Voters were sick of incumbents. Tuesday was only the third time in 50 years a party lost control of both chambers of Congress at once

Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate on Tuesday night, and it was only the third time in the last 50 years that control of both chambers changed in the same election. Republican incumbents took the losses, from a six-term senator in Maine to a three-term governor in Texas.

Nearly half of voters said they saw the election as a chance to rebuke President Donald Trump, and the share with a negative view of the Republican Party rose from 52% in 2022 to 59%, according to NBC News’s exit poll.

Sen. Susan Collins, who has held her Maine seat since 1997, conceded to Democrat Troy Jackson, NBC News reported. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott lost his bid for a record fourth term to Democrat Gina Hinojosa, the AP called. In Ohio and South Carolina, two Republicans appointed to the Senate in the last two years, Jon Husted and Darline Graham, lost their first elections for the seats. Graham’s loss handed Democrats a seat that had been in Republican hands since Strom Thurmond switched parties in 1964.

The losses reached governors’ offices too. Republicans entered Tuesday with a 26-24 edge in governorships, and Democrats flipped four: Texas, Georgia, Ohio and Iowa.

The clearest factor was the president. Just 38% of voters approved of Trump’s performance and 62% disapproved, according to NBC’s exit poll. The same poll found Republicans had lost their advantage on the economy, the issue the party had leaned on for two years. Voters named the cost of living........

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