President Donald Trump won Tuesday in Florida, one of the most important battleground states in his battle for reelection against Democratic challenger Joe Biden, US media projected.
With 29 electoral votes, the Sunshine State was seen as a must-win for Trump. He also won the state in 2016, besting Democrat Hillary Clinton by less than a percentage point.
The state is famous for nail-bitingly close election results, perhaps the most famous in 2000 between Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Al Gore, and its voters have picked the winner in 18 of the past 20 presidential elections.
Meanwhile, Democrats flipped a US Senate seat in Colorado Tuesday in their bid to regain control of the upper chamber of Congress, but Republicans countered by ousting a vulnerable Democrat in Alabama, networks projected.
With control of the Senate up for grabs, Democrats put their stamp once again on the House of Representatives, securing another two years as the party in power with Speaker Nancy Pelosi — President Donald Trump’s chief nemesis in Washington — likely to preside over her flock again.
“I’m very, very proud of the fact that tonight — relatively early — we are able to say we have held the House,” Pelosi said.
In the more closely-watched Senate showdown, Democrats drew first blood when Colorado’s former governor John Hickenlooper, a 68-year-old businessman and geologist, handily defeated one-term Senator Cory Gardner to pick up a seat.
“Thank you, Colorado! Serving you is the honor of my life, and I can’t wait to be your Senator,” Hickenlooper said on Twitter.
Republicans are scrambling to preserve their 53-47 Senate majority, with polls showing several races tilting towards Democrats. Election forecaster FiveThirtyEight.com give Democrats a three in four chance of winning Senate control.
Democratic nominee Joe Biden’s party would need to gain four seats to seize the chamber — or three seats if Biden wins the White House, as a US vice president breaks a tie in the Senate in the event of a 50-50 vote.
Republicans got a defensive boost though when retired American football coach Tommy Tuberville, 66, handily defeated Senator Doug Jones in a race that was widely expected to result in a Republican pick-up.
Jones had faced steep reelection odds in a ruby-red southern state after winning in a 2017 special election upset against Roy Moore, a Republican who faced sexual misconduct allegations.
