Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/eleven-u-s-house-races-yet-to-be-determined Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript Although Democrats picked up 28 seats in the U.S. House in the midterm elections, eleven races have yet to be decided -- some remain mired in recounts while others are still waiting on absentee ballots. A reporter updates the races in play. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. RAY SUAREZ: Now, a lame-duck Congress returns to Washington while the new Congress is still taking shape. We begin with NewsHour congressional correspondent Kwame Holman. KWAME HOLMAN: It's called a lame-duck session because the newly elected Congress won't be sworn in until January, while the outgoing Congress still has work to do. In fact, several members who returned to town this week know their next several days in Congress will be their last.Those who will return in January include members of a dispirited Republican Party, which lost its majority last Tuesday, and revitalized Democrats, who'll have the upper hand in the new Congress.On top of the political realities, both sides have pressing items on their to-do lists before they adjourn for the year. They include: completing work on nine spending bills; extending several tax breaks that have expired; and approving trade pacts with Vietnam and Peru.Traditionally, lame-duck sessions don't produce any new legislation, and the next few weeks may be no different. At a minimum, however, Congress may have to pass a temporary funding measure to keep the government running if members fail to reach agreement on the various spending bills.As the Senate got back to work today, the current majority leader, Bill Frist, who is retiring, and the soon-to-be majority leader, Democrat Harry Reid, both said voters made it clear last week that partisanship must end.SEN. BILL FRIST (R-TN), Senate Majority Leader: America wants results, and America wants solutions. And it's with that focus that we enter the remaining days of the 109th Congress.SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), Senate Minority Leader: We need to work together to pass legislation on a bipartisan basis and send it to the White House. KWAME HOLMAN: Meanwhile, freshmen House members began their orientation sessions today, and they'll help choose party leaders in elections later this week.For Democrats, current Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is expected to be elected the first female speaker. The choice for her deputy, House majority leader, is between current Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland and Pennsylvania's John Murtha, whose call for U.S. withdrawal from Iraq made him a favorite among party liberals. Pelosi endorsed Murtha yesterday, but Hoyer maintained that the majority of the caucus supported him.On the Republican side, three men are battling to be the next House minority leader: current Majority Leader John Boehner of Ohio, who some may want to blame for the party's losses, and conservatives Mike Pence of Indiana and Joe Barton of Texas. The eventual Republican leader will cope with a party that lost at least 28 seats. And one week after Election Day, 11 races remain undecided.