The Democratic Party in the United States can still win sufficient seats to retain control of the House of Representatives, president Joe Biden has said.
However, he forecast that the results for outstanding seats will be “perilously close”.
The president’s comments came as Democrats retained their majority in the US Senate on Saturday night after the party’s serving senator in Nevada won re-election.
Speaking in Cambodia where he is attending an international summit, Mr Biden said there were several more seats outstanding in the House of Representatives which would ultimately determine which party had control for the next two years.
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He said Democrats could win the House of Representatives but that it would be “a stretch” and that everything would have to fall their way.
The president said he was not predicting that his party would win the House of Representatives, as the contest was very close.
“We can win it. Whether we’re going to win it remains to be seen.”
The current speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, said her Democratic Party was “still alive” but the remaining contests were very close. She said she saw a path to the future that was much brighter than had been predicted.
He’s still the 800-pound gorilla. It is still a battle that is going to continue for the next few years. And the dust is settling from this one
— Outgoing Republican governor of Maryland, Larry Hogan, on Donald Trump
She said Republicans had been “measuring for draperies, they’ve been putting forth an agenda [but] they haven’t won it yet”.
The prospects of the Democrats regaining control of the House of Representatives would not have been contemplated by the vast bulk of pollsters or pundits before the election last week.
About 20 House of Representative seats remain outstanding, for which no projections have been made.
Democrats would have to win about three-quarters of these to reach the 218 seats needed to secure a majority.
This is considered now by pundits to be a long shot, but no longer out of the question.
US media projected that Democrats would keep control of the US Senate after authorities in Nevada released a new batch of results on Saturday night which showed Democratic senator Catherine Cortez-Masto moving into the lead in her contest with challenger Adam Lexalt, a former state attorney general.
The projected victory in Nevada also means that Democrats do not need to win in the forthcoming run-off election in Georgia between serving senator Raphael Warnock and his Republican challenger Herschel Walker, who is backed by former president Donald Trump.
Democrats and Republicans will hold 50 seats in the new senate, but vice-president Kamala Harris can break the tie with a casting vote.
Mr Biden indicated it was important to secure the additional 51st seat by winning the run-off election in Georgia next month.
“It’s always better with 51, because we’re in a situation where you don’t have to have an even make-up of the committees. And so that’s why it’s important, mostly. But it’s just simply better. The bigger the numbers, the better.”
[ US midterms: Democrats retain control of Senate after crucial Nevada victoryOpens in new window ]
Mr Trump is scheduled to make a “big announcement” on Tuesday amid much speculation that he will confirm he will be running again for the White House in 2024.
However, Mr Trump has faced criticism from some within his own Republican Party after the election results last week which saw the defeat of several candidates he had personally promoted.
Outgoing Republican governor of Maryland, Larry Hogan, said the midterms were the third election that Mr Trump had cost the party.
Speaking on CNN on Sunday about the former president potentially running again for the White House, he said: “He’s still the 800-pound gorilla. It is still a battle that is going to continue for the next few years. And the dust is settling from this one. I think it would be a mistake. Trump cost us the last three elections and I do not want to see it happening a fourth time.”
