Senate and House election updates

2022 Election Coverage Team, 2022 Election Coverage Team
November 8, 2022

The Wire will be providing updates on elections across the U.S. We will be using data provided by the Associated Press, FiveThirtyEight, The Washington Post and The New York Times.

Senate:

The Democrats have secured 50 seats and the Republicans 49. There are 51 seats open.

Nov. 12, 7:00 p.m. PDT: Catherine Cortez Masto, Democrat, wins in Nevada.

Nov. 12, 6:21 a.m. PDT: Mark Kelly, Democrat, wins in Arizona.

Nov. 11 update: Three states will decide the Senate in key races to watch: Arizona, Georgia and Nevada.

11:24 a.m. PDT: The race between Herschel Walker and Democratic incumbent Raphael Warnock for Georgia’s second Senate seat will go to a runoff. Neither candidate passed the 50% threshold to win the race outright. The runoff will be held on December 6 with just Walker and Warnock on the ballot.

OPINION: A Good Night for Democrats

Bex Heimbrock, Opinion Editor

11:10 a.m. PDT: Broadly, Democrats lost less seats than predicted. Republicans are poised to take control of the House, but Democrats have flipped one Senate seat and are tied with a 48-48 seat gain. In all, this is a good outcome for the Democrats, especially since the President’s party usually sees more dramatic losses in the midterms. In Wisconsin, Senator Ron Johnson is poised to win re-election, despite his dubious ties to January 6th and vocal support of conspiracy theories.

In one of the most closely watched races of this election, Pennsylvania Senate, John Fetterman defeated Dr. Mehmet Oz. Oz, a TV personality endorsed by Trump, was widely criticized for being out of touch with Pennsylvania’s working-class base. Fetterman, usually dressed in gym shorts and a hoodie, positioned himself as a Sanders-esque character – a man of the people.

Nov. 9, 9:46 a.m. PDT: Ron Johnson, Republican, wins re-election in Wisconsin.

10:30 p.m. PDT update: The Election Coverage Team is taking a break due to a lack of additional information. We will start updating this page again Wednesday morning, or when any big changes occur.

OPINION -- 10PM Update: Dems Take Narrow Lead

Bex Heimbrock, Opinion Editor

10:20 p.m. PDT: Democrats are forecasted to maintain slight control over the senate via The New York Times. Patty Murray was re-elected to the Senate despite a closer than expected fight against outsider Tiffany Smiley (R). The Fetterman/Oz Pennsylvania Senate race is neck and neck, and still has not been decided (Edit, 10:40pm PDT: John Fetterman has officially won the race for Senate in Pennsylvania). In the Governor’s races: Brian Kemp (R) defeated Stacey Abrahams (D), and Kathy Hochul (D) took New York.

In Maricopa County, AZ ballots are being processed in an environment reminiscent of the 2020 elections: mounted police officers in riot gear, helicopters with searchlights, and drones are raising questions about election integrity and GOP tactics.

Looking ahead: with mail-in ballots still being counted, it’s possible that we won’t know the outcomes of certain elections for a few days or even weeks. Keep up with The Wire to see what’s happening!

10:00 p.m. PDT: John Fetterman, Democrat, wins in Pennsylvania.

OPINION: Idaho Sticks with Little

Kasey Moulton, Podcast Editor

10:08 p.m. PDT: Five candidates made the ballot for Idaho’s gubernatorial election: incumbent Brad Little, Democrat Stephen Heidt, independent Ammon Bundy, Libertarian Paul Sand and Constitution Party nominee Chantyrose Davison.

Heidt and Bundy were unconventional challengers for Little, who has held office since 2018. Ammon Bundy, an anti-government militant and activist known for his role in the 2016 occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon, has been an increasingly regular figure in Idaho politics. Bundy, who was renounced by the Idaho Republican Party, ran as an independent.

Heidt was the only Democrat to make the May 17 primary ballot. His campaign faced an uphill battle from the start, particularly in terms of funding. Heidt’s policy positions, including marijuana decriminalization and protection of reproductive freedoms, set him apart from other candidates on the ballot.

