday on whether the caucus would support House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for a leadership position in the new Congress, as well as a question about her own political future.

"We always consider all the people who are running very carefully and we usually have a set of things that we ask for as the progressive caucus as part of those negotiations, and we're looking forward to seeing what that looks like," Jayapal said at a press conference with progressive members-elect this morning.

Asked about her political future, Jayapal side-stepped the question.

"I am so basking in the power of the progressive caucus," she said with a laugh.

She was later asked whether she planned to stay chair of the caucus.

"I'm basking in what the progressive movement has done and what we can do," she said.

On priorities for the caucus during the lame duck session, Jayapal said the group will hold an executive board meeting Monday to decide primary goals, but she cited the debt limit, child tax credit and the DREAM Act among top issues.

1:51 p.m. ET, November 13, 2022

Election deniers lost secretary of state races in these key battleground states

From CNN's Fredreka Schouten

The latest midterm results show that voters in crucial battleground states rejected secretary of state candidates who have denied the 2020 election results and had pledged to overhaul voting procedures in their states ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

Here are the results from several of those races:

  • In Nevada, Las Vegas Democratic attorney Cisco Aguilar defeated former state lawmaker Jim Marchant to become the first Latino election chief in the Silver State, according to CNN’s projection Saturday night. Marchant, the Republican nominee, had called for doing away with vote-tallying machines and organized a coalition of like-minded “America First” candidates. Their goals included ending most mail-in voting, expanding voter identification laws and promoting the “aggressive” cleanup of voter rolls.
  • In Arizona, CNN projected that Democrat Adrian Fontes, the former top election official in Maricopa County, defeated the Republican nominee, state Rep. Mark Finchem, who lobbied to toss out the results of the 2020 election in some of state’s largest counties and co-sponsored legislation that would have allowed lawmakers to set aside election outcomes.
  • In Michigan, the Democratic incumbent Jocelyn Benson — a leading national voice defending the legitimacy of the 2020 election — defeated Kristina Karamo, CNN projected. Karamo, a member of Marchant’s “America First” slate of candidates, has falsely claimed that former President Donald Trump won two years ago and signed on to an unsuccessful Supreme Court lawsuit that challenged President Joe Biden’s victory.
  • In Minnesota, Democratic Secretary of State Steve Simon won a third term, CNN projected — defeating Republican lawyer Kim Crockett. Crockett has cast the 2020 election as “illegitimate” because of pandemic-related changes to voting procedures that year.

One secretary of state candidate in the America First coalition did succeed. CNN projected that Republican Diego Morales won the race for secretary of state in Indiana. During the GOP primary, he disputed the legitimacy of the 2020 election.

The full breakdown from CNN’s Daniel Dale on how election deniers fared can be found here.

1:21 p.m. ET, November 13, 2022

Pelosi on future in House leadership: "People are campaigning and that's a beautiful thing"

From CNN's Daniella Diaz

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi holds a weekly news conference in Washington, DC, on September 30.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi holds a weekly news conference in Washington, DC, on September 30. (Sarah Silbiger/The Washington Post/Getty Images)

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Sunday she is waiting to decide about her next steps in the new Congress, adding that while she's not "asking anybody — people are campaigning" for her.

"What we want to do is go forward in a very unified way, as we go forward to prepare for the Congress at hand," the California Democrat told CNN's Dana Bash on "State of the Union."

"Nonetheless, a great deal is at stake because we'll be in a presidential election... But none of it will be very much considered until we see what the outcome of all of this is. And there are all kinds of ways to exert influence," she said.

Asked if she'll make a decision before Democrat leadership elections on Nov. 30, Pelosi said, "Of course. Well, you know that I'm not asking anybody — People are campaigning, and that's a beautiful thing. And I'm not asking anyone for anything."

When asked if she believes House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy has what it takes to be House speaker if Republicans win the chamber, Pelosi said she wants to see the results of the election first.

"Let's just get through the election, OK? They haven't won yet. They've been measuring the draperies, they've been putting forth an agenda. They haven't won it yet. After the election is concluded, depending on who was in the majority, there'll be judgments made within their own party, in our own parties, as to how we go forward," Pelosi said. 

Pressed again on whether McCarthy "has it," Pelosi said no.

"Why would I make a judgment about something that may or may not ever happen? No, I don't think he has it," she said. "But that's up to his own people to make a decision as to how they want to be led or otherwise."

Where the election stands: The battle for control of the House is now the biggest unanswered question of this year's midterm elections after Democrats kept their narrow Senate majority. Republicans have won 211 of the 218 seats they'd need to take the majority, according to CNN projections, while Democrats have won 204, with 20 undecided as of Sunday morning. 

2:09 p.m. ET, November 13, 2022

Sen. Warren warns of debt ceiling fight in a potentially split Congress

From CNN's Aileen Graef

Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren raised warnings about the looming debt ceiling with a potentially split Congress in an interview Sunday with NBC’s "Meet the Press."

“If the Democrats take the House, there's no urgency around this, but no matter what, the United States of America has to honor its outstanding obligations," Warren says. "Me, I’d get rid of the debt ceiling altogether. It serves no function except create leverage for people who are willing to blow up the economy.”

“Many new Republicans coming in are coming in with exactly one goal — get Donald Trump elected in 2024," Warren continued. "They see if they can create chaos in the economy, then they think that may move Donald Trump one more inch toward election. So we’ve got to take that away from them, take care during the lame duck, take care of raising the debt limit or getting rid of it altogether."

