(NewsNation) — Following numerous victories for Democrats in last night’s elections, prediction markets are showing more favorability for Democrats to regain control of the House of Representatives in 2026.
Prediction market Kalshi now projects that the Democratic Party has a 69% chance of winning the House next year, compared to Republicans’ 31% chance. Numbers for Democrats are up significantly from the estimates on Election Day, which gave the Democratic Party a 59.5% chance of winning compared to Republicans’ 40.5% chance.
Off-year elections are often seen as a barometer of the country’s pulse on the current leadership. After several resounding victories, Democrats are feeling more confident about their chances heading into next year’s midterm elections.
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What happened on election night?
Democrats won big Tuesday in key state and local races across the United States.
New Jersey and Virginia voters elected Democrats Mikie Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger, respectively, over their Republican opponents in gubernatorial elections.
Three Democratic justices were retained on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
In Democratic-leaning California, voters approved a mid-decade congressional redistricting that could grant the party up to five more seats in the U.S. House.
In New York, residents chose Zohran Mamdani to lead the nation’s largest city.
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Democrats rejoice; look ahead to 2026
After losing control of the White House and both chambers of Congress last year, things were starting to look pretty bleak for Democrats.
But with the narrowest House majority in nearly 100 years and major victories across the country, winning the House next year is beginning to look like a realistic goal for Democrats in 2026.
Former President Barack Obama took to social media Tuesday night to congratulate the Democratic winners and stated, “It’s a reminder that when we come together around strong, forward-looking leaders who care about the issues that matter, we can win.”
“The future looks a little bit brighter,” he continued.
“The election results were not vague,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters Wednesday. “They were not unclear. They were a lightning bolt: Trump, America doesn’t like what you’re doing. Change course.”
“The Democratic Party is back,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries touted on social media Wednesday.
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GOP downplays significance of elections
At a press conference on Capitol Hill on Wednesday morning, House Speaker Mike Johnson downplayed Tuesday night’s election results, stating, “What happened last night was blue states and blue cities voted blue. We all saw that coming. And no one should read too much into last night’s election results.”
“Off-year elections are not indicative of what’s to come. That’s what history teaches us,” Johnson continued.
Vice President JD Vance took to social media on Wednesday to minimize the results, claiming it’s “idiotic to overreact to a couple elections in blue states.”
A White House source told NewsNation that “nothing has changed” since 2024 and that the results were not indicative of national politics, brushing off Tuesday night’s races as limited to Democratic strongholds.
President Trump also dismissed the Democratic victories on Tuesday night, attributing them to the ongoing government shutdown and the fact that his name wasn’t on the ballot.
“‘TRUMP WASN’T ON THE BALLOT, AND SHUTDOWN, WERE THE TWO REASONS THAT REPUBLICANS LOST ELECTIONS TONIGHT,’ according to Pollsters,” Trump wrote on social media.
NewsNation’s Tom Dempsey contributed to this report.
