Story highlights Next year, Republicans' control of the Senate goes from 52-48 to 51-49

GOP senators on the fence will have more leverage in negotiations

(CNN) Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's time with the Senate chamber as he knows it got a lot shorter Tuesday night, after Democrat Doug Jones was projected to win a seat in Alabama that had been reliably Republican for decades.

Jones' victory over Republican candidate Roy Moore means that Jones will replace incumbent GOP Sen. Luther Strange early next year.

For the immediate challenges ahead, such as taxes and government funding, McConnell's calculus remains about the same because he is trying to finish both of those critical issues before the end of the year.

The Kentucky Republican said Tuesday that Strange will serve out the rest of the session, so Jones probably won't be sworn in until at least January 3 . That means that for the next few weeks, McConnell will still command a 52-48 majority.

GOP tax negotiators -- busily hammering out a final bill that can pass the House and the Senate -- say they have always been full speed ahead on tax reform, regardless of the special election's outcome.

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