US midterm election updates: Republican ‘red wave’ muted

Democratic House candidate Summer Lee has beat back an onslaught of campaign spending by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) to win against Republican opponent Mike Doyle in Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District.

Lee faced millions of dollars in election ads funded by the pro-Israel lobby group against her – first in the primary when AIPAC backed her Democratic opponent, then in the generals when the organisation supported the Republican in the race.

The Pittsburgh area seat was set to be an easy win for Democrats, but AIPAC’s spending complicated matters for Lee, a Pennsylvania state legislator.

Lee has become the first Black American woman to represent Pennsylvania in Congress.

Democrat Katie Hobbs was leading Republican Kari Lake in the race for Arizona governor, with the election still too close to call early Wednesday.

The contest has gained national attention, with Lake, a former television news anchor, saying she would not have certified the state’s 2020 election results.

Hobbs, meanwhile, rose to prominence as Arizona’s secretary of state defending the integrity of President Joe Biden’s victory in Arizona, where he won by a razor-thin margin in 2020.

The race is running in parallel with a contest for Arizona’s secretary of state – the official who oversees election administration. Republican challenger Mark Finchem has also supported Trump’s unfounded claims of 2020 election fraud, while Democrat Adrian Fontes has run on a platform of protecting state residents’ access to voting.

Control of the Senate is set to come down to races in three states: Nevada, Arizona and Georgia.

As of early Wednesday, 48 seats in the 100-member chamber had been called for Democrats. Republicans, meanwhile, had won 47 seats. Two Republican candidates were also leading in Alaska, which uses ranked voting, all but assuring a victory for the party.

In Nevada, incumbent Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto and Republican Adam Laxalt were neck and neck, with a slew of mail-in ballots yet to be counted.

Incumbent Democrat Mark Kelly was also locked in a close race with Republican challenger Blake Masters in Arizona.

In Georgia, neither Incumbent Democrat Raphael Warnock or his challenger, Republican Herschel Walker, were expected to reach the 50 percent threshold needed to win outright, setting up a potential run-off.

Meanwhile, Wisconsin had also yet to be called for either Republican incumbent Ron Johnson or Democratic challenger Mandela Jones.

Democrat John Fetterman has won the US midterms Senate race in Pennsylvania, taking the seat from the Republicans by defeating his TV-star rival Mehmet Oz 👇 #Midterms2022 pic.twitter.com/LVWcXD9j3B

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) November 9, 2022

Results continue to roll in from Tuesday’s midterm vote. See more photos from Election Day here.

Trump’s voice was felt throughout the election season, with several candidates courting his endorsement ahead of the polls.

But the “mixed bag” of success of the candidates Trump endorsed is likely to “raise some questions about Trump’s electability going forward into 2024”, according to Julie Norman, the co-director of the University College London’s Centre on US politics.

“There were a couple victories, like [Senate candidate] JD Vance in Ohio, but many other Trump-backed candidates have either lost their races or are in really tight races that really should have been Republican’s for the taking,” she told Al Jazeera.

“This is coupled by a real surge by his main rival in the party, Ron DeSantis, who had a major victory, a double digit victory… So I think it’s setting up a bit of battle for 2024,” she said.

Republican JD Vance, who has suggested that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump, has won a seat in the US Senate in the midterm elections.

Vance’s campaign in Ohio was boosted by support from Trump ⤵️ #Midterms2022 pic.twitter.com/GZ3xNq8eIZ

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) November 9, 2022

Measures meant to close so-called “slavery loopholes” appeared on the ballot in five states on Tuesday.

The term refers to the 13th amendment of the US constitution, which bans enslavement or involuntary servitude except as a form of criminal punishment. In turn, nearly 20 states have constitutions that include language permitting slavery and involuntary servitude as criminal punishments.

Voters in Alabama, Tennessee and Vermont all approved constitutional measures to remove that language. A similar question in Oregon was too close to call.

Meanwhile voter Louisiana rejected a ballot question that asked whether they supported a constitutional amendment to prohibit the use of involuntary servitude in the criminal justice system, with many reporting confusion over the wording of the question.

The Kremlin has said that US midterm elections would not improve the “bad” relations between Moscow and Washington, as it dismissed allegations Russia was meddling in the US vote, Russian state media reported.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also told reporters it was too early to talk about a dialogue with the US on extending the New START nuclear arms treaty.

