Democrats take back the US Senate and House, and the election becomes a test for interest rates, technology and public debt

Democrats regained control of both Houses of the American Congress in the 2026 midterm elections. In the Senate, according to Fox News, the party flipped seven seats and will have at least 54 senators aligned with the bench. In the Chamber, there will be at least 227 seats, a number that could grow.

The most symbolic result came from Texas. James Talerico beat Attorney General Ken Paxton and will be the first Democrat elected to the Senate from the state since 1988. Governor Greg Abbott, who was seeking an unprecedented fourth term, was defeated by State Representative Gina Hinojosa. According to the broadcaster, the Texas election was the most expensive in history for the Senate, and the Republicans spent three times more than the Democrats.

President Donald Trump blamed Abbott for the Truth Social defeat. On another front, Fox recalled that Trump supported Paxton in the primary contest against Senator John Cornyn, and a network correspondent classified the outcome as an unforced error by the Republicans. Trump said he can work with Democrats, especially on immigration, but that he will veto projects he doesn't like.

Economy at the center of the vote

For presenter Bret Baier, the headwinds came from the economy, the price of gasoline and the war in Iran. He stated that the argument of preventing an Iranian nuclear weapon did not catch on among voters, according to the broadcaster's polling data. Another guest, former libertarian candidate Austin Peterson, called the election a "sticker shock" and cited inflation at 3.7%, a 9% rise in gasoline in September alone and 30-year mortgages at 7.4%. He also said that 4 in 10 voters told Fox that it was worse than two years before.

According to Baier, expensive diesel has affected farmers in Kansas and Iowa. Florida, in his reading, was the exception, in part due to the popularity of Governor Ron DeSantis. The Michigan seat went to the Democrats, and the Alaska and Mississippi races remained open.

What changes for the market

Presenter Cheryl Casone stated that the Wall Street Journal editorial board addressed the issue and that the markets reacted, with the opening scheduled for 9:30 am (New York time). His colleague Todd Piro noted that Wall Street tends to like gridlock, or divided government. Peterson argued that divided government tends to favor a smaller state and criticized tariffs, which he called a tax charged on cash.

One of the points of attention is the technology sector. According to the presenter, Democrats are already talking about targeting billionaires, technology companies and data centers, and around 20% of the data centers planned in the country should be built in Texas. Peterson warned that putting the brakes on these projects would hit retirement portfolios and 401(k) plans, as recent asset growth has been driven by the sector.

There is also fiscal risk. One of the presenters recalled that the federal debt is already at US$41 trillion and that the Chamber controls the budget. In his assessment, the new social programs that Democrats intend to resume could accelerate the debt spiral.

For the short term, the announced agenda includes investigations and subpoena requests, according to Fox commentators. Trump must veto what he considers unacceptable. Baier assesses that Democrats will have to choose between approving projects that the president agrees to sign and prioritizing confrontation, and that this choice will define the political environment until 2028.

Automatically translated from Portuguese.