Election 2010 Find NPR's coverage of key races, analysis of what each party stands to gain — or lose — and what it all means for voters.

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Election 2010

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The Leadership: Who's In Charge Of Congress?

January 5, 2011 • Check out the faces of the new Republican leadership in the House and see the Democrats who remain in charge of the Senate.

63 Pickup: Rep. Dan Maffei (D) Concedes In New York 25

November 23, 2010 • Rep. Dan Maffei, a freshman Democrat from upstate New York (Syracuse), has conceded defeat to Republican challenger Ann Marie Buerkle.

Recount Ordered In Minnesota Gov. Race

November 23, 2010 • Minnesota, home of a famous recount in its 2008 Senate race, will now recount the 2.1 million votes cast in its still-too-close-to-call gubernatorial race.

Another Improbable GOP Victory: Rep. Solomon Ortiz (D) Concedes In Texas 27

November 23, 2010 • The GOP claims another House seat, as Rep. Solomon Ortiz (D), who has been in Congress since the seat was created in 1982, concedes defeat to Republican challenger Blake Farenthold.

Alaska's Lisa Murkowski Passes Joe Miller In Senate Vote Count

November 16, 2010 • Sen. Murkowski has opened a 1,700 point lead over Joe Miller via her write-in votes. Her lead is only expected to grow as the more than 8,000 remaining write-in votes are counted.

Obama Makes Beeline For Independent Voters

November 15, 2010 • President Obama is signaling that he plans to push hard for bipartisanship. It's an appeal to political independents who say they're against gridlock and want the president and congressional leaders to work together.

If John Boehner Can't Be Rebel Or Compromiser, What's Left?

Ten-term Ohio Rep. John Boehner, the House Speaker-in-waiting. Cliff Owen/AP hide caption

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Cliff Owen/AP

If John Boehner Can't Be Rebel Or Compromiser, What's Left?

November 15, 2010 • Boehner tells GOP freshmen they may spend the next 2 years fighting basically fighting Obama. That would seem to rule out him being a compromiser. And the fact that he'll be running Congress rules out a rebel role. So where does that leave him?

Tea Party Lawmakers Welcome Themselves To D.C.

November 13, 2010 • The newly elected politicians are coming to Washington, D.C., to get acquainted with the institution they will be joining -- an institution they criticized during the campaign. The Tea Party is even holding its own sessions this weekend -- before the official House orientation.

Tea Party Lawmakers Welcome Themselves To D.C.

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DeMint Increases Clout By Banking On Conservatives

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), shown speaking to the Values Voter Summit in Washington in September, has new clout in the Republican Party after backing conservative candidates in the midterm elections. Jacquelyn Martin/AP hide caption

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Jacquelyn Martin/AP

DeMint Increases Clout By Banking On Conservatives

November 12, 2010 • Conservative Republicans have a new champion: Sen. Jim DeMint of South Carolina, whose strategy in the midterm elections has given him new clout in the Republican Party. Behind DeMint's ascent is a combination of faith and fundraising.

DeMint Increases Clout By Banking On Conservatives

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It's All Politics

Obama In Asia: Midterms Didn't Hurt Me Globally

November 12, 2010 • Obama said it was hard to get other nations to agree to U.S. terms when he had 65% percent approval. If anything has changed, he said, it's that his ties to other leaders are deeper.

It's All Politics

House GOP's Leaders Set; Democrats' Not

November 12, 2010 • The House GOP's new leadership topped by John Boehner, is clear as Democrats play musical chairs. Besides Boehner, the House GOP has Cantor, McCarthy and Hensarling, The Democrats have Nancy Pelosi as the likely leader and a fight for the rest.

It's All Politics

Obama's A One-Termer (Not Necessarily): Political Scientists

November 11, 2010 • Two political scientists wryly note that the historical odds are in favor of a second term. And the scatter plot graph in their post does help make their point.

Alaska Vote Count: Murkowski Got 98% Of Initial Write-Ins

In Juneau on Wednesday, Hand Count Board member Alden Balalong held up a write-in ballot marked "Murkowski." Eric Engman/Getty Images hide caption

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Eric Engman/Getty Images

The Two-Way

Alaska Vote Count: Murkowski Got 98% Of Initial Write-Ins

November 11, 2010 • It's going to take about five days to count the 90,000 ballots. But after the first day and with 20% of them tabulated, the senator was getting the vast majority of the votes.

