Republicans win 218 US House seats, giving Donald Trump and the party control of government

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WASHINGTON (AP) - Republicans have won enough seats to control the U.S. House, completing their sweep into power and securing their hold on the U.S. government alongside President-elect Donald Trump.

A House Republican victory in Arizona, coupled with a win in slow-counting California earlier Wednesday, gave the GOP the 218 House victories needed to form a majority. Republicans had already gained control of the Senate from Democrats.

With narrow but hard-fought majorities, Republican leaders are now eyeing a mandate to overhaul the federal government and quickly implement Trump’s vision for the country. The incoming president has pledged to carry out the largest-ever deportation operation, extend tax cuts, punish his political opponents, seize control of the federal government’s most powerful tools, and reshape the U.S. economy. The GOP victories ensure that Congress will support that agenda, and Democrats will be largely powerless to oppose it.

House of Representatives election results map

When Trump was elected president in 2016, Republicans also gained control of Congress, but he still faced resistance from some Republican leaders, as well as a Supreme Court with a liberal majority. This time, things are different.

When he returns to the White House, Trump will be working with a Republican Party transformed by his "Make America Great Again" movement and a Supreme Court dominated by conservative justices, including three he appointed.

Biden and Trump meet at White House

Donald Trump made a victor's return to Washington on Wednesday, visiting the White House for a nearly two-hour meeting with President Joe Biden and committing to a straightforward transition of power as the president-elect moves quickly to build out his new administration.

Trump rallied House Republicans at a Capitol Hill hotel Wednesday morning, marking his first return to Washington since the election.

"I suspect I won’t be running again unless you say, ‘He’s good, we got to figure something else,’" Trump said to a room full of lawmakers, who laughed in response.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, who won the Republican Conference's nomination to stay on as speaker with Trump’s endorsement, has expressed a desire to take a "blowtorch" to the federal government. He is looking for ways to overhaul even popular programs championed by Democrats in recent years. The Louisiana Republican has pulled the House Republican Conference closer to Trump during the campaign season as they prepare an "ambitious" 100-day agenda.

"Republicans in the House and Senate have a mandate," Johnson said earlier this week. "The American people want us to implement and deliver that ‘America First’ agenda."

Trump’s allies in the House are already signaling plans for retribution over the legal challenges Trump faced while out of office. On Wednesday, the incoming president said he would nominate Rep. Matt Gaetz, a fierce loyalist, for attorney general.

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Meanwhile, Rep. Jim Jordan, chair of the powerful House Judiciary Committee, has said GOP lawmakers are "not taking anything off the table" in their plans to investigate Special Counsel Jack Smith, who is winding down two federal investigations into Trump for attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

Still, with some races still uncalled, Republicans may hold the majority by only a few seats when the new Congress convenes. Trump’s decision to pull members of the House, such as Reps. Gaetz, Mike Waltz, and Elise Stefanik, for positions in his administration could complicate Johnson’s ability to maintain a majority in the early days of the new Congress.

Gaetz submitted his resignation Wednesday, effective immediately. Johnson said he hoped the seat could be filled by the time the new Congress convenes on January 3. Replacements for House members require special elections, and the congressional districts held by the three departing members have been reliably Republican for years.

With a slim majority, the functionality of the House remains uncertain. The past two years of Republican House control were marked by infighting, as hardline conservative factions sought influence by openly defying their party leadership. While Johnson, at times with Trump’s help, largely tamed rebellions against his leadership, the right wing of the party is now ascendant and ambitious following Trump’s election victory.

The Republican majority also relies on a small group of lawmakers who won tough elections by running as moderates. It remains to be seen whether they will support some of the more extreme proposals championed by Trump and his allies.

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, meanwhile, is working to keep Democrats relevant in any legislation that passes Congress. This effort will depend on Democratic leaders uniting over 200 members, even as the party reflects on its election losses.

In the Senate, GOP leaders, fresh off their victory, are already collaborating with Trump to confirm his Cabinet picks. Sen. John Thune of South Dakota won an internal election Wednesday to replace Sen. Mitch McConnell, the longest-serving party leader in Senate history.

Thune, who has been critical of Trump in the past, praised the incoming president during his leadership election bid.

"This Republican team is united. We are on one team," Thune said. "We are excited to reclaim the majority and to work with our colleagues in the House to enact President Trump’s agenda."

The GOP’s Senate majority of 53 seats ensures that Republicans will have breathing room when it comes to confirming Cabinet posts or Supreme Court justices, should there be a vacancy. Not all confirmations are guaranteed. Republicans were skeptical Wednesday when news broke that Trump would nominate Gaetz as his attorney general. Even some close Trump allies in the Senate distanced themselves from Gaetz, who has been the subject of a House Ethics Committee investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct and drug use.

Nonetheless, Trump on Sunday demanded that any Republican leader allow him to make administration appointments without a vote while the Senate is in recess. Such a move would shift power away from the Senate, though all leadership contenders quickly agreed to the idea. Democrats could potentially fight such a maneuver.

Meanwhile, Trump’s social media supporters, including Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, opposed the idea of selecting a traditional Republican to lead the Senate. Thune worked as a top lieutenant to McConnell, who once privately referred to Trump as a "despicable human being."

However, McConnell made it clear that on Capitol Hill, the days of Republican resistance to Trump are over.

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