Ultimately, Idaho was called for Little at 9:05 p.m., just five minutes after the polls closed in North Idaho. Little’s win really came as no surprise — Idaho’s last Democratic governor was elected in 1987.

9:10 p.m. PDT: Patty Murray, Democrat, wins re-election in Washington.

9:00 p.m. PDT: Brian Schatz, Democrat, wins re-election in Hawaii.

OPINION: Vance Wins Ohio, America Suffers

Bex Heimbrock, Opinion Editor

9:00 p.m. PDT: Senator-elect JD Vance, best known for his 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy, is a populist candidate with a ‘pull yourself up by the bootstraps’ platform. His win over moderate democrat Tim Ryan sends a strong message about what kind of candidate Republican voters yearn for.

One of Vance’s campaign ads began with Vance staring into the camera, smugly asking: “Are you a racist? Do you hate mexicans?”

That Ryan lost in a district that previously elected a Republican Senator is not a surprise. However, Vance’s spineless stances (for example, once admonishing Trump for his stance on immigration, Vance later adopted similar anti-immigration points), make him the worst possible candidate for a rust-belt area in desperate need of revitalization.

I’m sorry, Ohio.

8:49 p.m. PDT: Ted Budd, Republican, wins election in North Carolina.

8:45 p.m. PDT: Ron Wyden, Democrat, wins re-election in Oregon.

8:39 p.m. PDT: Maggie Hassan, Democrat, wins re-election in New Hampshire.

8:19 p.m. PDT: J.D. Vance, Republican, wins election in Ohio.

8:03 p.m. PDT: Chuck Grassley, Republican, wins re-election in Iowa.

8:00 p.m. PDT: Alex Padilla, Democrat, wins re-election in California.

8:00 p.m. PDT: Mike Crapo, Republican, wins re-election in Idaho.

7:55 p.m. PDT: John Kennedy, Republican, wins re-election in Louisiana.

7:12 p.m. PDT: Eric Schmitt, Republican, wins election in Missouri.

7:09 p.m. PDT: Michael Bennet, Democrat, wins re-election in Colorado.

6:00 p.m. PDT: Charles Schumer, Democrat, wins re-election in New York.

6:00 p.m. PDT: Jerry Moran, Republican, wins re-election in Kansas.

6:00 p.m. PDT: John Thune, Republican, wins re-election in South Dakota.

6:00 p.m. PDT: John Hoeven, Republican, wins re-election in North Dakota.

5:30 p.m. PDT: John Boozman, Republican, wins re-election in Arkansas.

5:26 p.m. PDT: Todd Young, Republican, wins re-election in Indiana.

5:17 p.m. PDT: Marco Rubio, Republican, wins re-election in Florida.

5:00 p.m. PDT: Markwayne Mullin, Republican, wins election in Oklahoma.

5:00 p.m. PDT: James Lankford, Republican, wins re-election in Oklahoma.

5:00 p.m. PDT: Chris Van Hollen, Democrat, wins re-election in Maryland.

5:00 p.m. PDT: Richard Blumenthal, Democrat, wins re-election in Connecticut.

5:00 p.m. PDT: Tammy Duckworth, Democrat, wins re-election in Illinois.

4:14 p.m. PDT: Rand Paul, Republican, wins re-election in Kentucky.

4:00 p.m. PDT: Peter Welch, Democrat, wins election in Vermont.

Nov. 8, 4:00 p.m. PDT: Tim Scott, Republican, wins re-election in South Carolina.

House:

The Democrats have secured 210 seats and the Republicans 218. The Republicans seized control of the House on Nov. 16 with 218 seats.

Nov. 9, 11:10 a.m. PDT: Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Republican, wins House seat in Washington (District 5).

For more analysis and in-depth results on key races, check out this week’s episode of “The Whitman Wire Podcast,” releasing at 11 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 11. Full episodes of the podcast can be found on Spotify, Google Podcasts, Overcast or wherever you listen to your podcasts.

The 2022 Election Coverage Team consists of Abby Malzewski, Editor-in-Chief; Zac Bentz, Publisher; Annalie Reed, Chief Copy Editor; Gillian Mackay-Brown, Managing Editor; Bex Heimbrock, Opinion Editor; and Kasey Moulton, Podcast Editor.