It's All Politics

Alaska Vote Count Must Continue: U.S. Judge

November 10, 2010 • The judge said Miller didn't prove he would suffer irreparable harm if the vote count continued. Meanwhile, of the portion of the more than 92,000 ballots counted so far, 89 percent were for Murkowski.

Write-In Ballot Count Begins In Alaska Senate Race

November 10, 2010 • Alaska officials began counting the write-in votes Wednesday in the undecided Senate race. After incumbent Lisa Murkowski lost in the GOP primary, she ran as a write-in candidate, along with more than 100 other Alaskans. While Sarah Palin and other conservatives, including Jim DeMint, are backing Republican nominee Joe Miller, more votes were cast for write-in candidates than for Miller or the Democrat on Election Day. NPR's Martin Kaste updates host Melissa Block on the story.

Write-In Ballot Count Begins In Alaska Senate Race

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Alaska Starts Counting Write-In Votes For Senate

Election workers count ballots yesterday in Juneau. Rick Bowmer/AP hide caption

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Rick Bowmer/AP

It's All Politics

Alaska Starts Counting Write-In Votes For Senate

November 10, 2010 • Miller has filed a federal suit to exclude ballots on which Murkowski's name is misspelled. But he's fighting an uphill battle since federal courts tend to defer to state officials in the running of elections.

'House Rules' Give Republicans Big Advantage

Dec. 19, 1998: House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt leads other Democrats in a walkout during the impeachment of President Clinton. Democrats argued for the lesser penalty of censure. Sometimes the minority party in the House, frustrated by the rules, uses such demonstrations to get attention its causes. APTN photo hide caption

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APTN photo

'House Rules' Give Republicans Big Advantage

November 9, 2010 • As they move into the minority in the House of Representatives, Democratic members will rediscover that when it comes to making legislation in that chamber, the Republican majority will hold nearly all the cards.

It's All Politics

Obama's Team To Face Rep. Issa's Oversight Surge

November 9, 2010 • Issa plans to hold more hearings in a year than Democrats held the last two years of the Bush era.

It's All Politics

RNC's Michael Steele Takes Victory Lap

November 8, 2010 • Steele claimed credit for recent GOP wins with more than any RNC head since 1938. He also asserted that based on last week's results the GOP is much more diverse. While that may be true for candidates, it doesn't square with exit polls of voters.

It's All Politics

House GOP Names Transition Team; Snubs Michele Bachmann

November 8, 2010 • Bachmann, founder of the House Tea Party Caucus, wasn't picked for the House's GOP transition team. But House GOP officials chose some members backed by the Tea Party movement.

GOP's 'Sweet' Wins In Governors' Races May Pay Off

Gov. Haley Barbour, R-MS. Jim Watson/Getty hide caption

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Jim Watson/Getty

GOP's 'Sweet' Wins In Governors' Races May Pay Off

November 8, 2010 • Republicans put a lot of money and effort into winning gubernatorial contests in 10 "swing states." The GOP was victorious in nine and that should help Republican candidates for the White House, Congress and local posts for years to come.

It's All Politics

Obama Gets Messages From Democrats. Will He Listen?

November 8, 2010 • Critics say Obama needs outsiders in the White House and must to focus more on retail politics. They question his habit of naming insiders to replace exiting insiders and his failure to attend to political details like making allies feel special.

Analysis

White House's Economic Plans Face Gridlock In Congress

November 6, 2010 • Republicans are now on top in the House, but the economy's still in a rut. When the new Congress convenes, there will be two very different visions of how to get it unstuck. Guy Raz talks about what's ahead with Greg Mankiw, a former economic adviser for George W. Bush; and Laura Tyson, an adviser in the Clinton administration.

White House's Economic Plans Face Gridlock In Congress

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Stephanie Herseth Sandlin gets choked up during her concession speech Tuesday in Sioux Falls, S.D. Herseth Sandlin was a leader of the Blue Dog Coalition in the House, which suffered big losses in Tuesday's elections. Devin Wagner/Argus Leader/AP hide caption

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Devin Wagner/Argus Leader/AP

Midterm Losses Bite Blue Dog Democrats

November 6, 2010 • Conservative and centrist Democrats were defeated in the House in large numbers this week. Especially hard-hit was the Blue Dog Coalition -- only 23 of its 54 members were re-elected, and it lost two of its leaders, Stephanie Herseth Sandlin of South Dakota and Baron Hill of Indiana.

Midterm Losses Bite Blue Dog Democrats

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