The Democratic Party has rewritten the political landscape under Donald Trump, and the shockwaves from this night will shake American politics for years to come.
As Democrats won key Senate victories in a string of states that had solidly supported Republicans for decades, including Kansas for the first time in nearly a century, a blue wave swept across the country, driving Republicans out of power.
Halfway through President Trump's second term, Democrats now have firm control of the House of Representatives and have regained their majority in the Senate.
They will have the ability to thwart Trump's agenda and launch investigations into his administration. An unprecedented third impeachment attempt may also be on the agenda.
After Trump returned to the White House in January 2025 and took office with the Republican Party in full control of Congress, few could have imagined such an outcome.
Democrats had hoped to retake the House as public opinion turned against him and his party.
But faced with a Senate election map that looked unfavorable to them, many of which Trump won handily two years ago, they had expected a tough prospect.
However, Democrats ultimately rewrote the political calculus with victories in Texas, Maine, Kansas, Ohio, Iowa, and North and South Carolina.
In an interview with BBC America's partner CBS, Trump promised to reach a deal with congressional Democrats and said he did not want to spend the last two years of his term vetoing their bills.
However, he later weakened this statement to some extent by posting a photo of his iconic red baseball cap with the word "veto" printed on it on TRUTH Social.
The president went on to note that his name is not on the ballot this year, but if it were, Republicans would have a landslide victory.
Yet Trump has helped boost the momentum of many Republican candidates and urged voters to view the election as his bid for re-election.
In the Senate, Democrats flipped at least six seats and easily secured a majority.
Adam Hamilton wins in Kansas. The last time the state elected a Democratic senator was nearly 100 years ago during the Great Depression.
James Talarico defeated Republican Ken Paxton in the Texas Senate election, ending a 38-year losing streak for Democrats in the state's statewide elections.
In South Carolina, Annie Andrews defeated Darline Graham, who was appointed to the seat after the death of her brother, Senator Lindsey Graham. Even a few months ago, few analysts considered the seat competitive.
Five-time Republican Sen. Susan Collins has conceded defeat to Democrat Troy Jackson in Maine's Senate race.
Paralympian Josh Turek wins the Iowa Senate seat held by retiring Republican Sen. Joni Ernst. Democrats also retook Ohio's Senate seat, with Sherrod Brown defeating Jon Husted in a comeback battle.
Meanwhile, in a closely contested Senate election in Michigan, Democrat Abdul El-Sayed defeated Republican Mike Rogers.
And this is not the end of the Republican electoral defeat.
Deep red Texas saw another shock result in the gubernatorial election.
Democratic challenger Gina Hinojosa defeated incumbent Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. As recently as earlier this year, the latter was considered a sure winner.
Democrats also won the gubernatorial elections in Iowa, Ohio and Georgia. Georgia also made history by electing its first black female governor.
Meanwhile, Democrats won a majority in the House of Representatives for the first time since 2022.
Democrats are expected to win 245 House seats, compared with 166 for Republicans.
A look at key campaigns reveals many reasons.
Democrats flipped House seats in Texas, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Kentucky and Colorado, and are preparing to expand their gains in Virginia and Indiana.
Black Democratic voters in southern states turned out in record numbers, helping the party to victory. Latino voters, who helped Trump win the presidential election in 2024, have also clearly shifted to support the Democratic Party.
Democrats won all House seats in three predominantly Latino congressional districts along the Texas-Mexico border.
In Florida, Latino voters also helped Democrats hold on to House seats, thwarting state Republican plans to seize seats through redistricting.
In fact, the congressional redistricting battles that dominated headlines for months last year ultimately proved unproductive for Republicans.
In Texas, they had hoped to add five seats to the party through redistricting, but by Tuesday (November 3), they may end up losing even one seat.
If there's a silver lining for conservatives, it's that Florida overall still appears to be leaning to the right.
Embattled Republicans also managed to retain the governorships of Vermont and New Hampshire. But such highlights are few and far between.
Voters delivered a rebuke to him on Tuesday, a lesson that will not be easily forgotten.