Warren previously addressed this issue in a Saturday op-ed with the New York Times, writing that “Democrats should fight back by making this lame-duck session of Congress the most productive in decades. We can start by lifting the debt ceiling now to block Republicans from taking our economy hostage next year.”

President Joe Biden said earlier this month that he does not support efforts to abolish the limit.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called on his Republican counterparts, on Sunday, to work with Democrats to "get things done for the American people" in the new Congress, listing the debt ceiling among key tasks to address in the coming weeks.

Remember: The debt ceiling is exactly what it sounds like — the maximum that the federal government is allowed to borrow.

Congress set one more than a century ago to curtail government borrowing. But instead of sticking to it, Congress has raised the limit every time it’s been hit, leading to sometimes-tense negotiations that can threaten the US economy.

Where things stand: CNN projects Democrats will hold on to a slim majority in the Senate, while Republicans appear to be inching toward a majority in the House.

Too many races remain outstanding to say for certain which party will control the lower chamber. Read more here.

11:46 a.m. ET, November 13, 2022

GOP Rep. Banks says he supports Kevin McCarthy for House speaker: "His experience is what we need right now"

From CNN's Sarah Fortinsky

Indiana Rep. Jim Banks, a Trump ally running for the position of House GOP whip should Republicans take control of the chamber, said Sunday that he supports Kevin McCarthy to be speaker of the House.

Banks also doubled down on Republicans’ commitment to conduct investigations into the Biden administration, despite what he called “a very disappointing outcome on election night.”

“I support Kevin McCarthy, and his experience is what we need right now. Remember, he's been the whip, he’s been the majority leader, he’s been the minority leader, now he’s going to be the speaker. And we need someone like him who can pull the conference together,” Banks said on Fox News Sunday, adding that McCarthy raised a record amount of money and “did his part” to set the GOP up to take the majority.

“That being said,” he added, “rank-and-file members want to be heard, and Leader McCarthy is working through that process with the rules changes. We'll have our rules conference meeting where we vote on the rules in the middle of this upcoming week and that’ll be an opportunity to make some of those changes.”

The battle for control of the House is now the biggest unanswered question of this year's midterm elections after Democrats kept their narrow Senate majority. Republicans have won 211 of the 218 seats they'd need to take the majority, according to CNN projections, while Democrats have won 204, with 20 undecided as of Sunday morning.

Asked about an op-ed from Sen. Mitt Romney that encouraged Republicans to focus on passing legislation that would help the American people, rather than conduct investigations, Banks said, “I disagree strongly with Senator Romney. This will be a major priority of the House and it’s what the American people expect.”

“Oversight is a primary function of the Congress, and for the last two years there has been no oversight of the Biden agenda and Biden administration, so that has to be a focal point of every single committee in the Congress, especially the House under Republican control with Republican chairmen and chairwomen,” he said.

Banks defended Trump when asked about his influence in the party, but he declined to say whether he would endorse Trump for president.

“I believe that Donald Trump was a very effective president for our country. I believe he could be a very effective president for our country again," he said. "I’ll save my endorsement for another place and time for the 2024 race. I'm focused wholly on what happened on Tuesday and how our party moves forward on Capitol Hill.”

11:34 a.m. ET, November 13, 2022

Analysis: How Joe Biden and the Democratic Party defied midterm history

Analysis by Harry Enten

Gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro, former President Barack Obama, President Joe Biden and Senate candidate John Fetterman attend a rally on November 5, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro, former President Barack Obama, President Joe Biden and Senate candidate John Fetterman attend a rally on November 5, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Patrick Semansky/AP)

Midterms are supposed to be the time for the opposition party to shine.

That should especially be the case when there is once-in-a-generation inflation and when the vast majority of Americans think the country is on the wrong track.

Instead, President Joe Biden and the Democrats are in position to have one of the four best midterms for the party controlling the White House in the last century.

So what just happened?

The GOP's "candidate problem"

Analysts, myself included, noted that Republicans seemed to have a candidate likability problem. Pre-election polling showed Republicans in all the key races had negative net favorability ratings. Democrats were broadly better liked than their opponents.

Many of those Republicans were endorsed by former President Donald Trump and had falsely claimed — at least at one point — that they believed he won the 2020 election.

The exit polls bear out Republicans’ “candidate problem." In every Senate race (save Georgia) that Inside Elections rated as a toss-up or only tilting toward a party before the election, more voters said the Republican candidate’s views were too extreme than said the same for the Democrat.

We see this in gubernatorial elections, as well. Republicans nominated 2020 election deniers for governor in a number of blue or swing states. None of them has been projected a winner, and only Republican Kari Lake of Arizona has any chance of winning.

Two presidents on the trail

On the national level, there are two presidents in the spotlight: the current one (Biden) and the former (Trump). Both men sported negative net favorable ratings, per the exit polls.

The fact that you have a current president and a former president who are both unpopular isn’t unusual.

What is unusual is that of the 18% who viewed neither Biden nor Trump favorably in the exit polls, 40% of them voted for Democrats. The backlash against one president this year may have been canceled out by the backlash against the other.

"Abortion first" voters

Arguably, what truly made this midterm unique was abortion. Despite high inflation, only 31% of voters in the exit poll said it was the most important issue to their vote. A nearly identical percentage (27%) said abortion, and these voters overwhelmingly chose Democratic candidates for Congress.

This matches the dynamic we saw in the special House elections following the overturning of Roe v. Wade in June. Democrats started doing considerably better than before the Supreme Court ruling.

Read more here.