Michigan voters have approved a change to the state’s constitution to protect abortion rights.

The measure will put a definitive end to a 1931 ban on abortion. A state judge blocked the ban, but another court could revive it.

The initiative will negate the ban and affirm the right to make pregnancy-related decisions about abortion and other reproductive services such as birth control without interference. Similar measures were passed in Vermont and California.

Meanwhile, a measure in Kentucky that would would amend the state constitution to explicitly say abortion is not a protected right remained too close to call on Wednesday.

The ballot measures came months after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade and the constitutional right to abortion it guaranteed to women nationwide. The decision in June has led to near-total bans in a dozen states.

BREAKING: Voters in Michigan just voted to make abortion a right protected by their state constitution.

Abortion is our right — and safe, legal abortion care is here to stay in Michigan.

— ACLU (@ACLU) November 9, 2022

Representative Elissa Slotkin has won her US House race in Michigan, defeating Republican challenger Tom Barrett, a state senator who denies the results of the 2020 presidential election.

The race was considered a bellweather for Democrats, as Slotkin was running in a largely redrawn district.

It comes after Hillary Scholten, an immigration lawyer, bested Trump-backed candidate John Gibbs, a former official in the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The victory flipped the seat for Democrats. In the primary, Gibbs had defeated Republican Congressman Peter Meijer, who had voted to impeach Trump.

I just received a call from Tom Barrett conceding the election. I’m so grateful to the people of mid-Michigan for their support. Tonight, voters here made clear that the politics of division are not what they want for our families or our state. 1/

— Elissa Slotkin (@ElissaSlotkin) November 9, 2022

Reporting from Pittsburgh, Al Jazeera’s Gabriel Elizondo has said John Fetterman’s victory in Pennsylvania has given Democrats hope that they would be able to keep control of the Senate, even as they are widely expected to lose control of the House of Representatives.

“This is the first flipped state in this election, this midterm, this Senate race. This is the first time tonight that either of the two parties has been able to flip [a Senate seat],” Elizondo said.

“Now with this race being called for John Fetterman, this puts the democrats in the driver’s seat to potentially remain in control of the US Senate,” he said. “It’s not there yet, but it’s a big step in that direction for Democrats.”

Fetterman will replace retiring Republican Senator Pat Toomey.

Voters have made Missouri the latest state to approve recreational marijuana, joining Maryland, who also passed a ballot measure on Tuesday.

Voters in Arkansas and North Dakota rejected a similar measure.

The ballot measure legalises recreational marijuana for adults 21 and older in Missouri and expunges most records of past arrests and convictions.

Approval of the new constitutional amendment comes just four years after Missouri voters legalised medical marijuana.

The increasingly significant race for a Senate seat in Georgia is likely heading to a run-off, with both candidates appearing unlikely to break the 50 percent threshold needed to win outright,  Al Jazeera’s John Hendren reported from the state.

Both Democratic incumbent Raphael Warnock, and challenger, Republican Herschel Walker, “were hovering approximately 49 percent of the vote, but not passing the 50 percent they would need to avoid a run-off”, he said.

“It remains very close to call, and with fewer and fewer votes left to call, unless one of them pulls rabbit out of the hat in the next couple of hours, they’re going to have a run-off,” he said.

Georgia is just one of a handful of races that remain that could decide which party controls the Senate.

Libertarian Party candidate Chase Oliver had received about 2 percent of the votes early Wednesday and was expected to prevent Warnock or Walker from reaching the 50 percent mark.

Democrats have flipped a House seat in Michigan, defeating a far-right candidate who had pushed out a moderate Republican incumbent.

In a district in western Michigan, Hillary Scholten, an immigration lawyer, bested Trump-backed John Gibbs, a former official in the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Earlier this year, with Trump’s support, Gibbs won the Republican Party’s nomination for the seat, narrowly defeating Congressman Peter Meijer who had voted to impeach the former president.

With losses expected elsewhere, the win in Michigan could prove decisive to Democrats’s chances of protecting their slim majority in the House of Representatives.

Thank you, West Michigan. pic.twitter.com/cDZJX8WOsU

— Hillary Scholten (@HillaryScholten) November 9, 2022

Governor Tony Evers, a Democrat, has defeated Trump-backed Republican challenger Tim Michels.

