CONGRESS RESULTS:THE DEMOCRATS made substantial gains in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, but fell short of their optimistic hopes in both battles, though a few seats remain to be decided.
In the Senate, the Democrats now have 56 seats, compared to the 51 they had before Tuesday. Four remain to be decided, including a battle in Alaska where Republican Ted Stevens, convicted of corruption, could still survive.
A 60-seat majority in the Senate, something the Democrats have not enjoyed for 30 years, would prevent Republicans adopting delaying tactics to block the passage of key parts of president-elect Barack Obama's plans.
In the House of Representatives, which Democrats controlled by 235 to 199 seats up to Tuesday, the party is likely to pick up 20 more - substantial, but up to a half-dozen less than they had hoped.
Stressing the need for bipartisanship, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Americans "had called for a new direction", and will demand "civility" and "fiscal responsibility" from Congress.
"We have a great deal of work to do, and we can do some of it right from the start. But the rest of it will take a while. We must take a very deliberate, steady course for America. That's exactly what Barack Obama is prepared to do," she said.
In the past, both Democrats and Republicans have overplayed their hand on occasions when they have dominated one or both Houses of Congress. Democrats are keen not to make the same mistake now.
Democrats won majorities in both the Senate and House two years ago, but Republicans routinely blocked legislation on major issues, including the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq and additional economic stimulus to healthcare and energy.
In the Senate, the Republicans' problems - George Bush's unpopularity and economic woes - were compounded by the fact that they had to defend 23 of the 35 seats up for re-election on Tuesday.
In North Carolina, Republican Elizabeth Dole, the wife of 1996 presidential candidate Bob Dole, lost in a bitter battle with Kay Hagen, meaning that a Dole will not be in Congress for the first time in four decades.
The Democrats also made gains in Illinois, where Dick Durbin defeated Republican Steve Sauerberg.
Democrat and ex-Virginia governor Mark Warner took the seat vacated by retiring veteran Republican John Warner.
In Kentucky, Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell came through after a tough fight, defeating Democrat businessman Bruce Lunsford.
Quoting Churchill, Mr McConnell said: "The most exhilarating feeling in life is to be shot at and missed."
The Senate election in Alaska may not be settled for a fortnight; Ted Stevens, convicted last week on seven counts of corruption, is still ahead of challenger Mark Begich by 4,000 votes.
More than 40,000 absentee postal ballots have still to be counted, along with 9,000 more which are currently disputed. Local election authorities have 15 days to tally all of them before declaring a final result.
In Minnesota, former Saturday Night Livecomedian Al Franken is behind to Republican Norm Coleman by just 571 votes out of the nearly 2.9 million cast; independent candidate Dean Barkley has 15 per cent of the vote.
The gap between the two lead candidates is within the threshold set by Minnesota state law for an automatic recount that could ensure that this seat is not decided until December.
In Colorado, Democrat Mark Udall beat Republican Bob Schaffer comfortably in another Democrat gain.
The highly respected Republican John Sununu lost out in New Hampshire.
In Pennsylvania, 75-year-old Vietnam veteran Jack Murtha survived comfortably in the end, even though he had called some of his voters racists and "rednecks" during the campaign.
Mr Obama's running mate, Senator Joe Biden, won another term in Delaware, but he will now resign before he is sworn in as vice-president on January 20th.
The election results mark the first time in more than 75 years that Democrats are on track for big gains in the House of Representatives in successive elections. The party picked up 30 seats in 2006.