Democrats take control of US House

The Democratic Party has taken control of the US House of Representatives for the first time in 12 years, riding a wave of anger against President George W Bush.

The White House conceded that Democrats had won after US media predicted major gains by the opposition party.

"We believe Democrats will have control of the House, and look forward to working with Democratic leaders on the issues that remain foremost on the agenda, including winning the war in Iraq and the broader war on terror and keeping the economy on a growth path," said presidential spokesman Tony Snow.

Mr Bush's Republicans have run the House since 1994 and the loss will be a major blow in the final two years of President Bush's term.

The new chamber will probably see a woman speaker for the first time, the outspoken Nancy Pelosi, as well as the first Muslim lawmaker in the United States, Keith Ellison.

MSNBC said the Democrats would win at least 221 seats in the 435-member chamber in Tuesday's mid-term election, a net gain of at least 18 seats from Mr Bush's Republicans.

ABC, CNN and Fox News also said Democrats would be the majority party in the House, but did not give the figures behind their predictions.

Democrats needed a net gain of 15 seats and the party stormed several Republican bastions to seize control.

The Democrats have also taken three key seats in the Senate; the party needs to gain six seats to take control.

Key seats

Democrats grabbed three key House seats from Republicans in Indiana.

Democratic candidates Baron Hill, Brad Ellsworth, a sheriff, and Joe Donnelly beat Republican incumbents Mike Sodrel, John Hostettler and Chris Chocola respectively in a major swing away from Mr Bush's party, major television networks reported.

The Democrats also grabbed two in Pennsylvania, two in Florida, two in New York, and others in Arizona, Connecticut, Kentucky, Ohio, New Hampshire and North Carolina.

Among the key Republicans beaten were Curt Weldon, a Congressman since 1987 and a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee. His campaign suffered after accusations that Weldon used his influence to help his daughter's lobbying business.

In Florida, the Republicans conceded defeat in the 16th district where Joe Negron became a last-minute candidate after Mark Foley was forced to resign over sexual overtures to teenaged male Congressional aides.

Muslim elected

Keith Ellison won a bitterly contested seat in Minnesota to become the first Muslim lawmaker.

Mr Ellison, 43, overcame sharp personal attacks to defeat a Republican rival and a third-party candidate by running on a populist platform.

On the campaign trail Mr Ellison, an attorney and two-term state legislator, downplayed his religion and blamed the media for keeping it in the news.

The black Muslim has called for an immediate pullout of US troops from Iraq, greater reliance on renewable fuels, and for a universal, government-paid health care system.

Republican rival Alan Fine ran campaign ads emphasizing Mr Ellison's past association with Louis Farrakhan, leader of the Nation of Islam group, seeking to use it as a sign of anti-Semitism.

Clinton wins

The Democrats must take six seats to take control of the 100-member Senate for the first time since 2002.

They have won victories in Rhode Island, Pennsylvania and Ohio, which was the state that gave President George W Bush victory in the 2004 election.

Senator Hillary Clinton also won a new term for her New York constituency.

"With your help we will move forward," she said when the result became clear.

"You know last week the vice president said - regardless of the outcome the administration would go full speed ahead in the same direction.

"I think that the American people have said: 'Not so fast'."

-AFP