Midterm election results updates: Dems keep control of Senate with Nevada win

Catherine Cortez Masto’s victory in Nevada clinched the chamber for Democrats.

ByAlexandra Hutzler, Tal Axelrod, Emily Shapiro, Morgan Winsor, Isabella Murray, Meredith Deliso, Nadine El-Bawab, Julia Jacobo, and Stephanie Guerilus
Last Updated: November 15, 2022, 5:21 AM EST

The 2022 midterm elections shaped up to be some of the most consequential in the nation's recent history, with control of Congress at stake.

All 435 seats in the House and 35 of 100 seats in the Senate were on the ballot, as well as several influential gubernatorial elections in battleground states like Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Democrats were defending their narrow majorities in both chambers and retained control of the Senate, though control of the House isn't yet clear. But a Republican flip of the lower chamber would be enough to curtail most of President Joe Biden's legislative agenda and would likely result in investigations against his administration and even his family.

Key updates:

Here is how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Nov 08, 2022, 9:41 PM EST

FiveThirtyEight's Nate Silver says early results suggest good night for polling

FiveThirtyEight's Nate Silver notes that early results are largely in line with what surveys had indicated, suggesting the polling industry may be in for a desperately needed reprieve after three consecutive cycles of results that were far off the mark.

Polls significantly underestimated Republicans' support by varying degrees in 2016, 2018 and 2020. Yet early results Tuesday line up well with what polls had forecasted.

"We aren’t seeing too many crazy, out-of-bounds outcomes so far. There are a lot of uncertain races, and there’s a fair bit of regional variation, and Democrats clearly have a Florida problem. But nothing too wild yet," Silver wrote in FiveThirtyEight's blog.

Click here to read more of FiveThirtyEight's ongoing midterm analysis.

Nov 08, 2022, 9:22 PM EST

DeSantis celebrates projected victory: 'I have fought the good fight'

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke to supporters on Tuesday night after he was projected to win reelection.

"Florida was a refuge of sanity when the world went mad," DeSantis said. "We stood as a citadel of freedom for people across this country and indeed the world."

DeSantis touted Florida's policies on COVID-19, gender ideology and education as he made the case for himself as a Republican leader championing the party's values.

ABC News projects that Republicans will flip three Democratic House seats in Florida alone.
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis delivers remarks after projected reelection winABC News projects that Republicans will flip three Democratic House seats in Florida alone.
ABCNews.com

DeSantis is widely seen as a potential contender for the GOP nomination in 2024, and he spent much of his victory speech Tuesday discussing national politics.

"While our country flounders due to failed leadership in Washington, Florida is on the right track," he said, adding: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race in this first term and I have kept the faith."

"We've accomplished more than anybody thought possible four years ago but we've got so much more to do and I have only begun to fight," he concluded.

Nov 08, 2022, 9:15 PM EST

Female firsts projected in Arkansas, Massachusetts governor races

ABC News can project that Republican Sarah Huckabee Sanders will win against Democratic challenger Chris Jones, electing her as the first female governor of Arkansas

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Republican candidate for Governor of Arkansas, greets supporters after casting her ballot at Pleasant Valley Church of Christ in Little Rock, Ark., Nov. 8, 2022.
Al Drago/The New York Times via Redux

ABC News can also project that Democrat Maura Healey will win against Republican challenger Geoff Diehl to become the first woman and openly gay politician elected governor of Massachusetts.

She is to become the first woman and openly lesbian politician elected governor of Massachusetts.
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Democrat Maura Healey projected to win Massachusetts governor's raceShe is to become the first woman and openly lesbian politician elected governor of Massachusetts.
ABCNews.com

Nov 08, 2022, 9:03 PM EST

Projections for Senate races in Kansas, New York, South Dakota

ABC News can project that in three Senate races, Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., will win against Democratic challenger Mark Holland; Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., will win against Republican challenger Joseph Pinion; and Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., will win against Democratic challenger Brian Bengs. All three projected winners are seeking reelection.

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