DeSantis comes out swinging as Vance takes heat

▪ Battle brews over House GOP leadership

Tuesday was a bad night for many Republicans across the country. But not so much for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R).

The term-limited governor is seizing his political moment as Republicans in Washington — including potential 2028 rival Vice President Vance — reckon with the fallout from a midterm thumping, driven largely by the Iran war, which voters blame for high gas, diesel and grocery prices.

DeSantis got a post-election boost on Polymarket, where his odds of winning the 2028 GOP nomination increased from about 4 percent before returns came in to 12.7 percent by Thursday evening. Vance’s odds briefly fell below 30 percent on election night before rebounding to 37.8 percent on Thursday, within a percentage point of where he stood before the election.

DeSantis is using the opening to make a case for his own record, touting his state’s work on immigration and pointing to Florida as a state where Republicans held their ground on Tuesday.

“To call it a ‘wave’ I don’t think would be fully accurate,” DeSantis said at a news conference Wednesday. “It’s the political equivalent of a meteor strike that went all around the United States — blue states, red states, everything in between.”

The Florida governor said Republicans in his state managed to “hold the line” and maintain GOP control this year — even though Rep. Byron Donalds (R), the Sunshine State’s newly elected governor, was ahead by just 1.3 percentage points, far short of DeSantis’s 19.4-point reelection margin in 2022. Democrats also won a handful of House seats in Florida despite redrawn district lines meant to benefit Republicans.

“Of the 10 largest states in this Union, only one state will have Republican control of their state — the state of Florida,” DeSantis added.

DeSantis also took aim at former 2024 GOP presidential rival Vivek Ramaswamy, a Vance ally, saying Democrat Amy Acton “beat Vivek like a drum” in Ohio’s governor’s race Tuesday and questioning why Trump’s team pushed him to run in the first place.

“You know, Vivek, he’s a — like a tech guy, he did this Alzheimer’s drug, and he wants to bring in people, foreign worker on visas,” DeSantis said on Sage Steele ’s podcast Wednesday. “ That is not the type of person that’s going to sell.”

DeSantis was warning before the polls closed Tuesday that the war with Iran was hurting Republicans and argued the conflict contradicted the President Trump ‘s campaign pledge of keeping out of new wars.

“The Republican mantra since Trump came on the scene was that we don’t want to get into these open-ended conflicts, and that’s what this has become,” DeSantis said in a CNN interview this week. “A little bit different than Iraq, for sure, but I think this one was important because it had a direct effect on people’s pocketbooks.”

He also roasted Republicans for trying to blame high prices on former President Biden , rather than the war, saying, “When you gaslight people, they don’t trust you on anything else.”

DeSantis, who took on Trump in a bitter 2024 primary, has more room to criticize the administration than some of the other potential 2028 presidential contenders. He has spent nearly two years of Trump’s second term governing Florida, giving him distance from unpopular decisions made in Washington.

Vance, meanwhile, has a tougher balancing act. He blamed the GOP’s election losses on the Iran war and questioned the cost, but he stopped short of criticizing the decision to go to war itself.

If he decides to run for president in 2028, the vice president will have to answer for the administration’s record while trying to hold on to the coalition that helped elect Trump in 2024. That’s looking harder than ever.

The Hill’s Amie Parnes has a new look today at how the 2028 GOP primary is shaping up. While Vance has long been seen as the front-runner to succeed Trump, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio following as a close second, Parnes reports that Republicans are now asking questions about whether a candidate not directly tied to the administration would be stronger.

▪ The Hill Insider : GOP’s final sprint on Trump agenda loses steam after election rout.

▪ The Hill : Markets tank after post-Election Day surge.

A federal judge issued an injunction overnight blocking construction on the president’s planned triumphal arch as she considers legal challenges to it. That came just about an hour after a commission voted to approve plans for the 250-foot-tall project, which would symbolically link Arlington National Cemetery to Washington, D.C.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is commuting the death sentences of all 548 inmates on the state’s death row, changing their sentences to life imprisonment without parole. Newsom had instituted a moratorium on executions when he came into office in 2019, but the death sentences themselves remained in place.

LIV Golf is shutting down after failing to garner enough financial backing following Saudi Arabia’s withdrawal of its support in April. The league had launched in 2022 and divided the world of professional golf as it offered large signing bonuses to lure top players away from the PGA Tour.

Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar (“Straight”) party, waves an Israeli flag onstage following the release of the first exit poll results in Israel’s general election in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct. 28, 2026. (Ariel Schalit, Associated Press)

INCHING CLOSER : Israeli opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot appears to be closing in on becoming Israel’s next prime minister as 67 of the 120 incoming members of parliament have declared their support for him to replace Benjamin Netanyahu .

Eisenkot met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Thursday as Herzog weighs which party leader will have the first chance to form a governing coalition following Israel’s parliamentary elections last week. Herzog has been meeting with the leaders of all the parties throughout the week.

The president, who mostly holds a ceremonial role except for having the responsibility to choose someone to form a government after an election, said representatives from factions representing 67 lawmakers have recommended Eisenkot be chosen to form a government.

This came after the leaders of multiple parties, including two Arab groups, declared their support for Eisenkot.

Still, some hurdles remain. Some members of Eisenkot’s coalition had previously expressed opposition to forming a government with the Arab parties, and Herzog said he would work to clarify the situation before choosing someone to form a government Sunday.

If Eisenkot is chosen and is successful at forming a government, it would bring an end to Netanyahu’s administration. Netanyahu has served for the past four years since returning to the role following a brief stint out of power.

▪ CNN : Herzog shocked by Trump’s announcing ending aid.

▪ Haaretz : Replacing Netanyahu may not be enough to win back Democrats.

TICKING UP : Democrat Scott Colom ‘s lead over Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi’s Senate race has increased to more than 2,000 votes as the last ballots are counted over the next few days.

Mail-in ballots are allowed to be counted for up to five business days in Mississippi as long as they were postmarked by Election Day.

The Senate GOP’s campaign arm urged county election commissioners and circuit clerks Thursday to separate and preserve the provisional ballots from the rest, a move that Colom’s campaign denounced as a “desperate stunt.”

If Colom hangs on to win, it would be a shocking upset for Democrats to add to their sweeping victories.

In one bright spot for Republicans, the party is officially set to flip its first House seat as Democrat Matt Dunlap conceded Thursday to former Maine Gov. Paul LePage (R) in the race for the state’s 2nd Congressional District, currently represented by retiring Rep. Jared Golden (D).

▪ The Hill : Mississippi GOP chair says party will accept results.

▪ The Hill : Democrat flips longtime GOP-held Colorado House seat.

LET’S GET IT ON : Fights over who should lead House Republicans following their defeats Tuesday are heating up as GOP Conference Chair Lisa McClain (Mich.) is facing at least two challenges to her position.

GOP Reps. Erin Houchin (Ind.) and Greg Steube (Fla.) both intend to oppose McClain as the party considers its best path forward. Houchin announced her candidacy Wednesday in a letter to her colleagues, while a source familiar with the matter confirmed to The Hill’s Sudiksha Kochi on Thursday that Steube plans to run .

The developments come as Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has indicated he doesn’t plan to run for minority leader, setting up a battle between House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) and House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) for the job.

On the other side of the aisle, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) seems all but certain to become the next Speaker. But one battle is brewing as Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.) is challenging Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) to lead the House Financial Services Committee.

In the Senate, Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) reportedly doesn’t plan to challenge Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) for majority leader despite some speculation that he would.

▪ The Hill : House GOP divided over path forward after brutal losses.

▪ The Hill : Abdul El-Sayed says he’d back Van Hollen as majority leader.

▪ The Hill : Cory Booker making appearances in South Carolina.

CAN IT STAND? A New York appeals court heard arguments Thursday on whether presidential immunity or federal law should result in overturning Trump’s conviction stemming from hush-money payments his 2016 campaign made to cover up an alleged affair.

Trump’s lawyers argued that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg ‘s (D) legal theory behind the case was preempted by federal campaign finance law and that his team wrongly showed jurors official acts from Trump’s time in the White House, including online posts.

Bragg’s office maintains none of the evidence was protected. The Hill’s Zach Schonfeld reports the arguments left several judges questioning where to draw the line.

▪ The Hill : Justice Department sues Penn State.

The president will participate in a pre-taped interview at 10:30 a.m. He will participate in a Diwali celebration at 1:30 p.m. He will travel to Cape Canaveral, Fla., to deliver remarks at the John F. Kennedy Space Center at 6 p.m. before traveling to Palm Beach for the weekend.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth arrives before President Donald Trump speaks at a roundtable event in the East Room of the White House, Oct. 21, 2026, in Washington. (Alex Brandon, Associated Press)

ON THE OUTS? Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ‘s fate in the president’s Cabinet seems up in the air as critics point the finger at him for pushing Trump into a war with Iran that contributed to widespread losses in the midterms.

