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Republicans clinched control of the Senate on Tuesday, setting up a challenging situation for Democrats to overcome in 2026.
Earlier this week, Republicans flipped three Senate seats in West Virginia, Ohio and Montana, tipping the chamber’s control away from the Democrats. As of Friday, the Republicans have 52 Senate seats and the Democrats 45.
Before this week’s election, Democrats held a narrow majority of 51 seats (including four independents who caucus with the party), while the Republicans had 49.
Democrats trailed Republicans in all political races on Tuesday, with President-elect Donald Trump winning the White House, Republicans securing a Senate majority and the GOP possibly maintaining a GOP majority in the House. Not all House races have been called as of Friday morning.
Unlike the House, where candidates are up for reelection every two years, senators serve six-year terms.
Thirty-three Senate seats are open for election on November 3, 2026. Of those, 20 are held by Republicans and 13 by Democrats.
The following states will have Senate seats up for election that year: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming.
