Axios

SHREVEPORT, La. — The GOP's election-night defeat has unleashed a wave of finger-pointing inside the House Republican conference, with members questioning whether Speaker Mike Johnson or any of the other top deputies can survive next week's leadership elections.

Why it matters: Johnson spent months insisting Republicans would defy the odds and keep the House. But after losing the majority, he cast the defeat as all but inevitable, an explanation unlikely to satisfy Republicans ready for a new leadership slate.

Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek defeated Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson in a major upset Tuesday, becoming the first Democrat elected to the U.S. Senate from Iowa since 2008, the AP projected and sealing Democratic control of the chamber.

Why it matters: Turek's victory delivers Democrats control of the Senate — and signals a political backlash against Republicans in a state Trump won comfortably just two years ago.

For the first time in history, three Black women will serve simultaneously in the U.S. Senate when Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton takes office in January.

Why it matters: More than 235 years after the Senate first convened, two Black women served simultaneously for the first time. Two years later, that number will grow to three.