Democrats won the House and Senate on Tuesday. Subpoenas and hearings are likely. Impeachment and new laws face harder math.
Democrats took control of both chambers of Congress on Tuesday night, ending Republican control of Washington with two years left in Donald Trump’s term. They flipped Senate seats in places Republicans counted on. Kansas elected a Democratic senator for the first time since 1932, and Maine voters defeated Sen. Susan Collins.
Trump, who was not on the ballot, wrote that he would have won “IN A LANDSLIDE” if he had been. On the other side, Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, had two words for election night: “Lawyer up.”
Some House races were still uncounted early Wednesday, and the new majorities take power in January. Until then, the current Congress returns Nov. 9 with a Dec. 11 deadline to pass funding bills or face a fourth shutdown of Trump’s second term.
Investigations come first
A House majority carries subpoena power over documents and witnesses and control of the daily floor schedule. Democratic leaders have promised to use it quickly. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said his party will hold “the crooks accountable” beginning on day one of the new Congress.
The topics are still taking shape. Democrats describe their plans as nebulous, but members have named several targets: Trump-affiliated cryptocurrency sold to foreign investors, raised by Rep. Ro Khanna; the White House ballroom project, named by Rep. Jamie Raskin; and the Venezuela boat strikes, raised by Rep. Rosa DeLauro. Impoundment of funds Congress approved and the effort to end birthright citizenship are also on the list.
Impeachment is a separate question
The House can impeach with a simple majority. Removal takes two-thirds of the Senate, which Democrats do not have. Trump has been impeached twice already.
The first-term timeline is instructive. Democrats took the House in January 2019. Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced an impeachment inquiry on Sept. 24, 2019, and the House voted 230 to 197 to impeach in December. The Senate acquitted him 52 to 48 on Feb. 5, 2020.
This time, Raskin has said it is extremely difficult even to get articles to the floor, and many House Democrats are skeptical it is worth the time. Predictions of a third impeachment have come from Republicans. Speaker Mike Johnson called it a “foregone conclusion,” and Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said it would be Democrats’ “No. 1 issue” in 2027.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth may be a likelier target. Republican Rep. Thomas Massie has introduced a resolution to impeach him over military actions abroad. Jeffries has said Democrats will “run Pete Hegseth out of town,” and has not said whether he supports impeaching Hegseth or Trump.
New laws are harder
House Democrats are planning a first-100-hours package that includes bills to remove tariffs, end the Iran war and cut health insurance costs. They can pass those in the House. Most Senate bills need 60 votes, and Democrats are almost certain to fall short of that number. Overriding a veto takes two-thirds of both chambers.
Trump has said he will rely on the veto. He told Fox News that after “a couple of months of vetoes, they’ll call and they’ll say, ‘How do we get this stuff done?’”
What to watch
The first signals will be the committee chairs Democrats name, the first investigative letters and subpoenas they send, and whether Jeffries is asked directly about impeachment and answers. The Dec. 11 funding deadline arrives before the new majority is sworn in.
Sources
• Democrats win control of the U.S. House, PBS NewsHour
• Midterm 2026 live updates, CBS News
• US midterm elections have given Democrats control of Congress. What now?, ABC News (Australia)
• Democrats gear up for oversight onslaught against Trump if they win midterms, Yahoo News
• Impeachment of Donald Trump, Ballotpedia
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