Published: 10 November 2026
Democrats have won control of both the US House of Representatives and the Senate in the 3 November midterm elections, stripping President Donald Trump’s party of its majorities for the last two years of his term. For Britain, the result does not change policy overnight. What it does is shift the political backdrop for the Iran war, energy prices and the cost of living, which Prime Minister Andy Burnham has already described as an opportunity.
What the results show
All 435 House seats and 35 of the 100 Senate seats were contested. US television networks and the Associated Press projected that Democrats would take the Senate and then the House. According to LBC’s report, Democrats won Senate seats in former Republican strongholds including Texas, Kansas, South Carolina, Ohio, Maine and Iowa. They also flipped House seats in states such as Kentucky, New Jersey, Indiana and North Carolina, winning back the chamber for the first time since 2023.
Final seat totals can change while the last races are counted and certified, so check the results pages of the major news organisations for exact numbers.
Why voters turned against the Republicans
The midterms were widely seen as a referendum on Mr Trump. LBC reported that the scale of the Democratic win reflected discontent over the cost of living, tariffs and high energy prices linked to the Iran war that the US launched with Israel earlier this year. Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that he had not been on the ballot and would have won in a landslide if he had been, and told Fox News he had expected Republicans to do better. LBC also reported that Vice-President JD Vance said the Iran war was the reason Republicans lost.
How Downing Street responded
Speaking at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua, Mr Burnham said the pendulum had swung away from populism in other parts of the world and that people were looking for something more hopeful and more unified. He called the result and the president’s reaction an opportunity to refocus on the cost of living, adding that this meant finding a resolution to conflict in the Middle East and in Ukraine. In remarks reported by AFP, he also said prices could not be reduced until the Iran war is resolved.
What it could mean for the UK
- Energy bills: the Associated Press reported that the war and bottlenecks in the Strait of Hormuz have squeezed oil and gas supplies. Our guide to the January energy price cap forecast explains what households may face.
- Interest rates: the Bank of England raised Bank Rate to 4% on 5 November, citing energy-driven inflation. See what the rise means for mortgages and savings.
- The UK’s own stance: Britain allows US forces to use some bases for operations it calls defensive. We set out both sides of that debate in the Iran war and Britain.
What the result does not change
A Democratic Congress gains oversight powers, investigations and influence over spending and legislation when the new Congress takes office in January. It does not remove the president’s authority as commander-in-chief, so any shift on Iran would still depend largely on decisions in the White House. Reports suggest senior Democrats want the war to end, but there is no confirmed change in US policy yet, and no confirmed change in the UK’s position either.
Quick answers
Who won the 2026 US midterms? Democrats are projected to control both the House and the Senate.
Does this change UK policy on Iran? Not directly. The UK government’s position on base access has not been reported as changing, though Mr Burnham says the result is an opportunity to push for an end to the conflict.
Will UK energy bills fall as a result? Not immediately. Forecasts for January point to higher bills, and prices depend largely on the course of the conflict and wholesale markets.
For more on how these stories connect, follow our World and Politics sections.
