
Americast
Midterms! Democrats make historic shift in US politics (results, part 2)
4 November 2026
Available for over a year
What’s next for the Democrats, and for the last two years of Trump’s presidency? As Democrats make sweeping gains across traditional red states in America, Justin, Anthony and Sarah discuss how it was done, and the impact for Democrats and Donald Trump.
Kansas has elected its first Democratic senator since the 1930s. South Carolina has rejected a Senate candidate strongly endorsed by Donald Trump. And Iowa and Ohio have also gone to the Democrats. Mississippi, meanwhile, is still too close to call. The president has said he will accept the results. But with Democrats in control of Congress, what can he still get done?
Justin, Sarah and Anthony ask what this means for the rest of the Trump presidency, and which way both parties might now turn as they look ahead to 2028.
HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America Editor
• Anthony Zurcher, North America Correspondent
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This episode was made by George Dabby with Oliver Bowbrick, Alix Pickles and Nik Sindle. The technical producer was Dafydd Evans. The series producer is Purvee Pattni. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.
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