by DAVID AXE
Democrats swept the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate and state offices in the midterm elections on Tuesday. Once the dust settles and all the votes are counted, Democratic leaders should have enough votes to advance fresh aid to Ukraine—even if embattled U.S. Pres. Donald Trump vetoes any new aid legislation.
It takes 67 U.S. senators and 290 members of the U.S. House to override a presidential veto. Democrats, practically all of whom are in favor of further aid to Ukraine should hold 56 Senate seats and 260 House seats come January. That means they’d need 11 Republican senators and 30 Republican House members to join them in an override.
It should be possible to find those 41 Republicans. Nineteen Republican senators who voted for the last aid package in April 2024 are still in office. Eight could defect and fresh aid could still overcome a veto.
The House math is a little more complicated. 101 Republican members of the House voted in favor of the April 2024 aid package, but many of them lost their seats this week. As recently as June, there 18 House Republicans were willing to defy party leadership and vote in favor of fresh sanctions on Russia—sanctions Trump later waived. But at least five of those members have lost their seats.
Could Democrats find 17 House Republicans in addition to the 13 left from the pro-sanctions bloc to override a veto of fresh aid to Ukraine?
