WASHINGTON -- The Democrats clinched the final victory needed for a 51-seat majority in the U.S. Senate Wednesday night, according to the Associated Press, effectively handing both houses of Congress to the party for the first time since 1994.

Jim Webb was declared the winner by the AP reporters who contacted election officials in all 134 localities where voting occurred. About half had completed canvassing and nearly all absentee ballots had been counted, according to the AP.

As of Wednesday, the Senate stood at 49 Republicans and 50 Democrats (including two independents who caucus with the party), with Virginia still up in the air. Because Vice President Dick Cheney holds the tie-breaker in the chamber, the Democrats needed a full 51 seats in their caucus to win majority control.

The new AP count Wednesday showed Webb with 1,172,538 votes and incumbent Sen. George Allen with 1,165,302, a difference of 7,236. The only two statewide recounts in modern history in Virginia have resulted in vote changes of only a few hundred votes.

Citing an adviser to Allen who spoke on condition of anonymity, the AP reported that Allen has not formally decided to campaign, but intended to wait until most of the canvassing was reported, which could come as early as Thursday night. The adviser said Allen was reluctant to request a recount if vote tallies held the same margins they did on election night.