Evers had argued that democracy was on the ballot, with Michels repeatedly casting doubt on Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential win in Wisconsin.

Evers had portrayed himself as a bulwark against the state’s Republican legislature, which had repeatedly tried to pass legislation rights advocates said made it more difficult to vote in the state.

Evers has also led a legal challenge to the state’s 1849 abortion ban, in the wake of Roe v Wade being repealed.

“Holy mackerel folks, how about that?” Evers said in his victory speech.

Holy Mackerel, folks!

I want to thank everyone who made this possible. Because of you, we have another four years to keep doing the right thing for Wisconsin. https://t.co/Y1lY5YZqdQ

— Tony Evers (@Tony4WI) November 9, 2022

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has won the race to continue to represent her California district in the US House of Representatives. She is currently the highest-ranking Democrat in the chamber.

Meanwhile, Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, the top Republican in the House, also won his race. He also represents a California district.

Both incumbents had been projected to win hands-down.

Following the election, caucuses from both parties will choose who will be their top legislator in the chamber. The representative from the winning party will assume the speaker’s role.

In an interview with broadcaster Fox News on Tuesday, Trump said he would support McCarthy to be speaker if Republicans win the house.

Democratic candidate John Fetterman has won the Senate race in Pennsylvania as they pushed hard to retain control of the Senate.

The Democrat defeated Trump-backed Republican Mehmet Oz in one of the most watched races of the election cycle, flipping the seat that is currently occupied by retiring Republican Pat Toomey.

With the victory in Pennsylvania, Democrats only need to hold on to two of three seats in Georgia, Nevada and Arizona, where the counting is still under way and the contests are too close to call.

So far, Democratic incumbents are leading in all three races. Biden’s party could also potentially pick up another seat in Wisconsin, where Democrat Mandela Barnes is not far behind Republican incumbent Ron Johnson. That race, too, is too close to call.

Fetterman had suffered a stroke during the campaign season, and he saw his numbers slide in the polls amid concerns about his health, especially after a public debate where he was on the backfoot to Oz

It's official. I will be the next U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania.

We bet on the people of Pennsylvania – and you didn’t let us down 

And I won’t let you down. Thank you.

— John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) November 9, 2022

Early results have indicated that an expected “red wave” of Republican victories will not materialise in the US midterm elections.

“The red wave is not happening. Lots of wasted money by [Top House Republican Kevin] McCarthy,” tweeted Republican Representative Adam Kinzinger, who emerged as one of the strongest voices against former President Donald Trump, but is not seeking re-election.

Republicans have performed well, but their showing has generally been weaker than many projections indicated. Meanwhile, several Democrats in tight races have performed better than some polls indicated.

Republicans are still widely projected to take the House of Representatives. The Senate remains a toss-up as votes roll in.

The red wave is not happening. Lots of wasted money by McCarthy.

He cannot be a happy man tonight.

— Adam Kinzinger #fella (@AdamKinzinger) November 9, 2022

Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib and other members of the progressive group of legislators known as “the Squad” have been easily re-elected in their respective districts.

With most votes counted, Tlaib had a 43-point lead over her Republican challenger in a newly drawn district in southeast Michigan.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley, Cori Bush and Ilhan Omar also won their bids for another term in the House of Representatives.

Democrat Governor Gretchen Whitmer has been re-elected for a second term in Michigan.

Whitmer was the subject of a series of threats during her previous term, including a kidnapping plot allegedly tied to her strict COVID-19 policies. She was also a vehement defender of the 2020 presidential election results in the state.

She relied heavily on abortion rights during her campaign, presenting herself as a bulwark against a 1931 law that banned abortion in the country. The law has been put on hold by a state court in the wake of Roe v Wade.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul has defeated Republican challenger Lee Zeldin to remain in power, fending off a late surge in the polls by her opponent.

Hochul replaced former Governor Andrew Cuomo last year after he resigned amid sexual harassment allegations.

Zeldin had campaigned on concerns for public safety to close in on Hochul in public opinion polls in the liberal-leaning state. But like other Democrats, the governor leaned on protecting abortion rights in her campaign.

With 92 percent of the votes counted, Hochul was leading by five percentage points.