Kevin McCarthy declares VICTORY in the House

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told cheering supporters late Tuesday that they would wake up to see Democrats and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi outnumbered.

McCarthy made the comments while standing in front of a “take back the house” banner in Washington, DC, one night when the GOP appeared in sight to take the room — but networks waited to call because Republican hopes fell short. the tidal wave many elected leaders counted on.

“Let me tell you now, you’re out late. But when you wake up tomorrow, we’ll be in the majority and Nancy Pelosi in the minority,” McCarthy said.

McCarthy, hoping to grab Pelosi’s gavel to become a speaker, took down a string of Republican feats, most notably enjoying beating Democratic Representative Sean Patrick Maloney in New York.

“In New York, we beat Democrats’ campaign chairman Sean Patrick Maloney,” McCarthy said.

“In Florida alone, we won four seats. We’re ready to sweep the entire state of Iowa.”

He pointed to state senator Jennifer Kiggans, who defeated House Representative Elaine Luria in Virginia, and to Monica De La Cruz’s victory in Texas’s 15th congressional district, to be held by a Republican for the first time in 15 years.

He also pointed to a likely Republican John James victory in Michigan’s 10th district.

“If you believe in freedom, hard work and the American dream, these results prove there is a place for you in the Republican Party,” McCarthy said. “We’re expanding this party.”

‘Nancy Pelosi will be outnumbered,’ McCarthy predicted

Democratic Rep. Virginia’s Jennifer Wexton also won reelection; above Jill Biden campaigned with Wexton on Monday

Democratic Rep. Virginia’s Abigail Spanberger, a top Republican target, won reelection and held off a red wave

President Joe Biden sent a series of congratulations to Democrats on Tuesday night

But McCarthy overlooked some setbacks, even in the states he mentioned.

Two other top GOP targets in Virginia, Abigail Abigail Spanberger and Jennifer Wexton won their races even as Luria fell.

Ohio Rep. Marcy Kaptur survived a tough challenge.

Rep. Elissa Slotkin held off a tough challenge from Republican Tom Barrett in a district that includes Lansing, Michigan, after receiving help from Republican Representative Liz Cheney. “If we want to ensure the survival of our republic, we have to get out of politics as usual,” Cheney said during a campaign visit.

Democrat Seth Magaziner won in a Rhode Island House seat that was heavily contested by both sides. And Democrat Andy Kim held out in New Jersey in what was seen as a close-knit race.

Those results came on a night when Republicans were salivating in polls for big wins.

By historical standards, the party that’s out of power usually wins seats — especially when the president’s approval rating is deeply submerged like Biden’s.

Donald Trump lost 40 seats in 2018 and Barack Obama lost 63 seats in 2010.

This year has also seen a large number of Democratic retirements amid Biden’s poor poll numbers and signs of a GOP wave.

But when the results came in, even some top-elected Republicans admitted that the results fell short of expectations.

“Definitely not a Republican wave, that’s for sure,” South Carolina GOP Senator Lindsey Graham said in comments to NBC News.

And Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas said, “It hasn’t been as big a wave as I’d hoped. We’ve had some close races so far that went the other way.”

With millions of votes outstanding, there was a chance Republicans would take the House, but with a slim majority, that would give McCarthy or any other Republican leader a headache.

The conservative House Freedom Caucus would gain more power, with lawmakers like Rep. Marjorie Talor Greene of Georgia who would play an outrageous role.

An outspoken conservative Republican, Rep. Lauren Boebert trailed her Democratic opponent by 2 points in Colorado, taking 83 percent of the vote.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has been dealing with the fallout from a hammer attack on her husband Paul Pelosi, released a statement early Wednesday morning praising her party’s ability to hold the line against an expected “red wave.” ‘.

“While many races remain too close together, it is clear that House Democratic members and candidates are exceeding expectations across the country,” she said.

“As states continue to draft the final results, every vote should be counted as cast,” she added.

As of Wednesday just before 2 a.m. ET, Republicans flipped four seats, while Democrats managed to flip an open North Carolina district held by GOP Rep. Ted Budd, who left it for a successful run for the North Carolina Senate seat.