South Carolina just elected a Democrat to the Senate for the first time since 1998.

South Carolina just elected a Democrat to the Senate for the first time since 1998. Annie Andrews, a pediatrician, is projected to flip a Republican-held seat. Roy Cooper is projected to flip North Carolina, and Jon Ossoff is projected to win reelection in Georgia. ABC News now projects Democrats will control both the House and the Senate.

For context, the Senate went into Election Day at 53 Republicans, 45 Democrats and 2 independents. The House stood at 218 Republicans, 214 Democrats, 1 independent and 2 vacancies. Those margins were thin, and the projections now have both flipping.

Markets reacted quickly. Bloomberg reported S&P 500 futures fell about 1%, wiping out an earlier 0.5% gain, while Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 1.8%. At the session low, E-mini S&P futures were down 1.41% and Nasdaq 100 futures 2.44%. They have since pared that to -0.85% and -1.31%.

The 10-year Treasury yield closed at 4.95% and was trading near 4.90%, and the dollar slid with stocks. Asia isn't following the selloff: Reuters has Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan up 0.4%. Bloomberg and Reuters tied the risk-off move to early Democratic gains and expectations of less fiscal stimulus and more regulatory scrutiny.

My question is whether that first move holds. Divided government means gridlock, and traders are clearly repricing what can actually get done over the next two years. Futures have already clawed back part of the drop. Once the overnight reaction settles, I'm curious how much of this sticks.

Sources:
ABC News: https://abc7ny.com/story/2026-midterm-elections-democrats-projected-win-enough-seats-gain-control-house/20013789/
Bloomberg: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-11-03/stock-market-today-dow-s-p-live-updates
Rappler: https://www.rappler.com/world/us-canada/usa-midterm-elections-results-updates-november-3-2026/

Not financial advice. For informational and educational purposes only.