Democrats clinch the Senate, too

Democrats completed their conquest of Capitol Hill by winning a U.S. Senate seat in Virginia, giving them majorities of both chambers of Congress for the first time in 12 years.

The Democrats sealed their Senate majority when Democrat Jim Webb won a narrow victory over Republican incumbent George Allen. The Associated Press declared Webb the winner with a margin of about 7,200 votes, or about 0.3 percent, with all but one of the state's 2,411 precincts reporting.

While the close margin left Allen with the option of requesting a recount, an adviser to the senator said he would be less inclined to seek one if Webb's lead continued to hold up during an official canvass that could be completed as early as today. The adviser said Allen did not intend to drag out the process.

The Democrats also captured the U.S. House of Representatives in the Nov. 7 election after a midterm campaign shaped by the war in Iraq and corruption scandals.

Capitalizing on President Bush's declining popularity, Democrats picked up at least 28 House seats, ensuring control of the 435-seat chamber in January.

The results set the stage for two years of divided government as Bush attempts to get his policy proposals through a Democratic Congress. Bush will also face the possibility of investigations into his administration and a series of new initiatives from Democratic committee chairmen.

"The American people voted for change and they voted for Democrats to take our country in a new direction, and that is exactly what we intend to do," said California Rep. Nancy Pelosi, who is set to become the first female speaker of the House in January. "Democrats are ready to lead."

In Montana, Democrat Jon Tester defeated Republican Sen. Conrad Burns in a close race called at midday Wednesday. Earlier, Democrats picked up Senate seats in Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.

The White House conceded control of the House shortly before midnight Tuesday.

"If you look at it race by race, it was close," Bush said at a White House press conference Wednesday. "The cumulative effect, however, was not close. It was a thumping."

Bush also announced that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is stepping down amid a firestorm of criticism about the war in Iraq. (See story on A1.)

The president made congratulatory phone calls to Pelosi and other Democratic leaders. "The leaders of both political parties must try to work through our differences," Bush told reporters. "I believe we will be able to."