Washington, 14 November 2024 (dpa/MIA) - President-elect Donald Trump's Republican Party has kept control of the House of Representatives, networks NBC and CNN projected on Wednesday, a week after a sweeping election victory delivered him a second term.

It was already known that the Republicans will control the upper chamber, the Senate, where the Democrats had previously held a wafer-thin majority under outgoing President Joe Biden.

By also holding sway in the House, Trump will have broad authority to advance his political agenda - including hardline immigration enforcement, tax cuts and rolling back climate rules - without major opposition from the Democrats.

The confirmation of government officials and judges will also be speeded up, removing a barrier to checking Trump's authoritarian tendencies.

Going into Election Day on November 5, there had been speculation that the Democrats could flip the House, where a party needs 218 seats for a majority.

But after a week of counting votes, NBC and and CNN reported that the Republicans had been able to hold on to two tightly contested House seats in California and one in Arizona, pushing the party over the finish line.

Trump promises Biden'smooth' transition

Trump was welcomed by Biden to the White House earlier on Wednesday for a traditional transition meeting.

In front of reporters and a roaring fire in the Oval Office, Biden greeted Trump with a handshake. During a brief on-camera exchange, both promised that the shift in power would be seamless.

Biden, who leaves office on January 20, said there would be a "smooth transition" and told Trump that his administration would "do everything we can to make sure you’re accommodated."

"Politics is tough. And it’s, [in] many cases, not a very nice world, but it is a nice world today," Trump replied.

He said the handover would be "a transition that’s so smooth it’ll be as smooth as it can get."

The White House said later that they spoke for two hours about a range of issues, from national security to domestic concerns.

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre described Trump as "gracious" during the "substantive" meeting, while Biden's National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the president pressed Trump on the need to continue supporting Ukraine against Russia's invasion.

While Biden and his Democrats have talked about Trump as a dire threat to democracy, the meeting demonstrated that Biden is nevertheless going forward with the usual protocols surrounding the peaceful transfer of power in the US.

Trump deviated from such conventions in 2020. The Republican, who has yet to concede that election defeat four years ago, not only did not invite Biden to the White House but also stayed away from his inauguration.

Trump's Cabinet takes shape

Trump announced that he had picked Marco Rubio, a Republican senator from Florida, to be his secretary of state.

Rubio unsuccessfully ran against Trump for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016. Despite attacking him during that campaign, Rubio has become one of Trump's most loyal surrogates.

Rubio is a strong supporter of Israel, advocates for an aggressive stance on China and is generally seen as a foreign policy hawk.

Trump described him as "a fearless warrior who will never back down to our adversaries."

Tulsi Gabbard, a one-time Democratic presidential candidate who turned independent, was also named on Wednesday as his choice for director of national intelligence.

Far-right Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida, who has been one of the president-elect's staunchest allies over the years, was chosen to be attorney general, the top law enforcement officer in the country.

Trump himself has said he will target critics and political opponents for retribution, including Biden and other top Democrats. To do so he would need an obliging attorney general at the Justice Department.

On Tuesday, Trump named Fox News host and army veteran Pete Hegseth to head the Department of Defense and said former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee would be the new US ambassador to Israel.

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem was chosen to be the new secretary for Homeland Security.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk, who was a major donor to Trump's campaign, will co-head a new Department of Government Efficiency that aims to reduce bureaucracy.