Abortion played key role in 2022 midterm elections; 2 races could determine Senate control
Washington — Abortion access proved to be a powerful force in the 2022 midterm elections, lifting Democrats in battleground states and helping to weaken the anticipated Republican wave into a ripple. In the five states where the issue was directly on the ballot, every contest leaned in favor of protecting abortion rights — even in heavily Republican states like Kentucky and Montana.
These outcomes help answer one of the central questions of the midterm campaign: whether fervor over the fall of Roe v. Wade in the summer could last through November.
It's now been three days since the elections, and number of races have not yet been called, as ballots continue to be counted. Senate control is a toss-up, and the House of Representatives is leaning Republican, according to CBS News estimates.
Senate contests in Georgia and Nevada are still undecided. Georgia's Senate race between incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock and his GOP challenger, Herschel Walker, is going into a runoff on Dec. 6.
Republicans need to pick up one of the two seats in Georgia and Nevada to win control of the Senate, according to CBS News projections. On Friday night, CBS News projected that Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat, has won reelection in Arizona.
Alaska's Senate race also remains a toss-up, but the top two candidates are both Republicans, meaning the outcome won't impact the partisan makeup of the Senate. Since neither candidate received 50% of the vote, the race will go to its ranked-choice process, with results expected in two weeks.
Republican Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, who is currently trailing Democrat Katie Hobbs, accused state election officials of "slow-rolling" the vote count. Bill Gates, the chairman of the board of supervisors in Maricopa County, the state's largest, pushed back against that accusation on Thursday, saying that counting was always going to take "several days." Gates added, "Quite frankly it is offensive for Kari Lake to say these people behind me are slow-rolling this when they are working 14 to 18 hours."
Colorado Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert is in a toss-up race to hold onto her seat against Democratic challenger Adam Frisch in what had been considered a safe GOP seat, but her lead has been increasing. On Thursday morning, with 99% of the vote in, she was ahead by over 1,100 votes.
Full results and projections for every House, Senate and governor's race can be found in the CBS News Election Center.
Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly projected to win reelection
Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat, has won reelection, defeating Trump-backed GOP challenger Blake Masters in the race for the state's Senate seat, CBS News projected.
On Friday evening, Kelly was leading Masters by over 5 points, or about 123,000 votes, with 85% of the results in.
Kelly defended his seat to win his first full term in the Senate. A former astronaut and U.S. Navy pilot, Kelly was first elected in 2020 in a special election after the death of Republican Sen. John McCain.
Top Republican on House Oversight Committee says he's ready to subpoena Hunter Biden
Rep. James Comer, the top Republican on the House Oversight and Reform Committee, says Republicans are prepared to subpoena Hunter Biden and records of his business dealings if and when they take control of the House. Comer, who is likely to chair the committee, said Republicans are going to "press forward with an investigation of the president of the United States" related to his son's business dealings.
The Kentucky congressman made those remarks in an interview with CBS News senior investigative correspondent Catherine Herridge Friday, as control of the House remains undecided but, CBS News estimates, leans Republican.
"We're prepared to subpoena Hunter Biden," Comer told Herridge. "We would certainly hope that he would want to come before the committee and clear his name."
Nevada Senate race tightens
In Nevada, three days after Election Day, Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto's race to defend her seat against the challenge from Republican Adam Laxalt is still a toss-up, but has tightened dramatically on the third day of counting after Election Day. On Friday, with about 92% of the results in, Laxalt's lead over Cortez Masto shrunk from 1 point to 0.1, and the margin separating the two dropped from 9,000 votes to just under 800.
Clark County Registrar of Voters Joe Gloria told reporters in Las Vegas Wednesday that he expects that the ballots in that county may be counted by next Thursday, at the latest, and the canvass of the vote would take place a week from Friday.
Kelly still leading Masters in Arizona Senate race
Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat, is leading his Trump-backed GOP challenger Blake Masters in the race for the state's Senate seat, and CBS News characterizes the race as leaning Democratic.
On Friday afternoon, Kelly was leading Masters by over 5 points, or about 115,000 votes, with 80% of the results in.
Rubio says Senate GOP leadership elections should be postponed
Florida's Sen. Marco Rubio, who easily won his reelection bid, tweeted that the Senate GOP leadership vote scheduled for next week "should be postponed."
"First we need to make sure that those who want to lead us are genuinely committed to fighting for the priorities & values of the working Americans (of every background) who gave us big wins in states like #Florida," Rubio tweeted.
It also remains to be seen whether the House GOP will delay its leadership elections.
Arizona governor's race between Hobbs and Lake still a toss-up
Kari Lake, a Trump-endorsed former TV anchor, and Katie Hobbs, Arizona's Democratic secretary of state, are in a close contest to be the next governor of Arizona.
As of early Friday afternoon, CBS News estimates the race for Arizona governor is a toss-up, as Hobbs holds onto a slim lead of just over a point — almost 27,000 votes — with 79% of the results in.