Catherine Cortez Masto Projected To Win Nevada Senate Seat; Democrats Retain Control Of Upper Chamber
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Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) was projected to win reelection over Adam Laxalt in Nevada’s U.S. Senate race, assuring Democratic control of the Senate.
The latest vote tallies were enough for networks to call the race for Cortez Masto, who trailed until final mail-in ballots were counted in more populous counties like Clark and Washoe.
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Coupled with the reelection of Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) in the Arizona Senate race, Cortez Masto’s razor-thin victory gives Democrats a sense of relief, assuring that they will have at least 50 seats. Had they lost the race, it would have meant that the December 6 runoff in Georgia between Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) and Republican Herschel Walker would have determined who controls the chamber. Now, if Democrats lose that seat, they will still have control of the 50-50 Senate, as Vice President Kamala Harris will break any tie vote.
Like Kelly’s race, Cortez Masto’s reelection bid was targeted by Republicans as a key pickup opportunity this cycle. But it was apparent Tuesday that the GOP’s hopes of a “red wave” were dashed, as Democrats held their own in defending seats in the House and winning the most closely watched contest of the cycle, when John Fetterman beat Republican Mehmet Oz.
Republicans still have a good chance of winning control of the House, but it will be a very slim majority, with races in California and other states still too early or too close to call.
The news broke just as many Washington media personalities and politicos, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, were gathered at the National Portrait Gallery for is biennial Portrait of a Nation gala. Just as Hillary Clinton was saluting honoree Marian Wright Edelman, phones lit up with news alerts that networks had called the race.
The loss of Republican hopes of taking the Senate, and the likelihood that a House majority would be by only a few seats, is a far different scenario than many top Republicans were predicting right up until polls closed on Tuesday. Instead, Democrats defied historic trends in which the party who controls the White House typically faces significant losses in Congress in the midterms. Some on the right are blaming Donald Trump for selecting subpar candidates who could win their primaries, but were less salable to moderate voters in the general election.
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