Republicans take over U.S. Senate, House

Obama

The presumptive Republican leader of the US Senate has vowed to “work together” with President Barack Obama on issues where they can agree.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said working within a two-party political system did not mean “we have to live in perpetual conflict”.

Mr McConnell and a host of Republicans swept to victory in the Senate, and now control both chambers of Congress.

Mr Obama will respond later to what was a terrible result for Democrats.

As the new Senate majority leader when the new Congress sits in January, Mr McConnell will control the chamber’s legislative agenda and floor proceedings.

He has been a fierce critic of the president’s healthcare overhaul and once vowed to block Mr Obama at every tun. But in the glow of victory, he hinted at compromise.

Rajesh Mirchandani explains what the results mean for Obama presidency

“Tonight we begin another [race]… the race to turn this country around, to restore hope and confidence and optimism to this commonwealth and across this nation,” Mr McConnell said on Tuesday evening.

Barack Obama’s unpopularity in the run-up to these mid-term elections is hard to exaggerate. One of the things that is lost in the big picture of the night is some of the sidebar poll findings – the American people are fed up with all their politicians. It’s not just the occupant of the White House, though as Harry Truman most famously noted, the buck stops with the president.