• Cabinet shake-up: Stephen Miller will replace Susie Wiles as White House chief of staff . It comes after President Donald Trump voiced fury at the strategy that led to Republicans’ catastrophic midterm losses, per people familiar with the matter. Trump has signaled he will make more personnel shuffles.
• Blue wave: Democrats are on the verge of exceeding the 257 House seats at the start of Barack Obama’s presidency and the 258 at the start of Bill Clinton’s tenure.
• Outstanding races: Votes are still being counted in Mississippi and Alaska, where Senate races remain too close to call. Democratic candidates are leading slightly in both of the contests.
Vote counting continues in Mississippi and Alaska, with their Senate races too early for CNN to call.
Here are the latest developments in these states:
CNN Sightline rates the Mississippi Senate race as neutral , with the contest too close to call. Democratic candidate Scott Colom has grown his narrow lead over Republican candidate Cindy Hyde-Smith.
Several Mississippi-based organizations Friday called for greater transparency in the state’s ongoing ballot-counting process, saying they had run into issues with counties over how much of the work is supposed to be open to the public.
Meanwhile elections expert David Becker said the ongoing ballot-counting process in Mississippi is “entirely normal,” and “exactly what we would expect to see.”
Colom maintains that he is 100% confident he will become the state’s senator-elect, because outstanding ballots are in Democratic-leaning counties.
Earlier, the chairman of the Mississippi’s Republican Party claimed there are still thousands of affidavit ballots left to be counted , arguing that Hyde-Smith has plenty of time to take the lead.
In Alaska, Sightline favors Democrat Mary Peltola , who has a very slight edge over Republican incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan.
Days before the midterms, federal prosecutors ordered Gerald Heikes , a longshot Senate hopeful in Alaska, to appear before a grand jury with any records he has related to political groups and other candidates in the race, according to documents reviewed by CNN.
The subpoena was sent as part of an accelerating criminal probe into whether operatives aligned with Peltola sought to recruit spoilers into the race – including another candidate who shares a name with the sitting Republican senator.
The Department of Justice declined to comment for this story. Peltola has denied any knowledge of efforts to recruit other candidates.
CNN’s Tori B. Powell, August Phillips, Rebekah Reiss and Curt Devine contributed reporting.
President Donald Trump says he expects to make more changes to his Cabinet, after announcing yesterday that Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, would be departing her role .
Wiles’ departure came the same day Trump voiced fury at the strategy that led to Republicans decisively losing majorities in Congress in the midterms, sources said.
Here’s a look at other significant departures that have taken place during Trump’s second term:
CNN’s Alejandra Jaramillo, Kaitlan Collins, Priscilla Alvarez, Kristen Holmes, Annie Grayer, Lauren Fox, Zachary Cohen, Hannah Rabinowitz, Alicia Wallace, Betsy Klein, Alayna Treene, Kit Maher, Kylie Atwood, Jennifer Hansler and Kevin Liptak contributed to this reporting.
Following the Democrats’ midterm wins, 75% of Americans will live in a state with a Democratic governor.
A look at where each party has gubernatorial seats:
President Donald Trump is moving on to his sixth chief of staff in less than six years as president after replacing Susie Wiles with Stephen Miller .
Wiles holds the record for longest tenure, at less than one year and 22 months. And the position has seen some rather interesting times:
Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, is departing the role and will be replaced by Stephen Miller, a longtime aide to President Donald Trump who orchestrated his hardline immigration agenda.
The move, which came three days after Republicans suffered catastrophic losses in the midterm elections, will take effect Monday.
Miller, currently a deputy chief of staff who has been the mastermind behind some of Trump’s most polarizing priorities, has widened his portfolio over the past year to include wide swaths of domestic policy and has advocated for an expansive view of executive power. He has long been viewed as one of Trump’s most influential advisers.
Stephen Miller, longtime aide to President Donald Trump and architect of the administration’s immigration agenda, will become the White House chief of staff. Miller is set to replace Susie Wiles, who is departing the role days after the catastrophic losses for Republicans in the midterm elections. CNN Anchor and Chief White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins report
What Trump has said about the staffing shakeup:
Here’s what lawmakers and observers think about Miller’s appointment:
Rep. Robert Garcia: The ranking Member on the House Oversight Committee said in a statement that “Stephen Miller should lawyer up,” adding that “Oversight Democrats will continue to investigate Miller for his misconduct, and we will fight against his hateful policies in Congress and the courts.”
Former Trump administration adviser Olivia Troye: She told CNN she believes Miller is Trump’s “toughest bulldog.” Troye also described Miller as someone who’s loyal and “actually feared.”
Sen. Thom Tillis: The outgoing Republican senator slammed the appointment, calling it a “colossal mistake” and “the worst of all possible choices.” Tillis has been among a small number of Senate Republicans willing to publicly split with the White House . He has clashed directly with Trump and has been sharply critical of Miller in the past.
Georgia Governor-elect Keisha Lance Bottoms: The Democrat said it is “deeply disappointing” that Trump would elevate Miller, someone who she said “has been so divisive and has been behind so many of the policies that have impacted negatively Americans.”
CNN’s Annie Grayer, Alejandra Jaramillo, Rebekah Reiss and Tori B. Powell contributed reporting.
