WASHINGTON 

Republicans have taken 17 seats in the US Senate while their rivals Democrats gained 10 seats in midterm elections, as vote counting remains underway, according to projections late Tuesday.

The preliminary results by the Associated Press showed that the Republicans have taken two latest seats in the states of Ohio and North Carolina.

In New Hampshire, Oregon and Hawaii, the Democrats retained three seats.

According to earlier results, Republican candidates won in Florida, Alabama, South Carolina, Kentucky, Indiana, Arkansas, Kansas, North Dakota, South Dakota, Missouri, Louisiana, Idaho, and Iowa. Also, the Republicans grabbed two seats in Oklahoma.

On the other hand, Democrats won the Senate elections in Connecticut, Illinois, Vermont, Maryland, New York, Colorado, and California.

With that, Republicans have won 17 seats and Democrats won 10 seats; and both Republicans and Democrats have 46 seats each.

This year, all 435 seats in the House of Representatives, as well as 35 seats in Senate are being contested. Most analysts are predicting Republicans will gain control of the House, but the fate of Senate remains a topic of intense speculation.