The people have spoken — now let's get to work

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There was a grand old party on Election Day, as voters sent President Obama and his party a message: They’re fed up with the political rhetoric and want action.

The Republican Party took control of the U.S. Senate for the first time since 2006. The GOP gained seven seats — and possibly two more, with a race in Alaska too close to call and a runoff set for December in Louisiana — and for the moment, it holds a 52-to-44 majority in the Senate. The Republican takeover was made possible by big wins in so-called tossup states like Colorado, Arkansas and Georgia.

Republicans now dominate the South. That was highlighted with the victory of Tim Scott of South Carolina, who became the first African-American elected to the Senate in the South since Reconstruction.

It was a Republican tidal wave. In the House, Republicans extended their majority, and now control at least 246 seats for the first time since President Harry S. Truman’s administration more than 60 years ago. This is thanks to several big victories here in New York, including a huge pickup on Long Island, where Republican Lee Zeldin defeated incumbent Tim Bishop in the 1st Congressional District.

The Grand Old Party even scored gubernatorial victories in traditionally blue states such as Arkansas, Maryland, Massachusetts and the state Obama represented as a senator, Illinois.

The political landscape in Washington has been transformed. Now what?

The probable new Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, stated that Republicans “have an obligation to work on issues where we can agree.” The American people made it clear that they deserve the same sense of bipartisanship from Obama. He did not get off on the right foot with his post-election press conference.

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