Source : LNA
ATLANTA, November 3, 2026 – Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms is leading Republican Rick Jackson in the race to become Georgia’s next governor, although the contest has not yet been called, as Democrats picked up their first Senate seat of the night in North Carolina in the US midterm elections.
Results published by NBC News, using data from The Associated Press (AP), showed Bottoms on 57.6 per cent against Jackson’s 42.4 per cent, with about 62.5 per cent of the expected vote counted as of 8:38 PM Eastern Time (9:38 AM Malaysia time, November 4). NBC News rated the race “too early to call” and said Jackson would need 62.6 per cent of the remaining vote to overtake her.
The seat is open because Republican Governor Brian Kemp cannot run again due to term limits. AP has reported that Bottoms, a former Atlanta mayor and onetime adviser to former President Joe Biden, could become the first Black woman elected governor in the country, while the news site Courier Georgia noted she would also be the first Democrat elected governor of Georgia since 1998. Jackson, a billionaire, has pledged his support to President Donald Trump, according to NBC News, and The Washington Post reported that he had poured more than US$100 million of his own fortune into his campaign.
In the battle for the Senate, where Republicans hold a 53-47 majority and Democrats need a net gain of four seats, NBC News projected that former Democratic Governor Roy Cooper had defeated former Republican National Committee chairman Michael Whatley in North Carolina. NBC said it was the first flip of the night and the first time a Democrat had won a Senate seat in the state since 2008.
NBC News also projected that Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff had won re-election in Georgia against Republican Representative Mike Collins, that Democrat Chris Pappas had won New Hampshire’s open seat against Republican John Sununu, and that Democratic Senator Mark Warner had been re-elected in Virginia. Sununu conceded, telling supporters: “This has been an incredible campaign, but it is not our night.” For the Republicans, Senator Ashley Moody won Florida’s special Senate election against Democrat Angie Nixon, NBC News projected.
Several key Senate races remain undecided. In Texas, Democrat James Talarico led Republican Ken Paxton by 59.0 per cent to 39.5 per cent with about a quarter of the expected vote counted, while in Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed led Republican Mike Rogers with under 9 per cent counted. NBC’s Decision Desk said Ohio’s race leaned towards Democrat Sherrod Brown against Republican Senator Jon Husted, but it had not projected a winner. Maine’s contest between Republican Senator Susan Collins and Democrat Troy Jackson was too early to call.
In the House of Representatives, where 218 seats are needed for a majority, NBC News had projected 49 seats for Democrats and 20 for Republicans by 8:37 PM Eastern Time, with most races still uncalled. Among the early results, Democrat Pia Dandiya won the toss-up race in Florida’s 22nd District, a seat Trump carried by more than 10 percentage points in 2024, NBC News projected.
Full results may take time. NBC’s Decision Desk said Maine and Alaska are the slowest-counting states and use ranked choice voting, so if those seats are needed for a majority, control of the Senate may not be known for days or even weeks. CBS News reported that in California, mail ballots postmarked by Election Day can be received up to a week later and must go through signature verification, meaning some races could take days or weeks to call.
Prediction markets have leaned towards the Democrats. Before polls opened, Kalshi traders priced Democrats at 74 per cent to win the Senate and 94 per cent to win the House, and on election night Polymarket put Bottoms’ odds of becoming governor at 87 per cent. These are market prices, not results.
Early results from the NBC News Exit Poll put Trump’s approval among voters at 38 per cent, with 62 per cent disapproving. Speaking to CBS News by phone earlier in the evening, Trump said Republicans had a “good chance”, adding: “But we’re not going to be embarrassed.”
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