With US House election gains, Republicans close in on unified power

Republicans are edging closer to unified control of the United States government after winning another seat in the US House of Representatives.

Incumbent Congressman Eli Crane, representing Arizona’s second district, won re-election on Saturday, the Associated Press projected. His victory brings the Republican party to 213 of 218 seats needed for a majority in the House.

With Donald Trump’s win in the November 5 presidential election and with the Republicans also securing control of the Senate or upper chamber of Congress, retaining the House would give Republicans a powerful mandate. The party would have a greater chance of being able to push through a broad legislative agenda focused on tax and spending cuts, energy deregulation and tighter border security.

Meanwhile, the Democrats secured 203 seats in the House, after the party’s Greg Stanton won re-election in Arizona’s fourth congressional district on Sunday.

Nineteen races for the 435-seat House remain uncalled, with most of the outstanding contests in western states where vote-counting is typically slower. Over a dozen of these seats are considered competitive, though Democrats would need to effectively win them all to block Republican control.

Republicans hold narrow leads in several of the tightest uncalled races in Arizona, Colorado and Iowa. Democrats are ahead in close contests in Ohio, Maine and Oregon. In California, where six close races are still up for grabs, Republicans are leading in four.

“Even Democrats admit that Republicans are on track to keep their majority in 2025,” reported US news site Axios.