a disturbed election season Voters cast ballots in the first national election on Tuesday, which again raised questions about America’s deep political divisions and raised questions about its commitment to a democratic future. Joe Biden’s presidency
Democrats were prepared for disappointing results, worried that their grip on the US House was slipping and their grip on the US Senate – once seen as more secure – had loosened. In places like Wisconsin, Michigan and Nevada, the party’s current governors are also staring at serious Republican challengers.
Returning to the White House Monday night after his final campaign schedule, Biden said he thinks Democrats will keep the Senate, but acknowledged that “the House is tough.”
The GOP was optimistic about its prospects, betting that a message focused on the economy, gas prices and crime would resonate with voters one at a time. rising inflation And increasing violence, Ultimately, she is confident that the outrage emanated from the Supreme Court’s decision to abrogate the constitutional rights of women. abortion have faded and the midterm has become a more traditional assessment of the president’s performance.
“It will be a referendum on the incompetence of this administration,” Representative Tom Emmer, a Minnesota Republican who is running the GOP effort to retake the House, said of the election.
With voting being open in most parts of the country, no major problem of early voting was reported, Although there were hiccups on most election days, Tabulators weren’t working in New Jersey counties — potentially requiring a hand-counting instead — and some polling places in Pennsylvania were delayed opening because workers showed up late.
The results could have a profound effect on the final two years of Biden’s presidency. Republican control over even one chamber of Congress Defending his policy achievements, including a comprehensive infrastructure measure along with a major health care and social spending package, would leave Biden vulnerable to scrutiny in his family and administration. An upbeat GOP could make it even harder to raise the debt limit and add sanctions for additional support for Ukraine. war with russia,
Winning Democratic if Republicans have a particularly strong election Congress seats In places like New Hampshire or Washington state, Biden could be under pressure to opt for re-election in 2024. former President Donald TrumpMeanwhile, the GOP could try to capitalize on gains by formally launching another bid for the White House during a “very big announcement” in Florida next week.
The midterm comes at a volatile moment for the US, which this year emerged from the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic only to face sharp economic challenges. The Supreme Court took away the constitutional right to abortion, ending protections that had existed for five decades.
and after that in the first national election January 6 UprisingThe democratic future of the country is in question. Some people who participated in or were around the deadly attack are set to win elected office, including House seats, on Tuesday. Several GOP candidates for secretary of state running in Arizona, Nevada and Michigan have refused to accept the results of the 2020 presidential election. If they win on Tuesday, they will manage future elections in states that are often crucial in presidential elections.
Democrats acknowledge the odds are working against him. With only rare exceptions, the president’s party loses seats in its first midterm. The momentum is especially complicated by Biden’s backward acceptance, which has left many Democrats reluctant to join him in a competitive race.
Only 43% of US adults said they approved of how Biden is handling his job as president October 1 vote Associated Press—by the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. In the same poll, just 25% said the country was moving in the right direction.
Still, Biden’s aides have expressed hope that voters will reject Republicans who have contributed to an overly political climate.
“I think what we’re seeing now is the moral compass a party has,” said Cedric Richmond, a senior adviser to Biden at the White House and now who serves on the Democratic National Committee. “And one party wants to grab power.”
It’s a message that appeals to Kevin Tolbert, 49, who works in labor law and lives in Southfield, Michigan. He plans to support Democratic candidates amid concerns over the future of democracy.
“It’s something that has to be protected and we protect it by voting and staying out and supporting our country,” Tolbert said. “It’s a delicate place we’re in. I think it’s really important that we protect it, because we may end up with something we’ve seen in the past – dictators and such. We don’t need that.” “
But in Maryland, where Democrats have the best chance of reversing the Republican-held gubernatorial seat, Sean Poulson said there were “too many questions, not enough scrutiny” in the results of the 2020 election.
“Talking about what you’re going to do to improve safety shouldn’t be in any way negative or illegal,” said Paulson, 45, who chairs the Kent County Republican Central Committee.
Federal and state election officials and Trump’s own attorney general have said there is no credible evidence that the 2020 election was tainted. The former president’s allegations of fraud were also dismissed by courts, including a Trump-appointed judge.
Pennsylvania, Georgia, Wisconsin and Arizona have thirty-four seats up for grabs with cliffhangers possibly deciding which party currently controls a chamber divided 50–50, with Vice President Kamala Harris as the tie-breaking vote. Huh. Democrats are expecting ups and downs in the Senate elections in Ohio and North Carolina, while the GOP believes it could oust a Democratic incumbent in Nevada and possibly New Hampshire.
Thirty-six states are electing governors, with Democrats specifically focused on taking control of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. All three important presidential battlefields are the Republican-controlled legislature and the GOP gubernatorial candidates that have championed Trump’s 2020 election lie,
Republican victories in the gubernatorial race could deter states from adopting stringent voting laws and ultimately halt efforts to quash the 2024 presidential election, should Trump, or any other Republican candidate, lose.
Amid predictions of a Republican boom, Democrats are hoping abortion could energize their base, while wooing independents and Roe v. Wade could swing angry voters from the reversal of the ruling.
“People believe this fundamental freedom has been taken away,” said Alexis McGill Johnson, president of the Planned Parenthood Union of America, which, along with other Democratic advocacy groups, has raised $150 million to mobilize “low” voters in the midterms. Spent.
“They see this is an economic issue, a health care issue, a freedom issue,” McGill Johnson said. “And they’re angry.”
Still, Biden faced the prospect of presiding over a divided Washington on Monday. When he returned from an event with Wes Moore, the Democratic nominee for governor in Maryland, Biden was asked what his new reality would be if Congress was controlled by Republicans.
His response: “More difficult.”