The Hill’s Filip Timotija and Julia Manchester report that two sources familiar with the discussion said Trump is asking allies about Hegseth’s standing. One of them said the Pentagon chief is in “a lot of trouble,” while the other said how much danger he was in isn’t clear.

One of the sources said the conversations are happening as the administration is reviewing plans to resume military action against Iran.

Trump defended Hegseth on Thursday, saying he has “every intention” of keeping Hegseth in the role, but he also acknowledged that replacing him would be easier to do before Democrats take control of the Senate next year.

Sources previously told The Hill that Hegseth has expressed interest in Sen. Marsha Blackburn ‘s (R-Tenn.) Senate seat now that she’s been elected governor of Tennessee. Trump said Wednesday that Hegseth would be “very popular” if chosen to replace her.

But a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press that Hegseth isn’t currently being considered for the seat.

A senior Pentagon official told The Hill on Thursday that the idea of replacing Hegseth is not “practical” given the difficulty of finding a replacement who could be confirmed by the Senate during the lame-duck session.

Democrats are widely expected to pursue investigations into Hegseth in the next Congress. More immediately, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) plans to introduce articles of impeachment against him next week.

▪ The Hill : Two House Democrats float idea of impeaching Todd Blanche .

▪ The Hill : Harmeet Dhillon resigns from Justice Department.

Comedian and actor Russell Brand, accompanied by his wife Laura Brand, arrives at Southwark Crown Court in London, Nov. 5, 2026, where he has been convicted of rape and sexual assault charges on allegations dating back more than 20 years. (Thomas Krych, Associated Press)

CONVICTED : Actor Russell Brand was found guilty Thursday on charges of rape and sexual assault based on allegations from more than 20 years ago.

The verdict was rendered after a jury made up of eight men and four women deliberated for more than eight hours over the course of two days. The trial began just a little more than three weeks ago.

Brand was convicted on one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault based on accusations from four women. He was found not guilty on two counts of rape and one count of attempted indecent assault.

He’s set to be sentenced Monday, and Judge Joel Bennathan said Brand faces a “significant” prison term. Brand had been free on bail but was taken into custody after the verdict.

Allegations against Brand have been raised for years and received greater attention following reporting from British media a few years ago. He was first charged in spring 2025 following a police investigation.

Brand denied the allegations. He acknowledged being obsessed with sex when he was younger but said he would never have forced anyone against their will.

Brand had been a mainstream actor who appeared in major movies such as “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” and “Despicable Me” in the 2000s and 2010s. But he has shifted away from that in recent years, becoming a wellness influencer and promoting conspiracy theories concerning the COVID-19 pandemic and other topics.

He controversially moderated a panel in September at the second annual Make America Healthy Again summit in Washington, D.C., which also featured top administration officials like Vance and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

▪ The New York Times : Timeline of Brand going from star to convict.

▪ Reuters : Details of Brand’s convictions.

How MAGA lost the midterms: Failure to acknowledge reality , Xavier Kelley writes in The Hill.

Iran is the biggest winner of Tuesday’s elections , Jonathan Sweet and Mark Toth write in The Hill.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich holds a sheet of budget figures on Capitol Hill, Nov. 15, 1995, during a meeting to discuss the federal budget impasse. (Joe Marquette, Associated Press file)

And finally … 👏👏👏 Congrats to this week’s Morning Report quiz winners ! They passed the midterm exam on the midterms.

Here’s who went 4/4: Rick Schmidtke, Carmine Petracca, Stan Wasser, Michael Salanik, Linda L. Field, William Moore, Laura Rettaliata, Jess Elger and Richard Baznik .

Democrats gained 45 seats in the 1974 House elections compared to how many seats they held going into Election Day. As some responses noted, they won 49 more seats than they had in the 1972 House elections, but they netted four seats in between those two years through wins in special elections. That means there were 45 more Democrats in the House at the start of the new term than they had at the end of the last term.

Newt Gingrich , pictured above, presented the Contract with America on the way to Republicans’ sweeping wins in the “revolution” of 1994.

George W. Bush referred to the GOP’s steep losses in the midterms of 2006 as a “ thumping .” Former President Obama called his party’s losses in 2010 a “shellacking.”

After Republicans won back control of the House but fell short of winning the Senate in 2010, it marked the first time in 152 years that an election resulted in a Republican-controlled House and Democratic-controlled Senate. That’s in part thanks to Democratic dominance in the House for much of the 20th century.