Summary
In a closely watched midterm election, the results came in largely as polls predicted. Democrats successfully took control of the House, and Republicans added to their majority in the Senate by picking up between two to four seats.
While it was a “wave” election, it was not a tsunami, and both parties received mixed messages from voters about the direction in which they want the country to go. Democrats were successful in areas like Kansas, Oklahoma and some Texas districts where they previously have not been. They were also able to score victories in Michigan, Wisconsin and Ohio – states that had been turning more “red” in recent years. Representative Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is poised to, reclaim the Speaker’s gavel, and the Democratic House majority will likely conduct oversight and investigations into the Trump Administration.
Republicans were successful in flipping several Senate seats in states that President Trump won and remains popular. We expect the Senate to continue to focus on judicial nominations. In all, the result is divided government for the next two years and we expect there to be little appetite for bipartisan legislating.
Attached please find our brief post-midterm elections analysis, focused on the new makeup of the House and Senate chambers; key committees with healthcare jurisdiction; as well as some of the topline takeaways from gubernatorial elections, including the outcome of state Medicaid expansion ballot initiatives in Idaho, Utah, Nebraska and Montana.