President Obama Left Fighting for His Own Relevance  —  WASHINGTON — Two things were clear long before the votes were counted on Tuesday night: President Obama would face a Congress with more Republicans for his final two years in office, and the results would be seen as a repudiation of his leadership.

Battle for the Senate: How the GOP woke up while Democrats were feeling the drag  —  One night in early September, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell called a longtime colleague, Sen. Pat Roberts, from his living room in Louisville, furious about the 78-year-old Republican's fumbling and lethargic reelection campaign.

Sullivan lead holds in Alaska U.S. Senate race; Begich won't concede  —  Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dan Sullivan appeared to grab an insurmountable lead over incumbent Democratic Sen. Mark Begich early Wednesday, with all of Alaska's precincts reporting.

27 senators who voted for Obamacare won't be part of new Senate  —  BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL CONGRESS OBAMACARE SENATE HEALTH CARE 2014 ELECTIONS  —  On Dec. 24, 2009, the Democratic-controlled Senate passed President Obama's healthcare law with a filibuster-proof 60-vote majority …

Berkeley breaks through on soda tax  —  Berkeley, Calif., a city known for its progressive politics, made history Tuesday night by approving the first real sin tax on soda in the United States.  —  Voters looked likely to approve Measure D, a penny-per-ounce tax, by a wide margin …

Recreational marijuana passes in Oregon: Oregon election results 2014  —  Oregon voters said yes to marijuana Tuesday, making the state the third to allow the possession and sale of cannabis for recreational rather than strictly medical use.  —  The crowd at the Southeast Portland club Holocene …

MSNBC's Matthews and Sharpton Bash Grimes Concession Speech: ‘You Need to Be Gracious!’  —  In the Kentucky Senate race, Democrat challenger Alison Lundergan Grimes lost by a wide margin to Senator Mitch McConnell, and as such, gave a concession speech — one that the MSNBC election coverage team immediately tore apart.

Election Night Takeaways  —  This wasn't just a bad night for Democrats.  This was a downright drubbing.  —  So, what happened?  —  All Politics Is National: Democrats believed they could help isolate and insulate their vulnerable Democrats from an unpopular president by making each contest about the individual candidates.

Tonight's darker omen for the GOP: Losing the Senate in 2016  —  BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL CONGRESS BARACK OBAMA REPUBLICAN PARTY 2014 ELECTIONS 2016 ELECTIONS CAMPAIGNS  —  However well Republicans do tonight, President Obama will retain a veto pen.  That means GOP control of both chambers …

Voters' verdict explodes Democratic myths  —  As Democratic losses mounted in Senate races across the country on election night, some liberal commentators clung to the idea that dissatisfied voters were sending a generally anti-incumbent message, and not specifically repudiating Democratic officeholders.

The New Segregation  —  It's class, not race.  And we know how to solve it.  —  Three years ago, Kelly Williams-Bolar, a poor, single mother, stood in a Summit County, Ohio, courtroom facing a number of felony charges, including one count of grand theft.  Her crime: stealing an education …

Wendy Davis Was The Face Of ‘War On Women’ Politics.  How'd That Go?  —  This was a year when the War on Women messaging — previously employed so successfully by the Democrats — failed to yield the desired results.  Most of the discussions about that failure have focused on Sen. Mark Udall of Colorado.

4 indicted N.Y. pols win reelection  —  They may have won their midterms on Tuesday, but for a handful of newly reelected New York lawmakers, their next hurdle is avoiding prison time.  —  New York voters overwhelmingly reelected four lawmakers — one to Congress and three to the state Legislature …

Meet Elise Stefanik, the Youngest Woman Ever Elected to Congress … Republican Elise Stefanik has become the youngest woman elected to Congress in history, winning her race against Aaron Woolf in New York's 21st open district 56-32, ABC News projects.  —  She's the first Republican to win the district …

Rand Paul: Let D.C. Legalize Marijuana, If Voters Want  —  BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — As District of Columbia voters are seemingly poised to approve a ballot item to allow cultivation and possession of small quantities of marijuana for personal use, the Republican in charge of a subpanel with D.C. oversight says home rule should prevail.