Democrats notched key victories in the 2026 U.S. midterm elections, with Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Roy Cooper and Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) winning Senate races.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump signaled no immediate plans for another strike against Iran.
Democrats Secure Early Senate Victories
Ossoff won reelection in Georgia, defeating Republican Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) in one of the most closely watched Senate contests. The Associated Press called the race, marking an important victory for Democrats defending several competitive seats.
Former North Carolina Gov. Cooper (D) also defeated Republican Michael Whatley to win election to the Senate, while Warner secured reelection in Virginia.
The early results largely favored incumbents, with both parties holding onto several reliably safe House and Senate seats.
Democrats need to secure 51 Senate seats to take control of the chamber, with Vice President JD Vance able to break tie votes. The party needs four net seat gains and is also targeting Republican-held seats in Alaska, Maine, Iowa, Ohio and Texas.
Georgia, Michigan and New Hampshire were among the most competitive Democratic-held seats heading into Election Day, having been decided by fewer than three percentage points in the 2024 presidential election.
Trump Signals No Immediate Iran Strike
Meanwhile, earlier on Tuesday, Trump suggested the U.S. may not need another military strike against Iran, despite rising tensions in the Middle East.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Trump said Washington was getting what it wanted from the standoff with Tehran. “We seem to be getting everything we want,” he said.
Addressing speculation that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could order another attack later this week, Trump said the U.S. military remained prepared.
“I’m ready, we’re ready. We’re locked and loaded if we need to go, but there may be no reason for it,” he added.
The remarks followed U.S. airstrikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island on Monday, which Washington described as a defensive operation to protect American military assets in the region.
Dow, Nasdaq Futures Fall As Crude Oil Holds Above $96
Dow futures fell 160 points, or 0.31%, to 51,735.00, while S&P 500 futures declined 22.75 points, or 0.30%, to 7,574.00 and Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 143.25 points, or 0.51%, to 28,162.50 as of 7:56 p.m. EST.
In commodities, WTI crude oil rose 0.54% to $96.61 per barrel, while Brent crude was unchanged at $103.60 per barrel.
RBOB gasoline futures gained 0.58% to $2.9526 per gallon, while natural gas futures edged up 0.07% to $2.897 per MMBtu.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar index fell 0.34% to 101.540.
Asian markets were mixed, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 rising to 62,322.14, while South Korea’s KOSPI stood at 5,696.85 as of Wednesday morning.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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