Live Updates Election Day 2025 Pbs News

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Nov 18, 2025, 1:06 AM

Voters in races across the country backed Democrats, including in New York's mayoral race and contests for governor in New Jersey and Virginia, rejecting President Donald Trump's late and lightweight push for his preferred... Democrats secured another expected win in California, where voters approved a new congressional map that is designed to help their party win five more U.S. House seats in next year's midterm elections. READ MORE: How to track 2025 election results Though the candidates and local issues all played a role in the results, voter attitudes about the president and his agenda were central to their choices and offered the first clear review from voters... Top Democrats celebrated the results as a major victory over Trump.

The president meanwhile was quick to respond to the results on Tuesday night with a defensive social media post after results came. Citing pollsters, Trump said that "TRUMP WASN'T ON THE BALLOT," and the federal government shutdown "WERE THE TWO REASONS THAT REPUBLICANS LOST ELECTIONS TONIGHT." Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. A handful of state contests on Tuesday will offer an early test of how Americans are feeling less than a year into President Donald Trump's second term. As the government shutdown nears the record for longest ever, Trump is showing his support for Republican gubernatorial candidates during tele-rallies, and is sending election monitors to high-stakes votes in New Jersey and California. Meanwhile, former President Barack Obama and Vermont Sen.

Bernie Sanders are stumping for Democratic candidates who represent different ideological factions but share core kitchen-table economic messages. Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm. There are only two off-year gubernatorial elections this fall, and they're both seen as bellwethers for next year's midterm elections. The results of the governors' races in Virginia and New Jersey may serve as a referendum on the president's first 10 months in office.

A lesser known trio of votes for Democratic justices on the state Supreme Court in swing state Pennsylvania could eventually decide the fate of election laws, redistricting and abortion. In New York, Zohran Mamdani has vaulted from relatively unknown state legislator to being the frontrunner for mayor in the largest city in the U.S., while drawing frequent attacks from Trump. In the first major Election Day of Trump's second term in the White House, there were several big takeaways, including some big wins for Democrats. PBS News' Lisa Desjardins and Liz Landers looked at a few takeaways from this year's election results. PBS News' Lisa Desjardins and Liz Landers break down three key takeaways from Election Day. Democrats who won on Election Day represented vastly different wings of the party.

In New York City, Zohran Mamdani ran on an ambitious, progressive agenda that included free child care, free bus service and city-run grocery stores. In New Jersey and Virginia, Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J., and former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., represented a more moderate wing of the party. Landers pointed to a conversation she had recently with Rep. Jake Auchincloss, D-Mass., who leads the Majority Democrats, a political action committee that supports moderate Democratic candidates.

She asked him whether Gov.-elect Spanberger is a template for Democrats moving forward. Auchincloss pointed out that each state or district is different, but "an outline of a template for Democrats is talking about affordability. Bringing alpha energy," Landers said, adding that to Auchincloss said "there's indication in polling that shows that voters think that Democrats don't have a message that they stick to, that they don't seem confident... Steve Peoples, Associated Press Steve Peoples, Associated Press Will Weissert, Associated Press Will Weissert, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats dominated the first major Election Day since President Donald Trump returned to the White House.

And while a debate about the future of the Democratic Party may have only just begun, there are signs that the economy — specifically, Trump's inability to deliver the economic turnaround he promised last... Democrats on Tuesday won governor's races in Virginia and New Jersey, the only states electing new chief executives this year. They also swept a trio of state Supreme Court contests in swing-state Pennsylvania and ballots measures from Colorado to Maine. For more than 40 years, millions of Americans and citizens of the world have turned to the PBS NewsHour for the solid, reliable reporting that has made it one of the most trusted news... Voters on Tuesday will be casting ballots in U.S. state and local elections with an injection of presidential-level politics, including a pair of competitive races for governor in New Jersey and Virginia, the mayoral race in the nation’s largest city and a ballot...

