Republicans Secure Trifecta for 119th Congress

On Tuesday, November 5, 2024, former President Trump was reelected with 312 electoral votes, flipping the battleground states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania, won by President Biden in 2020. President-Elect Trump eclipsed his 2020 vote total and currently leads in the national popular vote with 75.8M votes (50.2%) compared to Harris’ 72.8M votes (48.2%).

Republicans have also gained control in the Senate and now hold 53 seats compared to Democrats’ 47 seats. Republicans flipped four seats that were previously held by Democrats or Democrat-aligned Independents.

Montana: Tim Sheehy (R) defeated incumbent Sen. Jon Tester (D).

Ohio: Bernie Moreno (R) defeated incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown (D).

Pennsylvania: Dave McCormick (R) is projected to defeat incumbent Sen. Bob Casey (D). The race is currently undergoing a recount as McCormick leads Casey by just under 30,000 votes.

West Virginia: Jim Justice (R) defeated Glenn Elliot (D) to fill the seat vacated by Sen. Joe Manchin’s (I) retirement.

New Senators were also elected in Arizona, California, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey and Utah, though these seats remained in control of the party that previously held them.

Republicans also retained a slim majority in the House and will hold at least 218 seats, though several House races remain uncalled. A notable flip for Republicans is Tom Barrett’s (R) victory over Chris Hertel (D) in MI-7 to fill the seat vacated by Elissa Slotkin (D) for her successful Senate bid.

With JD Vance’s election as Vice President, there will be an Ohio Senate vacancy that will be filled by an appointment from Ohio Governor Mike DeWine (R). President Trump has also indicated he will be nominating several Members of Congress to senior positions in his administration, including Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), Elsie Stefanik (R-NY) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL). If confirmed, these vacancies will need to be filled in accordance with individual state procedures.

AACOM will provide a full breakdown of college of osteopathic medicine congressional representation in the 119th Congress, including new Representatives and Senators in a forthcoming issue of the OME Advocate.