Democrats are expected to maintain control of the House of Representatives, but only by a razor-thin margin according to projections by the Associated Press.
Image: Getty Images/D. Angerer
Advertisement
Democrats secured two more years of controlling the US House of Representatives in what is shaping up to be a slimmer majority in the lower house of Congress, according to Associated Press (AP) projections.
The projected win comes after AP declared three new winners late Tuesday night, calling the races for Jimmy Gomez in California, Kim Schrier in Washington and Tom O'Halleran in Arizona.
Those wins gave the Democrats at least 218 seats in the 435-member chamber.
Their previous 232-seat majority was chipped away by a surge of Republican voters that that tipped the scales against the Democrats in races for over a dozen seats.
With lost seats in the House of Representatives, and the US senate race undecided, US President-elect Joe Biden will likely face major roadblocks by Republican lawmakers in Congress.
US election: World leaders who have not congratulated Joe Biden
Some of the US’s biggest and closest allies in Europe, Asia and the Middle East were quick to congratulate US President-elect Joe Biden. But there have been one or two notable exceptions who remain a bit more cautious.
Image: Alexei Druzhinin/dpa/picture-alliance
Russian President Vladimir Putin
Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the Kremlin will refrain from commenting on Biden's victory until legal challenges to the election are resolved and the result is official. "Certain legal procedures are coming there, which were announced by the incumbent president, therefore this situation is different, so we consider it correct to wait for the official announcement."
Image: Alexei Druzhinin/dpa/picture-alliance
China acknowledges win after week delay
On November 13, China congratulated Joe Biden on his victory nearly a week after he was declared the winner of the US presidential election. "We respect the choice of the American people," China's foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said. He added: "At the same time, the result will be confirmed according to US laws and procedures."
Image: Ju Peng/Xinhua/picture-alliance
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro
The right-wing president had said he would be the first leader in the world to congratulate Donald Trump. But Bolsonaro has remained silent on Biden. "I think the president is waiting for this imbroglio over fraudulent votes to be resolved," Vice President Hamilton Mourao told reporters. Bolsonaro will congratulate Biden "at the right time" and see what happens with Trump's lawsuits.
Image: Marcos Corrêa/Presidência da República do Brasil
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador
Lopez Obrador has said he was bound by the constitution from offering his congratulations to the winner until the legal disputes were sorted out, reiterating an earlier posture. "How can a president of Mexico become a judge and say: 'This
candidate won'?" Lopez Obrador told a news conference. He briefly referred to Biden as the "possible president-elect", before emphasizing Mexico took no side.
Image: Reuters/H. Romero
North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un
There has been no response to Biden's results from Kim. North Korean state media has been silent on the US elections as of Monday. But Pyongyang made no mention of Donald Trump's 2016 victory either until two days after his election. In the past, Kim has called Biden "a fool of low IQ." Biden, meanwhile, has described Kim as a "thug."
Image: Reuters/KCNA
Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa
The far-right anti-immigration Slovenian Democratic Party leader, who prematurely hailed Trump as the winner of the election long before the vote counts were near completion, is yet to congratulate Biden. Jansa has repeated allegations of voter fraud carried out by Democrats. He has tweeted, however, that Slovenia hoped for "friendly relations" with Washington.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Leskovsek
6 images1 | 6
'We've won the war'
Despite the thin margins, Democrats celebrated the win.
"We have the gavel, we have the gavel," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (pictured above), who appeared on track to keep her post as the highest-ranking member of the chamber.
"We've lost some battles, but we've won the war," she said.
It was the second time since 1995 that the Democrats managed to secure control of the House of Representatives for four consecutive years.
The Republicans celebrated the House results, predicting a good chance for them to win a majority in the 2022 elections.
The party also increased their number of women representatives from 13 to 26 in a record for Republicans.
Senate still pending
All eye have now turned to the southern US state of Georgia where two runoff races will decide which party controls the Senate.
Biden's hopes of easily enacting Democrat priorities like boosting coronavirus relief aid, combating climate change, expanding healthcare access all hinge on the results of the race.
A runoff vote for the Senate seats in Georgia is slated to take place on January 5.
