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Show DAILY Paget Wednesday, November X 2004 HERALD llll CONGRESS GOP Gains Results as 72.5 12:49 a.m. EST Nov. 3 of precincts reporting Senate and House of Representatives House The House of Representative s 435 seats are closely watched for races Democrat victory Independent victory Other Seat switched parties Seat switched parties Seat switched parties Seat switched parties Chicago NOTE: Due to redistricting in CteveUmd ; i Ssattls f-- . jr if if 1 BSB No data Republican victory S3 SI I 1 ; t Malr . Texas, Maine, and Pennsylvania, . district boundaries and voting populations (a House of f Representatives districts may have changed since the 2002 congressional elections. ' , Dstrolt - j Pittsburgh I Districts too small to be shown on ,- - Mass. 1 Sj thsmapars represented by squares labslad with tha districts numbsr. jX. Rhode II O .: a 1 sj ''SB,. 8800 Connecticut New York J, f';v:;L 6 Bay Area n nil n no it i f'Cdt New Jersey Pennsylvani - Maryland Northern Virginia ESVM . Los Angeles : - I w v " ' MM" 8 I u it i ' nrcr-a-.'.- II OH " - v Atlanta ' " ff r4l'va,'., ft iri nnnn mmmmm Alaska Parties net gain or loss 5IIIII Democrat ' Fort Worth Dallas Houston Tampa 14' Republican Indeoendent 27 -- in seats IIIIIII7 11 0 Other 0 House breakdown Democrats 32 Not yet 186 100 50 '" 1 218 200 150 Republican 300 250 National voter turnout Presidential elections since 1 972 voter participation act Republican victory closely contested balance of power was Y Ore. Seat switched parties revised in Tuesday s 34 Seat switched parties li.hf; Independent victory can. ' Seat switched parties ' No Parties net gain or loss in seats Democrat a 3 113 Republican No 0 Independent Other data :iJ C I race fh pS Democrat victory Senate races. 435 400 350 Senate races A 216 Alaska ' II hjr - voter-ag- e population Voters casting a ballot as of 220 million Americans 200 nxl Kitt VV J , J krH$ Total U.S. Ma- Md. 180 160 140 Mrnff ' 120 100 80 frrellmtrtary figure en 0 ! 0 Senate breakdown Democrat Not yet 43 sisSaasiaiasiBaisiBisias 20 10 4 Independent Republican 1 Ull 40 30 50 60 80 70 20 52 pi '100 90 Associated Press; Congress; Census Bureau OURCES: 7 7 8 J. 8 8 Balestrieri, 9 9.0 0. 0. DeLorenzo AP GOP strengthens hold on congress lanat Unnlr janexnouR I oijE iu: tured relentless mudslinging in many av:;: places, including Democratic commer- cials that questioned Bunning's mental health and Republican TV ads accusing Annoloc Timoc LUbMiiyeieb I Republicans retained control of both the House and Senate in Tuesday's elections, extending their decadelong domination of Capitol Hill as they swept up victories across the South and threatened to unseat Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota. Sea Patty Murray of Washington of being soft on terrorist leader Osama bin Ladea The candidates and political parties spent more than $445 million on the contest for the Senate up from about $326 million in 2002, according ratic state Sen. Barack Obama, wM to an analysis of Federal Election Comdrawn congressional districts that faRepublicans secured at least the 51 was elected by a wide margin in Illi "r mission data by the nonpartisan Center seats needed to command a majority in vored Republican candidates. A key Senate by picking up nois, making him the only black in thai c for Responsive Politics. the question was whether the gains in Senate and the first since the 19981 Texas would offset losses in other seats formerly held by Democrats in Heading into the election, Republifeat of Carol Moseley Braun, whaarasin: cans controlled the Senate by a scant the Carolinas and Georgia. And they parts of the country. The outcome of the battle for Capitol also an Illinois Democrat. joriMA could increase their majority if they majority since there were 48 DeIf Democratic state Attorney GQiereUs mocrats and one independent, who Hill is crucial to the man who wins the were to win some of the contests that al Ken Salazar wins the open Senate had yet to be decided by early Wednes- White House. For Democrat John F. usually voted with the Democrats. Conseat in Colorado, he will be the only That meant Democrats needed a net Kerry, a Republican-controlle- d day morning. Latino in the Senate and the first since Democratic Party officials had congain of two seats to win a majority gress could loom as a roadblock to his Sen. Joseph M. Montoya, or one if Kerry were elected, because ceded all along that they faced an up- -' agenda of expanded health care, tax