The midterm elections marked a historic shift in power, handing Democrats their biggest House gains since 1974 and control of the Senate.
But inside the wave were candidates whose campaign heroics, epic stumbles and late-breaking twists helped shape the outcome. Here are some of the winners and losers:
LOSERS
Darline Graham
She got appointed to the Senate after the sudden death of her brother Lindsey Graham, and was virtually handed the nomination by President Trump over more experienced Republicans. But Sen. Darline Graham (R-SC) torpedoed her own chances when she admitted on a debate stage that “I’m not that informed on national security,” losing to Democrat Dr. Annie Andrews in a heavily Republican state.
Your 401(K)
Markets have been spooked over the Dem takeover with socialists in their ranks, with regulations and attempted tax hikes to come. The $5,000-per-person check that Trump promised if Republicans won the House is also a goner.
Haley Stevens
Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) held Abdul El-Sayed to a thin margin in the primary before hugging him and endorsing him, then reversed course 72 hours before the election and backed Republican Rep. Mike Rogers — only to watch radical El-Sayed cruise to victory. Democrats say it spells the end of her career in the party.
Roger Marshall
He ignored his own campaign team by producing a ham-handed TV ad defending his medical practice’s pursuit of deadbeats in the courts — a blunder that made Sen. Roger Marshall the first Republican to lose a Senate race in Kansas since 1932.
Vivek Ramaswamy
The former GOP presidential candidate was already down in the polls in the Ohio governor race when he released a controversial adfeaturing the estranged mother of opponent Amy Acton calling the Democrat a “liar.” Members of both parties condemned the billionaire for exploiting a victim of abuse (Acton wrote about leaving home at age 12 after being allegedly sexually abused by her stepfather).
Ken Paxton
Republicans suffered an historic loss in the Lone Star state after President Trump tipped the scales in the primary runoff, endorsing scandal-tarred state Attorney General Ken Paxton over incumbent US Sen. John Cornyn. Paxton got slammed by a 12-point double-digit defeat to Democratic state Rep. James Talarico.
North Carolina redistricting gurus
Where do you draw the line? Not in North Carolina, where Republican mapmakers pushed through new district lines in an effort to expand the state’s 10-4 party advantage. The redistricting move backfired and final results put Dems in line to score at least a 9-5 advantage thanks partly to the “dummymander” effort.
Elon Musk
Musk spent more than $200 million in his home state of Texas trying to stave off Talarico and other Democrats after mending fences with Trump. But Republicans lost every statewide race up and down the ballot and the state House.
President Trump
He barnstormed the country and told people to pretend he was on the ballot, after clearing the field for flawed candidates in battleground races. Now he faces a hostile Congress as a lame duck.
“Fake” Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.
The decoy campaign got exposed — and nearly blew up on Democratic nominee Mary Peltola, who was leading in a vote count that could stretch for days. It was reported that Peltola’s aides had recruited Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. — sharing a name with Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan — to siphon votes from the incumbent. Peltola denied knowing about the plot.
WINNERS
Ashley Moody
Republicans got wiped out up and down the East Coast and all three states directly north of Florida, but appointed Sen. Ashley Moody (R-Fla.) scored a narrow win over Democratic Socialist convert state Rep. Angie Nixon (D-Fla.), earning a full term with her 51-48 win.
Anthony Constantino
The Sticker Mule CEO slapped a huge Trump sign on top of his warehouse in upstate New York, then found himself in a surprisingly close race – but withstood the Democratic tsunami in a district Trump carried by 20 points in 2024.
Hakeem Jeffries
The Brooklyn-born Jeffries is poised to become the first black House speaker and the first from New York in more than a century. With a majority that’s the biggest since President Obama, he has room to maneuver if a new crop of socialists tries to impose its will on the caucus.
Chuck Schumer
Another New Yorker, Schumer, 75, stumbled in Maine over the Graham Platner fiasco and his pick lost the primary in Michigan. But he lined up some strong candidates and was running the table of tossup races even in states that haven’t voted Democratic in years.
AOC
She stumped for socialists and lefties across the country, pausing only for the occasional In-N-Out burger, building cred with activists in Michigan, California, and even upstate New York. Her broadening appeal, ability to fundraise nationally and increasing name recognition could fuel a 2028 White House run.
Defense lawyers
Some victorious Democrats were transparent about plans to start hauling administration officials or Trump allies in to testify in all manner of grievances, with incoming House Oversight Chair Robert Garcia issuing a two-word post on X: “Lawyer up.”
Vladimir Lenin
Core communist concepts, such as the disciplined vanguard and systemic political injection, outlined by Lenin in his famous 1902 tome “What is to be done?” were replicated with stunning success by radical Dems. Now, moderate Democratic leaders may soon be asking the same question as they try to prevent their party and agenda from getting hijacked by socialists.
Ron DeSantis
Ron DeSantis wasn’t on the ballot. But the Florida governor’s state managed to survive a Democratic wave that took down Republicans in even more pro-Trump territory. That gives him a story to tell if his quest for the White House reawakens.
Elise Stefanik
Retiring Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) dropped her run for governor but got the last laugh when Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman got trounced, saying the “low energy” candidate faced a “political reckoning.” She called for rebuilding the state party apparatus.
John Husted
He may have lost the Ohio Senate seat he was appointed to, but at least Sen. John Husted (R-Ohio) is no longer the butt of President Trump’s jokes.
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