President Donald Trump on Monday publicly doubted the honesty of the midterm elections and blamed voting machines, six days after Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate. He offered no evidence, and the remarks landed as Republicans weigh the damage from a result described as one of the most lopsided midterm outcomes in modern history.

In a Truth Social post, Trump asked whether anyone truly believed the vote was honest, wondered how the polls could be so wrong and wrote that the outcome was driven by machines rather than voters. The tone shifted sharply from election night, when he told The New York Times he was “absolutely willing” to accept the results. He had also said he would work with Democrats while keeping his veto power ready.

Democrats' margins keep growing

The Associated Press count as of Saturday put Democrats at 54 Senate seats to Republicans' 44, with two races still undeclared. In the House, Democrats held 254 seats to the GOP's 162 with 19 contests uncalled, well beyond the 218 needed for a majority. Estimates show the party heading toward its largest House majority since 2008, and Cook Political Report's tracker had Democrats ahead in the national House vote by nearly 13 points.

Democrats also took full control of state government in at least six states: Arizona, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Nevada and Wisconsin.

Mississippi and Alaska still hang in the balance

In Mississippi, Democrat Scott Colom led Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith by more than 2,500 votes with about 97% counted. Mail ballots postmarked by Election Day count if they arrive by Tuesday, and officials have been working through roughly 14,000 affidavit ballots, about 77% of which have been accepted so far. The state has no automatic recount for this race, county clerks must certify results by Friday, and Hyde-Smith's campaign has vowed to see the contest through.

In Alaska, Democrat Mary Peltola led Sen. Dan Sullivan by 637 votes with 74% counted as of the weekend. Ranked-choice tabulation begins Nov. 18 if no candidate clears 50%. In Colorado's 4th District, Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert trailed Democrat Eileen Laubacher by about 3,200 votes with 97% counted, and counties have until Nov. 13 to finish.

Miller takes over as Hegseth faces impeachment

Trump on Friday named Stephen Miller, the architect of his immigration crackdown, as White House chief of staff, replacing Susie Wiles, who is moving to his political operation. Miller started Monday. Vice President JD Vance called it a well-deserved promotion, while House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries called Miller a reckless extremist and some Republicans blamed his policies for lost Latino support.

Separately, Rep. Thomas Massie, an outgoing Kentucky Republican, introduced eight articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, accusing him of conducting military operations without congressional authorization. A vote could come this week. Jeffries has said he is a hard yes, House Oversight Chairman James Comer said there are many questions about Hegseth, and Trump said he has confidence in his defense secretary. Removal would require a two-thirds Senate vote.

Trump on immigration and Iran

In a 60 Minutes interview taped Friday, Trump said his deportation policy was too tough and that immigration both helped and hurt Republicans. He has also acknowledged that the Iran war contributed to the losses while defending the decision to fight it, and Vance has blamed the war directly for the scale of the defeat.

Next checkpoint

What to watch

The Mississippi mail-ballot deadline and Friday certification, Alaska's Nov. 18 ranked-choice count, Colorado's Nov. 13 deadline, a possible House vote on Hegseth and whether Trump repeats his fraud claims.

Evidence

Sources and editorial notes

Seat counts and race margins reflect Associated Press figures as relayed by Yahoo News and local outlets, and may have changed since publication. Trump's quotes come from his Truth Social posts as reported by CNBC, The Hill and Yahoo News. Positions are attributed to the officials quoted.

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2026 midtermsTrump election resultsHegseth impeachmentStephen Miller chief of staffMississippi Senate race