Republicans take control: GOP sweeps to Senate majority with a series of victories over the Democrats as Mitch McConnell tells lame duck Obama he is on a mission to 'turn this country around'

The Senate has 52 Republican seats to 45 Democrats after the former gained seven states, one more than they needed to take control


Republican Mitch McConell was crowned Senate majority leader tonight after winning an historic seven Senate seats from the Democrats. Mr McConnell celebrated his own victory in Kentucky with his wife Elaine Chao (left) at the start of a night which saw the Democrats lost control of the Upper House. 

The Republicans are guaranteed a majority of 52. Mr McConnell said he wanted to 'turn this country around' and said it was time for the government to change - although he held out an olive branch to President Obama, saying that a two-party system should not mean constant conflict. Tueday night's results saw a total of seven seats change hands with the Republicans seizing West Virginia, where Shelley Moore Capito (center) won. The other victors for the GOP were: Top row left to right: Tom Cotton, Arkanas; Steve Daines, Montana; Thom Tillis, North Carolina; bottom row left to right: Cory Gardner, Colorado; Joni Ernst, Iwoa; and Mike Rounds, South Dakota. The victory leaves President Obama a lame duck and suggests the Republicans have a strong springboard for the 2016 presidential election.

Republicans have consolidated their power on Capitol Hill, picking up more seats than they needed to gain control of the Senate – and leaving President Obama a lame duck for the last two years of his presidency.

The Senate will now be shaped by 52 Republican seats to 45 Democrats after the former gained seven states, one more than they needed to take control.

Republican triumphs included key wins in Arkansas, West Virginia, Montana, South Dakota, Colorado, North Carolina and Iowa, all seats controlled by Democrats when the day began. 

They also strengthened their grip on the House of Representatives and when the new Congress takes power in January, will be in charge of both chambers of Congress for the first time since elections in 2006. 

And if the Senate was the cake, governor's mansions would become sweet icing for the GOP as they took home three unexpected gubernatorial wins in Maryland, Illinois and Massachusetts. 

While she was predicted to lose, a 20-point shellacking made for a difficult evening for Wendy Davis, the liberal standard-bearer who saw her dream of becoming Texas governor go up in flames at the hands of state Attorney General Greg Abbott.

Another big theme on Tuesday was how little the support of big name politicians meant to Democrats in tight races.

Bill and Hillary Clinton saw seven of the U.S. Senate hopefuls they stumped for suffer major losses, while President Obama and the First Lady proved ineffective at stopping momentum from swinging towards the Republican party.

By night's end it was hard to find bright spots for Obama's party as result after crushing result came rolling in.

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Victory: Mitch McConnell thanks voters in Kentucky for returning him to the Senate - where he will almost certainly lead a Republican majority. Standing with his wife Elaine Chao on Tuesday night, he used his speech to put his party firmly in the driving seat telling Democrats their government was 'too busy focusing on things it should not be doing at all'

Via - Dailymail