Republicans reel from midterm losses as Democrats flip 40-plus seats
What's next: GOP lawmakers are weighing whether to moderate or double down before Democrats take the House and Senate in January.
Republicans returned to Washington this week trying to explain sweeping midterm defeats that will hand Democrats control of both the House and Senate in January. Democrats flipped more than 40 Republican-held House seats, and party officials and lawmakers openly acknowledged they had lost touch with voters on costs and governing. Rep. Richard Hudson, who led the House GOP campaign arm, said Republicans failed to show voters they cared about high prices and daily pressures. Sen. Josh Hawley blamed cuts to rural health care and a broader abandonment of working people, while Rep. Lauren Boebert said, “We collectively failed.” Even after the losses, there was little sign of a clean break from President Donald Trump as Republicans met privately to assess what went wrong and how much of their agenda they can still push through before losing power.