Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy Insists GOP Will Retake House

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) predicted that Republicans would win control of the U.S. House of Representatives in an early morning speech to supporters at a “subdued” election party on Wednesday.

“It is clear we’re going to take the House back,” McCarthy said at the event in downtown Washington, citing GOP wins in New York, Florida and Iowa.

“When we wake up tomorrow, we will be in the majority and Nancy Pelosi will be in the minority,” he added in brief remarks, ignoring the fact that Democrats had a much better night than had been expected.

McCarthy was initially supposed to speak at 11 p.m. Tuesday but didn’t take the stage until 2 a.m. Wednesday as the much-hyped “red wave” failed to materialize around the country.

Democrats successfully defended a number of seats that were rated as toss-ups, such as in Virginia, and even managed to pick up seats in Indiana, Texas and North Carolina. Although Republicans are still favored to win the House, it no longer looks like a blowout.

Democrats also performed well in the battle for the U.S. Senate, holding on to New Hampshire and winning Pennsylvania. But Senate control isn’t likely to be decided for a while, with races in Georgia, Nevada and Arizona still to be decided.

“Definitely not a Republican wave, that’s for darn sure,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) acknowledged in an interview on NBC News.