US Midterm Election Updates

According to Wall Street News, the Democratic Party achieved a significant victory in the U.S. midterm elections, with several candidates who clearly opposed the expansion of data centers elected as governors, raising concerns in the market about a slowdown in AI infrastructure investment in the U.S. Asian chip stocks were under pressure on Wednesday, with companies like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix facing risks that demand for server DRAM and high bandwidth memory (HBM) could be affected.The opposition to data centers mainly focuses on issues such as noise, water consumption, energy consumption, and increased electricity bills for residents. The market is concerned that local governments may tighten project approvals under the pretext of power supply, environmental protection, and AI safety, leading to delays in the construction of new data centers. However, analysts believe that regulation may not directly lead to a shrinkage in investment scale, and tech companies may also turn to building their own power and supporting infrastructure.For South Korean companies, the election results have varying impacts. The Democratic Party's control of Congress may counterbalance the Trump administration's efforts to cut subsidies from the CHIPS and Science Act, benefiting companies like Samsung that invest in the U.S.; the clean energy tax credit policy is also expected to be restored, potentially benefiting solar companies like Hanwha Solutions. Meanwhile, significant easing of automotive tariffs is unlikely, while the Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation framework is expected to continue.

According to crypto journalist Eleanor Terrett, in this round of the U.S. midterm elections, the AI industry has become an important political funding spender, with related political action committee (PAC) expenditures of about $72 million, still lower than the crypto industry's three major PACs, which spent about $170 million.Both industries had some political investments that did not achieve the expected results, with AI-supported Darline Graham, Mike Rogers, and Carlos For Texas all losing in the elections.

In the U.S. midterm elections, the Democratic Party won control of both houses of Congress, prompting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to face fierce criticism from domestic political opponents. The opposition accused him of long publicly supporting the Republican Party, undermining Israel's traditional bipartisan support in the U.S., and using the election results to push for the formation of a new government without Netanyahu.Yair Golan, leader of Israel's center-left opposition party, stated that the election results reflect Netanyahu's negative impact within both the Democratic and Republican parties in the U.S. Centrist leader Yair Lapid warned that Netanyahu's continued rule would jeopardize Israel's security and international standing.U.S.-Israel relations may also face new pressures. With the Democratic Party controlling Congress, there may be pressure on Israel through hearings, oversight investigations, and budget measures. Previously, there had been a shift within the Democratic Party regarding support for Israel's military actions and U.S. aid, a trend exacerbated by the military actions jointly launched by Trump and Netanyahu against Iran. Meanwhile, Israeli President Isaac Herzog plans to meet with representatives from various parties on Wednesday and Thursday to initiate the process of forming a new government. Netanyahu currently remains in office as caretaker Prime Minister.

Strategy founder and chairman Michael Saylor posted on X that Florida has elected a Republican governor who supports a U.S. Bitcoin reserve, and Texas has elected a Democratic senator who previously voted in favor of establishing a Bitcoin reserve in the state. The reasons for holding Bitcoin transcend party lines.In the 2026 midterm elections, Republican federal representative Byron Donalds defeated Democrat David Jolly to become the governor of Florida. He proposed H.R. 2112, which aims to provide legal authority for an executive order to establish a federal strategic Bitcoin reserve and digital asset reserve, and stated during his campaign that Florida already has proposals for establishing a strategic reserve.Democratic state representative James Talarico defeated Republican Ken Paxton to become the federal senator from Texas, making him the first Democrat to win a statewide election in the state since 1994. Legislative records show that he voted in favor of SB21, which aimed to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve in Texas during his time as a state representative. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has signed related legislation in 2025.

Despite the possibility that the Democratic Party may push for stricter restrictions on data center construction after winning the election, Nvidia's stock price still rose on Wednesday. This is because the positive performance reported by major companies in the chip industry indicates that market concerns about delays in data center construction have not immediately affected Nvidia and other hardware companies.Customers are still rushing to stockpile artificial intelligence hardware, even though it is currently uncertain whether there will be suitable locations to install these devices in the future. The defeat of Republican governors in Texas and Ohio in the election means that the construction of artificial intelligence infrastructure will face stricter scrutiny.Mark Haefele, Chief Investment Officer at UBS Global Wealth Management, wrote in a research report: "Increased oversight from Congress does not necessarily hinder the artificial intelligence investment cycle. Comprehensive federal-level restrictions will face legislative and presidential power constraints, while state and local regulations will still have a greater impact on the timing and location of data center construction." If Democratic politicians indeed push for stringent measures to limit the construction of artificial intelligence data centers, Nvidia will face greater challenges in the future.However, the market is currently more focused on signs that chip demand remains strong after the stock's recent weak performance.

U.S. President Trump stated, "We will work with the Democrats," accepting the results of the midterm elections.According to Polymarket data, in the "2026 Midterm Elections" market, the probability of the Democrats controlling both the Senate and the House is 99.6%, with a transaction volume of approximately 18.23 million dollars.

According to the Decision Desk HQ page, as of now, in the confirmed seats for the 2026 U.S. midterm elections, the Democratic Party is leading in both chambers.In the House of Representatives, the Democratic Party has secured 147 seats, while the Republican Party has 92 seats, with the majority threshold being 218 seats. In the Senate, the Democratic Party has secured 47 seats, while the Republican Party has 38 seats, with the majority threshold being 51 seats.

According to The Hill, the election forecasting organization Decision Desk Headquarters (DDHQ) predicts that the Democratic Party will win control of the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday, regaining a majority after four years as a minority party, thus ushering the U.S. into a new era of divided government. This power shift will have significant immediate impacts on political operations in Washington next year, not only significantly hindering Trump's legislative agenda but also laying the groundwork for a series of conflicts between the House of Representatives and the White House, with contentious issues covering immigration enforcement, government spending, Trump's global tariff policies, and the war in Iran.The Democratic Party has pledged to launch a series of comprehensive investigations into Trump and his inner circle, focusing on issues including the Epstein scandal, the violence accompanying Trump's mass deportation actions, and the financial status of Trump himself and his family.