The Republicans last night seized full control of Congress by retaking the Senate last night.

The Republicans now have control of the White House, Senate and the House of Representatives.

The outcome is a break with historic patterns, in which the party that controls the White House almost invariably loses seats in midterm Congressional elections.

At the time of this broadcast, with the numbers not all in, it appears that only one third of registered voters went to the polls.

The Republicans now have at least 51 seats. In New Hampshire Rep. John Sununu beat Governor Jeanne Shaheen. In Georgia, Rep. Saxby Chambliss defeated Democratic Sen. Max Cleland, a war hero who lost both legs and an arm in Vietnam. In Missouri, Democratic Sen. Jean Carnahan conceded to her Republican challenger, Jim Talent. In North Carolina Elizabeth Dole beat Clinton White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles.

Norm Coleman is to be the winner in the tight Minnesota race for Senate. Former Vice President Walter Mondale conceded to Coleman earlier today.

In among the most-watched races for governor, the president’s brother Jeb Bush won the governor’s race in Florida. New York Gov. George Pataki easily won over Democrat Carl McCall. And in California, Democratic Governor Gray Davis beat Republican businessman Bill Simon. In addition Peter Miguel Camejo gained 5 percent of the vote in one of the Green Party’s most successful campaigns.

Bush mounted a very aggressive campaign in the final days, traveling to 15 states since Thursday, and raising by one count $142 million for his party since the campaign season began.

Today on Democracy Now! we look at the results of two of the most hotly contested races in Minnesota and Florida.

Guests:

• Eddie Hailes, Advancement Project, Monitored polls, Jacksonville, FL.
• Cara Fineman, Voting Rights Project, Supervised national voter hotline.
• Robert Lorei, News Director, WMNF, Tampa.
• Ann AlquistRelated link:
  • WMNF
  • Voting Rights Project–Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
  • Advancement Project
  • KFAI in Minneapolis