The Democratic Party will hold onto control of the US Senate after Senator Catherine Cortez Masto won re-election in Nevada, defeating Republican challenger Adam Laxalt.
Masto’s win in addition to the re-election of Democratic Senator Mark Kelly in Arizona, means the Democrats controls the Senate with 50 seats and Vice President Kamala Harris’ tie-breaking vote.
If the Democrats can secure the Dec. 6 Georgia runoff election, it would expand their majority to 51-49, giving them more leeway in passing bills that only require a simple majority of votes.
It would also hamper the influence of “swing” votes by Democratic Senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, who have previously blocked or delayed some initiatives.
The Republicans remain favored to gain control of the US House of Representatives with 211 seats against the Democrat’s 203, where 218 is required to gain a majority.