READ MORE: How to track 2025 election results The off-year elections have drawn President Donald Trump’s attention, and no race has attracted as much lip service or social media opinions from Trump as the mayor’s race in his hometown of New York... Though local issues are a major factor in Tuesday’s contests, the winners take on an outsize role in a year when Trump has battled with governors and mayors as he’s deployed National Guard troops... For Democrats, the offices offer a chance to push back on the president’s agenda, while Republicans see it as an opportunity to support his aims. By Andrew Dalton, Christopher Weber, Associated Press By Patrick Whittle, Leah Willingham, Associated Press

By Mary Clare Jalonick, Associated Press By Rebecca Santana, Lisa Mascaro, Associated Press By David Klepper, Ben Finley, Konstantin Toropin, Associated Press Voters headed to the polls in states across the U.S. on Tuesday — and Democrats came out victorious. In New York City, voters elected Zohran Mamdani, a 34-year-old state Assembly member and democratic socialist, as their next mayor.

Mamdani defeated former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who joined the race as an independent after losing in the Democratic primary. Democrats also won both of the governor’s races that were on the ballot. Abigail Spanberger, a former U.S. representative, was elected in Virginia to replace outgoing Republican Glenn Youngkin. She will become the state’s first female governor.

Mikie Sherrill comfortably won the governor’s race in New Jersey, keeping the state under Democratic control. Democrats also secured what could prove to be their most important win in California, where voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 50 — a ballot measure that will allow them to redraw the state’s congressional districts... Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed the initiative in response to Republican redistricting efforts in Texas and other red states. The state’s proposed new map is expected to give Democrats five additional members in the House of Representatives, which could play a big role in determining which party holds the majority after next year’s... Read a recap of Tuesday's election events in our blog below.

Key Democrats in Congress said Wednesday that the party's victories in races across the country last night were a sign that their shutdown strategy is working and it would be a mistake to allow... Lead: Former Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger defeated Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears on Nov. 4, 2025, becoming Virginia’s first woman governor in a race seen as a referendum on President Trump.

The result flips the seat held by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who could not run for consecutive terms. Across the same ballot, high turnout shaped the New York City mayoral contest and tight gubernatorial fights continued in New Jersey; California voters also weighed Proposition 50 on congressional maps. Early exit polling showed the economy top of mind and President Trump a factor for many voters. Virginia holds its gubernatorial election in the year after a presidential contest and by tradition it is often interpreted as a midterm-style reflection on the sitting White House. Under state law, incumbent Gov.

Glenn Youngkin was ineligible to seek immediate reelection, leaving an open-seat contest between Democrat Abigail Spanberger and Republican Winsome Earle-Sears. Spanberger campaigned as a moderate and emphasized affordability and federal workforce impacts; Earle-Sears campaigned on immigration and transgender policy concerns. New Jersey and New York City races drew national attention because of their size, timing and potential implications for 2026 midterms. In New Jersey, former state Rep. Jack Ciattarelli ran as the GOP challenger to Rep. Mikie Sherrill, both framing affordability as central.

In New York City, a three-way contest featuring Democrat Zohran Mamdani, independent Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa followed a contentious primary and unprecedented crossover campaigning. California’s Proposition 50 proposed temporarily altering congressional district lines—an aggressive response to redistricting moves in other states. Across these contests, national figures and issues, notably President Trump and federal policy decisions, shaped messaging and voter perceptions. Virginia: On Nov. 4, 2025, CBS News projected that Abigail Spanberger would win the governorship, a result that hands Democrats a pickup in a state with a large federal workforce that has felt the effects of recent... Spanberger positioned her campaign around economic issues affecting families and federal employees; Earle-Sears emphasized cultural and immigration topics.

Trump campaigned for parts of the Republican ticket but notably did not formally endorse Earle-Sears by name.

Live Updates Election Day 2025 Pbs News

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