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John A. Boehner, the House Republican leader, in an emotional moment during a victory gathering for the National Republican Congressional Committee in Washington. More Photos »
Republicans captured control of the House of Representatives on Tuesday and expanded their voice in the Senate, as discontented voters, frustrated about the nation’s continuing economic woes, turned sharply against President Obama just two years after catapulting him into the White House.
For Mr. Obama’s fellow Democrats, who won majorities in the House and Senate in 2006, it was a punishing defeat. Republicans picked up at least 60 seats, surpassing their gains in the so-called Republican Revolution of 1994, and making it the largest sweep of House races since 1948. In the Senate, Republicans nabbed at least six seats, a more modest gain. The Republican resurgence, propelled by deep economic worries and a forceful opposition to the Democratic agenda of health care and stimulus spending, delivered defeats to House Democrats from the Northeast to the South and across the Midwest.
The tide swept aside dozens of lawmakers, regardless of their seniority or their voting records, upending the balance of power for the second half of Mr. Obama’s term. A number of ousted incumbents were centrists, including fiscal hawks in the Blue Dog Coalition, leaving the Democratic caucuses not only diminished but more liberal.
Still, Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the Democratic leader, narrowly prevailed and his party hung on to control by winning hard-fought contests in California, Connecticut, Delaware and West Virginia. Republicans picked up at least six Democratic seats, including the one formerly held by Mr. Obama, and the party will welcome Marco Rubio of Florida and Rand Paul of Kentucky to their ranks, two candidates who were initially shunned by the establishment but beloved by the Tea Party movement. ”The American people’s voice was heard at the ballot box,” said Representative John A. Boehner of Ohio, who is positioned to become the next speaker of the House. “We have real work to do, and this is not the time for celebration.”
In an early morning appearance on NBC’s “Today” show, Mr. Reid said it was time for the parties to cooperate. “The message to America today is that we’ve got to start working together,” he said. “The only way we can have progress is by working together. If that means legislative compromise, we’ve got to do that.”
The president, who watched the election returns with a small set of advisers at the White House, called Mr. Boehner shortly after midnight to offer his congratulations and to talk about the way forward as Washington prepares for divided government. Republicans won at least 60 seats, surpassing the 52 seats the party won in the sweep of 1994.
The most expensive midterm election campaign in the nation’s history, fueled by a raft of contributions from outside interest groups and millions in donations to candidates in both parties, played out across a wide battleground that stretched from Alaska to Maine.
The Republican tide swept into statehouse races, too, with Democrats poised to lose the majority of governorships, particularly those in majorpresidential swing states, like Ohio, where Gov. Ted Strickland was defeated.
Republicans picked up governorships in at least eight states, and Democrats lost at least nine, as Lincoln Chafee, a former Republican senator, was elected governor of Rhode Island as an independent.
One after another, once-unassailable Democrats like Senator Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, Representatives Ike Skelton of Missouri, John Spratt of South Carolina, Rick Boucher of Virginia and Chet Edwards of Texas fell to little-known Republican challengers.
The future plans of the House Democratic leadership, beyond a lame-duck session of the current Congress that is set to begin on Nov. 15, were not immediately clear.
The House speaker, Nancy Pelosi of California, did not immediately say whether she would remain in the Congress after losing the speakership.
But in a statement about the election results, she was resolute in defending the policies of her caucus — despite the evident voter backlash — and she said Democrats had saved the nation from economic disaster.
“Over the last four years, the Democratic majority in the House took courageous action on behalf of America’s middle class to create jobs and save the country from the worst economic catastrophe since the Great Depression,” Ms. Pelosi said, adding:
“The outcome of the election does not diminish the work we have done for the American people. We must all strive to find common ground to support the middle class, create jobs, reduce the deficit and move our nation forward.”
Republicans did not achieve a perfect evening, losing races in several states they had once hoped to win, including the Senate contests in Delaware and Connecticut, because some candidates supported by the Tea Party movement knocked out establishment candidates to win their nominations.
But Republicans did score notable victories in some tight races, like the Pennsylvania Senate contest, where former Representative Pat Toomey defeated Representative Joe Sestak for the seat now held by Arlen Specter, the Republican-turned-Democrat.
The outcome on Tuesday was nothing short of a remarkable comeback for Republicans two years after they suffered a crushing defeat in the White House and four years after Democrats swept control of the House and Senate.
It gives the party substantial leverage in terms of policy, posing new challenges to Mr. Obama as he faces a tough two years in his term, but also for Republicans — led by Mr. Boehner — as he suddenly finds himself in a position of responsibility, rather than being simply the outsider.
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