The Republican Party has now secured a full takeover of the U.S. government, based on some crucial successes in the House of Representatives, Senate, and White House. However, the media projections released confirmed that the party had won several contested races for the House of Representatives that now assured the party of a narrow but significant majority.
Full Republican Control: A Return to Trifecta Power
It has been a long time since the Republicans last had the trifecta-the presidency, Senate, and House of Representatives. That was two years ago when Donald Trump began his first term in 2017. Due to a major victory by the Republicans on Wednesday winning the majority of seats in the Senate and Trump being sure to retain the presidency, the party now wields political clout strong enough to push through their agenda on issues such as the economy and immigration.
However, strong majorities with Republicans are not sufficient; for the party, slender majorities in the House and Senate may make it even harder for the group to vote on all proposals put forward by Trump.
Republicans Take Control of Both Houses of Congress
According to projections by CBS News, House Republicans will take at least 218 seats in the next Congress while the Democrats will have at least 208. Since 218 is a majority in the 435-seat House, Republicans will take between 220 and 222 seats. The Senate is expected to have a Republican majority with 53 seats as against 47 Democratic seats and Democratic-aligned independents.
These majorities grant Trump robust support from both chambers but narrow margins in the Senate make some legislation difficult.
To pay the biggest respect to history’s wishes and to cite one, here are some of the appointments and promises that President-elect Donald Trump has made for his first 100 days.
Some of the promises that Trump made during the election period were bold acts to be done on his first 100 days in office. To mention some, mass deportations of illegal immigrants, pardoning those responsible for the January 6 Capitol riot and reversing some of the key environmental policies initiated by the Biden administration.
The Republican majority in Congress allows for the passage of such plans easily. Trump has also chosen some other Republican lawmakers in the House to take sensitive positions in his administration. For example, Michael Waltz from Florida is likely to serve as the national security advisor, while Elise Stefanik from New York will be U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. There will be a special election to elect replacements for them in the House.
Easy Legislative Road for Trump
The GOP’s dominance in Congress means Trump will be largely unencumbered by opposition to his agenda. The same is likely true for the Senate, where its Republicans will make easy work of confirming presidential appointments-think cabinet and judicial nominees-also assuring that the legislative process of Trump-backed legislation will attract little opposition.
House Republicans Expect Mike Johnson to Be Speaker
House Republicans will also probably retain Mike Johnson as House Speaker, since ally Johnson is likely to remain at the top. Trump supporter Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma said that Johnson has worked hard and that there is plenty of appreciation within Trump for the effort.
Although Republicans regained the House from Democrats in 2022, their majority was beset on all sides by internal divisions and was just narrow enough to make consensus building nearly impossible. A similar, tight majority will pose problems for Congressional Republicans in the new Congress, and some legislation will undoubtedly be passed with Democratic approval.
The Future for Trump and Congressional Republicans
That being said, with the 2026 mid-term elections still several years away, Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress are likely to enjoy at least two years of limited congressional oversight. Conversely, however, with their majority slim, less doable policies may be tough to pass, and co-bipartisan cooperation will be required on certain matters.
(Includes inputs from online sources)
