Republicans win control of the House of Representatives, completing their clean sweep of congress and the White House

The Republicans have completing a clean sweep of congress and the White House, giving incoming president Donald Trump vast legislative power.

South Dakota senator John Thune, centre, after being elected Senate majority leader in a secret ballot. Picture: AFP

The Republicans have been declared the majority party in the US House of Representatives, completing a clean sweep of congress and the White House in last week’s elections and handing incoming president Donald Trump vast legislative power.

After more than a week of vote counting, CNN and NBC projected overnight on Wednesday that the GOP had reached the 218 seats needed to retain their majority in the 435-seat lower chamber, having already seized the Senate from the Democrats.

“It is a beautiful morning in Washington. It is a new day in America,” said house Speaker Mike Johnson. “The sun is shining, and that’s a reflection about how we all feel. This is a very, very important moment for the country and we do not take it lightly.”

Mr Trump triumphed in every swing state in the November 5 presidential election and also looked to have won the national popular vote, with preliminary figures showing him ahead of Democratic Party challenger Kamala Harris by 3.2 million votes.

Having control of both chambers of congress will clear the way for him to confirm his nominations for key administration positions and will also allow him to push through his radical agenda of mass deportations, tax cuts and slashing regulations.

“We need positions filled IMMEDIATELY!” Mr Trump wrote on X on Sunday, referring to the need for the Republican-majority Senate to quickly approve his cabinet picks.

He is also seen by analysts as facing fewer judicial constraints than previous presidents, with his nominations to the Supreme Court during his first term, from 2017-21, having given the high court a heavily conservative tilt.

The Republicans’ sweep of the presidency and congress is not unusual, with Mr Trump in his first term and Democrat predecessors Joe Biden and Barack Obama also benefiting from majorities at the start of their presidencies. But the loss of the house extinguishes any remaining hope among Democrats that they might be able to stand in the way of Mr Trump’s agenda for now.

On a huge day for governance in Washington, Senate Republicans picked a traditionalist, John Thune, as the chamber’s new leader to replace Mitch McConnell, rejecting Mr Trump’s favourite, Rick Scott, in a secret ballot.

Sources told Fox News that ­no one reached a majority in the first round of voting.

Mr Scott, who is from Mr Trump’s home state of Florida, received the least amount of votes and was knocked out of the race, leaving South Dakota’s Senator Thune to battle out the contest with John Cornyn from Texas.

The Senate jealously guards its independence and institutional authority, and its leadership election was seen as a clue to how much leeway its members intend to give Mr Trump.

The incoming Republican has promised more tax cuts, a gutting of environmental and other regulations, as well as a crackdown on crime, immigration and his political opponents.

“This Republican team is united behind President Trump’s agenda and our work starts today,” said Senator Thune, confirming he had spoken to Mr Trump by telephone.

The entire house gets to vote on the Speaker, meaning Mr Johnson has to wait until the new congress convenes in January to find out if he can hang on to the gavel.

AFP