Republicans take lead in House, Senate neck-to-neck

Washington, The Gulf Observer: Republicans have taken a sizable lead in the race to control the US House of Representatives, with incomplete results showing a significant lead over Democrats.

In all, Republicans have won so far 199 seats in the chamber, compared to 172 for Democrats, according to the latest tally.While the margins are likely to change as results are tabulated, a forecast from the New York Times newspaper puts chances of Republican control of the House at 74 percent.

Democrats have just a 26 percent chance of retaining their hold on the chamber. Most analysts widely predicted a Republicans takeover of the House, though the Senate remains a topic of intense speculation.

This year, all 435 seats in the House are up for election, compared to 35 seats in the Senate. The vast majority of Senate seats – 21 – are held by Republican incumbents. But the Senate is currently evenly split between Republicans and Democrats, greatly increasing the importance of each seat for both parties.