After the election, counts, a budget deadline and leadership elections in Congress are due by January

After the congressional election, a transition period begins. According to projections, the Democrats win the Senate and the House of Representatives, Roll Call puts them at 54 to 56 seats in the Senate, depending on the count. There is no official final result yet. The most important dates, as far as the sources name them:

• Alaska: According to Newsweek (4 November, 08:54 CET), new count updates are announced for 10, 13 and 18 November. Mail ballots from abroad may arrive up to 15 days after the election. If no one is above 50 percent, ranked-choice tabulation takes place on 18 November. The state intends to certify by 25 November.
• Mississippi: According to Mississippi Independent, mail ballots postmarked on election day may still arrive for five business days. The counties certify by 13 November, and the Secretary of State declares the final result on 3 December. A recount is only possible through a court, and ultimately the Senate itself can decide.
• 10 November: The Republicans in the Senate elect their leadership. According to Roll Call (4 November, 18:07 CET), John Thune is running for minority leader, no challenger is known. In the House of Representatives, Speaker Mike Johnson does not want to become minority leader, according to Fox News (Chad Pergram, 4 November, 17:24 CET). Steve Scalise and Jim Jordan want to run.
• 11 December: Government funding expires. According to the budget institute CRFB, the House of Representatives has passed 3 of 12 appropriations bills for 2027, the Senate none. Without an agreement, a shutdown looms. According to CRFB, the debt ceiling of 41.1 trillion dollars is expected to be reached within the next six months.
• 3 January 2027: The new Congress convenes, and the Democrats take over the committees.

What the Democrats plan. According to Time (4 November, 14:34 CET), they want to reverse cuts to Medicaid and the end of health insurance subsidies, lift Trump's tariffs and end the Iran war. Hakeem Jeffries, leader of the Democrats in the House of Representatives, leaves an impeachment open. Senator Richard Blumenthal, who according to Al Jazeera is likely to chair the Senate's investigations committee, had announced in September that he would use subpoenas.

What Trump and the Republicans say. According to AFP, published by Malay Mail (5 November, 00:00 CET), Trump posted an image of a cap reading “VETO” and intends to fight investigations. According to the report, there is a draft of executive orders on immigration. Thune writes that the Republicans in the Senate would “not stand idly by”. According to Fox News, overriding a veto requires 290 votes in the House of Representatives, i.e. about 50 Republicans, and 67 in the Senate, i.e. 13 Republicans.

What analysts expect. The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR, 4 November) expects tariffs to remain largely with the president without a two-thirds majority. The election increases the pressure to pass the defense bill while the old Congress is still in session, and confirmation hearings on nominations would come in early 2027. Election analyst Nate Silver (Silver Bulletin, 4 November) calls the election the second-largest swing in midterm elections since the Second World War. He sees 2006 as the only real parallel and considers it unlikely that Trump's approval of 38 percent will rise significantly.

All dates may shift. What Congress can do is in the timeline, the state of the races under Senate and House of Representatives.