WASHINGTON – Republicans retained control of the Senate on Tuesday, ousting Democratic incumbents in Indiana and North Dakota and handing President Donald Trump a triumph by ensuring they will remain as guardians of his conservative agenda for two more years.
Despite Trump’s deeply polarizing effect on voters, the GOP harnessed his rock-solid popularity with hard-right voters in rural, deep-red states. They held onto seats in the South, Midwest and West and ensured at least a 50-50 Senate — enough to give Republicans control because Vice President Mike Pence as president of the Senate would tip the balance to the GOP.
Republicans paved their path to victory by defeating Democrats Joe Donnelly of Indiana and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota. They also held on to competitive seats in Texas, where Sen. Ted Cruz fended off Rep. Beto O’Rourke, the well-financed liberal darling, and in Tennessee, where Rep. Marsha Blackburn prevailed.
The GOP Senate victory was magnified because Democrats stood a solid chance of wresting control of the House from Republicans.
That would give the Senate the role of blocking House-passed Democratic initiatives on everything from health care to the potential repeal of tax cuts on the wealthy that the GOP enacted last year.