Democrats reclaimed the Senate majority Tuesday after their party’s candidates ran competitive races in historically red states.
Outside groups aligned with Democrats spent money in red states after polls showed their candidates performing better than usual. Polls found that voters overwhelmingly trusted Democrats over Republicans to handle the economy and government corruption, the two top issues in the 2026 cycle.
Democratic-aligned groups spent $133.4 million on political advertisements to support Democratic Texas state Rep. James Talarico.
🚨 JUST IN: Democrats are projected to TAKE CONTROL of the US Senate
The question is, how MUCH control will they have?
The margin is unclear. But it’s looking like they’ll secure at LEAST 53 seats. Probably more. https://t.co/pFIRPWUbYG
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) November 4, 2026
Republicans spent over $350 million to help Paxton. Tech mogul Elon Musk spent about $212 million to support Paxton, including a $168 million donation to the Senate Leadership Fund, the Senate Republicans’ top campaign arm, which funneled almost all of the cash into pro-Paxton advertisements.
Texas has not elected a Democratic senator since 1988.
Corruption became a top issue for voters in the final stretch before the election. Paxton was accused of misusing the office of the attorney general to protect and assist Austin real estate developer and political donor Nate Paul, who faced federal investigations.
The Republican-controlled Texas state Legislature impeached Paxton in 2023 on bribery and abuse of power charges, although the state Senate acquitted him.
The Senate Leadership Fund invested $14 million to support Republican Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall in a state that has not had a Democratic senator since 1939. The super PAC spent $5 million to help Republican South Carolina Sen. Darline Graham defeat Democratic South Carolina Senate nominee Annie Andrews.
BREAKING: NEWSMAX projects Democrats will win control of the Senate. https://t.co/VTwkoFqEPR
— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) November 4, 2026
Marshall sued over 700 patients for outstanding debts, leading to 81 arrests, according to The New. York Times. Many of these bills garnished patients’ paychecks and bank accounts after being charged an 18% interest rate. Some of these patients lacked insurance and were new mothers.
Marshall paid a bakery $1,300 after its owner, Holly Thomas, accused his 2020 campaign of leaving a nearly $700 bill unpaid for six years. The senator said on X that he paid the bill and apologized to the bakery, claiming he had “no idea” how the bill went unpaid for six years.
Democrats removed roughly $1.1 million in ad buys in North Carolina and slashed spending in Georgia while former Republican North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and Democratic Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff held comfortable leads. The Senate Majority PAC, the Senate Democrats’ top super PAC, then allocated nearly $7 million into the races in Michigan and Maine.
Republican North Carolina Senate nominee Michael Whatley’s campaign temporarily pulled television ads on Oct. 7. Two Republican-aligned PACs, Americans for Prosperity Action and the No Going Back PAC, had no planned ads to support Whatley in early October.
Republican Senate candidates in red states struggled as voters remained frustrated with the economy and the Iran war. Corruption became a top issue in the final weeks of the election cycle, particularly as they struggled with affordability.
Seventeen percent of U.S. adults approved of Trump’s handling of the cost of living, while 26% approved of his handling of the economy overall, according to The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. About half of U.S. adults said they were “extremely” or “very” concerned about being able to fill up their tanks, which increased from 39% in July.
Paxton said in leaked audio that the war and gas prices were to blame for his struggling campaign.
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