Republicans outperformed polling on Nov. 3 and are now poised to hang on to the Senate majority, which will bring two more years of a divided Congress.
Democrats had hoped to pick up four or more Republican seats, which would have handed them control of the Senate with at least a 51-seat majority.
Senate Democrats, anticipating a big win on Nov. 3, talked of eliminating the legislative filibuster, which would have paved the way for passage of an ambitious Democratic agenda under a White House administration headed by Joe Biden.
But Republicans defending Senate seats in Maine, North Carolina, Montana, South Carolina, and other states far exceeded daunting poll numbers and are on course to deny Senate Democrats the gavel.
It appears far more likely Congress will look the same as it has the past two years, with Democrats in control of the House and the GOP running the Senate.
Democrats were on track to lose more than a half-dozen seats in the House but will likely keep their majority.
Analysts and party leaders had predicted House Democrats would expand their majority. Still, instead, they lost seats in swing districts held by centrist Democrats. The latter struggled to defend a far-left agenda promoted by some prominent party lawmakers, including defunding the police and abolishing immigration control officers.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent an upbeat note to party lawmakers the day after the election, noting that they maintained the majority and would likely win the White House.
“Our Democratic House Majority, working in partnership with the Democratic White House, will now have the opportunity to deliver extraordinary progress,” Pelosi wrote.
She wrote to Democrats that a Biden White House would enable Democrats to advance their plans to expand Obamacare, implement green energy initiatives, and reform campaign finance and election laws.
“Ours will be a government that fights for the people’s interest, not the special interests — championing progress for seniors, veterans, immigrants, LGBTQ Americans, women, young people, and frontline communities,” Pelosi wrote.
But her ambitious agenda will go nowhere in a GOP-led Senate.
For the past two years, House Democrats have passed hundreds of bills that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has refused to bring up for a vote because they clash with the GOP agenda and would never win the support of Republican senators.
Democrats, for example, hoped to pass a significant election and government ethics reform bill they call “a sweeping package of pro-democracy reforms” that would curb voter ID requirements and voter-roll purging and “end the dominance of big money in politics.”
Republicans believe the measure is a partisan effort to federalize elections and make it easier for Democrats to win them.
When the House first passed the bill in 2018, McConnell called it “a 622-page doorstop” that would never become law.
Democrats also hoped to expand Obamacare, but the Senate GOP wants to repeal the law and replace it with more targeted health insurance reforms.
Suppose Democrats pass a massive infrastructure measure that requires tax increases or deficit spending and is laden with pro-union provisions. In that case, it is also likely to land with a thud in the Senate.
Democrats and Republicans are far more likely to negotiate on must-pass legislation that keeps the government funded. They’ll also try to strike a deal on a new round of federal coronavirus aid.
On Wednesday, McConnell said the two parties need to work out a bipartisan deal when Congress returns, beginning Nov. 9.
“I think that’s job one when we get back,” McConnell told reporters at a press conference in Kentucky.
It will be the first real test of whether a post-election, divided Congress can work out the difference and pass significant legislation.
McConnell last week showed some willingness to provide additional money to state and local governments, which has been the main sticking point.
Democrats want to provide roughly $500 billion to state, local, and tribal governments, which is a sum far too high for many Republicans.
Republicans also believe many states don’t need extra money and are wary of using taxpayer funds to prop up long-mismanaged state pension programs.
“It’s possible we will do more for state and local governments,” McConnell said. “And we’ll have to reach some kind of agreement. But it’s not something that my side is very fond of because it is hard to figure out who needs it and who doesn’t.”