his vice president would break any 50-5increases for the wealthy and inhill climb in their quest for a Senate tie in the Senate. The new Senate may be more conmajority because the most competitive creased education funding. For PresiBut Democrats were seeking that and not just because there servative dent Bush, a Republican victory in contests were being fought in states small gain on a playing field that was considered to be Republican strongCongress would make it easier for him will be several Republicans replacing Democrats. Two of the newly elected tilted strongly against them. Of the 34 to advance his second-terholds. But by midnight they acknowl-edge- d agenda of GOP senators seats on the ballot this year, 19 were Tom Coburn of Oklamore tax cuts and a Social Security that, even with many races yet held by Democrats and 15 were held by homa and Jim DeMint of South Carolioverhaul. to be decided, there was no string of na are vocal representatives of the The final balance of power in the victories left that would give them a Republicans. The nine most competitive races were in states that favored Senate was not known late Tuesday iGOPs more conservative wing. majority. Bush in 2000 And in Louisiana, a Republican may "We've had a tough climb," Sea Jon because it hinged on the outcome of including many in the be elected senator for the first time in chairman of the Demoseveral races, including South Dakota South, where five Democratic retireCorzine, ments gave the GOP a golden opportuthe state's history if Rep. David Vitter where Daschle was battling former cratic Senatorial Campaign Committee wins the seat of retiring Democratic said on CBS. "I'm disappointed we're nity to take away seats, Rep. John Thune, the GOP candidate. "We were playing on tough turf," Sea John B. Breaux. Vitter was lead The competition for an open Senate probably not going to take it back." field in early re- said Cara Morris, a spokeswoman for seat in Louisiana may not be settled un- ing the Although the attention focused on a the Democratic Senatorial Campaign handful of closely fought Senate races, til December because a runoff election turns. But if no candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two Committee.' must be held if none of the candidates most incumbents up for Democrats were encouraged by earwill compete in a Dec. 4 receives more than 50 percent of the coasted to victory. runoff. vote. ly returns showing that Bunning was In the House, Republicans were hopin danger of losing to Democrat Daniel The balloting for Congress was the adThe 2004 elections seem likely to ing to expand their current Mongiardo, a state senator who had vantage, building on the defeat of four produce a Senate slightly more diverse culmination of a long, exceptionally accused the incumbent of being out of than the old one: It will include Democ- - nasty and expensive campaiga It fea incumbents in Texas as a result of re er 51-4- 9 0 , i multi-candida- vote-gette- 22-se- touch and unfit for office. But by night's end, the incumbent had pulled ahead to a narrow victory. Republicans were relieved by returns from the Oklahoma Senate race, even though the state should have been an easy win for Coburn. He trailed his Democratic opponent, Rep. Brad Carson, for much of the campaign because of missteps and Democratic attacks on him as a political extremist. But he pulled ahead with an attack strategy that portrayed Carson as too liberaL The key GOP gains came from picking up three Southern seats previously inheld by Democrats who retired cluding DeMint's victory in South Carolina, where he succeeds Sea Ernest F. Hollings. Democrats lost the North Carolina seat vacated by Sea John Edwards when he became Kerry's running mate: GOP Rep. Richard for most of the campaiga but ended up beating former Clinton administration aide Erskine Bowles by spotlighting Bowles' ties to the former president. And in Georgia, Republican Rep. Johnny Isakson easily won the seat vacated by retiring Democratic Bun-traile- d Sen. Zell Miller. The marquee battle was the powerful challenge to Daschle, who struggled to turn back a challenge from Thune in a state that was strongly Republicans portrayed nun as the linchpin of congressional opposition to Bush's policies; Daschle emphasized how his clout had benefited his home state. The vote was so close that both sides were preparing for a possible recount, which would be required under state law if the winner's margin of victory is less than 0.25 percent of the vote. pro-Bus- h. |