Republicans win control of the Senate. This has serious consequences.

Editor’s note, November 6 at 6 ET: Donald Trump has won the presidential election in 2024. For more of our 2024 campaign coverage, click here.

Republicans have won a majority in the Senate, turning the body after four years of Democratic control.

This was predicted result given how vulnerable Democrats were this cycle: While they defended nine seats in the battleground state, Republicans defended just three. The GOP successfully flipped key states including West Virginia and Ohio, while holding off unexpected competitive challenges in places like Nebraska and Texas.

The Republican wins come as former President Donald Trump leads in the polls, with several swing states still up for grabs. From As of 2 a.m. ET, however, the presidential primary has not been called for either candidate early results seem to suggest an advantage for Trumpwith Vice President Kamala Harris’s plausible paths to victory narrowing.

In their campaigns, Republican Senate candidates leaned heavily on criticism of Democrats’ economic policies as many voters continued to struggle with inflation and the high cost of living. They also continued to spread fear about immigration, arguing that only they could offer solutions to border crossing increases like the one in 2023. Overall, because they were not in control of the Senate, the Republican candidates were able to to take advantage of anti-incumbent sentiment – and current discontent – as they campaigned to take back certain seats.

Republican gains could have major implications for a potential Trump or Harris administration. If Trump wins, the Republican Senate would effectively offer him a blank check on appointments and allow him to resume stacking the courts with his justices. Depending on the outcome of the House races, a GOP Senate could also allow an eventual Trump administration to pursue policy priorities such as rolling back Affordable Care Act (ACA) and renewal of corporate tax breaks. If Harris wins, the Senate may well block key judges and block her legislative goals.

What Republican Senate Control Could Mean

The role the Senate will play in the next few years will depend a lot on who wins the presidential election.

The last Trump presidency was ultimately illustrative of what happens when both the White House and the Senate are held by Republicans.

In that scenario, Trump was able to promote his justices at a rapid pace and reshape the Circuit Court and Supreme Court with conservative picks. In total Trump was able to get 234 judges confirmedincluding the three now sitting on the Supreme Court who were found to be integral in overthrowing Roe v. Wade.

Similarly, Trump faced little backlash or accountability for his rhetoric or policy decisions throughout his tenure, including attempts to implement a Muslim entry ban or shutting down the government as leverage for funding for a wall along the US-Mexico border. Although some Republican senators spoke out, few really voiced their opposition to Trump or scrutinized his actions. When Trump was impeached for his role in fomenting the Jan. 6 uprising, for example, only seven Republicans voted to convict him — the rest voted to acquit him.

If Republicans maintain control of the House, a GOP Congress could also help Trump advance his legislative agenda.

Trump has focused more on executive actions he wants to take (such as on customs, immigration and international relations) than on a congressional agenda. However, Republicans have long expressed interest in limiting access to the ACA. One issue lawmakers will consider in the next year is the expiration of ACA premium subsidies, State reports. House Speaker Mike Johnson has already emphasized that he is interested in large “reform” also for the health care bill.

The tax cuts that Republicans passed in 2017 is also up for renewal, and will be another issue lawmakers in the next Congress will have to tackle. Trump has proposed cutting back the corporate tax rate and has also provided some tax relief. Regardless of whether they take the House, Senate Republicans are likely to favor these cuts. And Republicans could also push for extended leases for oil and gas drilling which the Democrats had previously curbed.

Senate Republicans have already signaled that they plan to be as obstructionist as possible if dealing with a Harris administration.

In particular, both Sens. John Thune (R-SD) and John Cornyn (R-TX), two likely successors to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, has told CNN that they are not sure whether they would hold a vote on potential Harris Supreme Court nominees. With the majority, the GOP could try to block any Harris court appointment from moving forward, just as they once did with former President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland and some of his lower court picks. In the case of Garland, the GOP refused to ever hold a confirmation hearing or vote for him — and was able to prevent him from being on the bench.

They could also do the same for other cabinet roles, and they could also block legislation from moving forward. Harris ran a major campaign to work to pass policies that require congressional approval, including sweeping immigration and abortion reform. These policy goals are unlikely to materialize in a GOP-controlled Senate.

Whether Trump or Harris are in the White House, expect the upper chamber to play a significant role in advancing or hindering their efforts.