Democrats regain control of Congress
Divisive Trump era ushers in record for women in the House and more support for Democrats
WASHINGTON: Democrats have regained control of the House of Representatives from President Donald Trump’s Republican Party in the midterm elections.
But the Republicans added to their Senate edge and prevailed in some key races for governor yesterday, beating back the potential of big Democratic gains across the board. The “blue wave” that some had feared from election day never fully materialised.
The mixed verdict in the first nationwide election of Trump’s presidency showed the limits of his hardline immigration rhetoric in America’s evolving political landscape, where college-educated voters in the suburbs rejected his warnings of a migrant “invasion”. But blue-collar voters and rural America embraced his aggressive talk and stances.
The new Democratic House majority will end Republican dominance in Washington for the final two years of Trump’s first term with major questions looming about healthcare, immigration and government spending. House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi of California, who would be in line to become the next speaker, spoke of “a new day in America”.
But the Democrats’ edge is narrow. With 218 seats needed for a majority in the 435-member House, Democrats have won 220 and the Republicans 193, with winners undetermined in 22 races. The president’s party will maintain control of the executive branch of the government, in addition to the Senate. However, Democrats now have a foothold that gives them subpoena power to probe into Trump’s personal and professional missteps.
A RECORD number of women were elected to the House on Tuesday, nearly two years after women spilled out into the streets of Washington and in cities across the country in defiance of the inauguration of US President Donald Trump.
The incoming class of lawmakers could have a stark impact on politics in the nation’s capital, particularly within the Democratic Party, after a midterm election that was widely seen as a referendum on Trump’s first term.
Yesterday, voters were on track to send at least 99 women to the House, surpassing the previous record of 84.
According to data compiled by The Associated Press, 237 women ran for the House as major-party candidates this year.
Among the new lawmakers headed to the House is Jennifer Wexton, a Virginia state senator who defeated incumbent Barbara Comstock in one of the most closely watched races.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the former Bernie Sanders organiser who won an upset primary victory over a senior House Democrat, will also head to Congress.
The Election Day gains by women were the capstone on a midterm election that has been defined by the energy of women, on the political left and right. Women not only ran for office at an unprecedented rate, several knocked off white male incumbents during their party primaries. They mobilised on the grass-roots level and played larger roles as donors than in previous election cycles.
There was also a historic gender gap that showed women more supportive of Democrats than Republicans.
According to VoteCast, women voted considerably more in favour of their congressional Democratic candidate: about six in 10 voted for the Democrat, compared with four in 10 for the Republican. Men, by contrast, were more evenly divided in their vote.
In victory speeches, women acknowledged the groundbreaking year.
“I am so honoured to share both the ballot and the stage with the many visionary, bold women who have raised their hand to run for public office,” said Ayanna Pressley, who became the first black woman elected to Congress from Massachusetts. “Now, listen, I know for a fact none of us ran to make history, we ran to make change. However, the historical significance of this evening is not lost on me.”
Former health and human services secretary Donna Shalala noted that both of her opponents in the race for a House seat from Florida were women.
“This is the year of the woman, and the fact that women were willing to put themselves on the line is important, whether they’ve been Republicans or Democrats,” said Shalala, a first-time candidate for elected office.
Women also contested governor’s races across the country. Twenty-two states have never elected a woman as governor, and six states have female governors today. This year, women tied the record for most governor’s seats women have ever held – nine – a number that was previously reached in 2004 and 2007.
Stacey Abrams, one of 16 women running for governor this year, remains in a tight contest in Georgia.
The surge of female candidates this year has drawn comparisons with the “Year of the Woman”, when in 1992 voters sent 47 women to the House, and four women joined the Senate bringing women’s numbers to six. This year, women not only increased their numbers, but the new class of lawmakers also includes women from a wide patchwork of backgrounds, adding to a Congress that is expected to be more diverse.
“This isn’t just the year of the woman, this is the year of every woman,” said Cecile Richards, who served as the president of Planned Parenthood for more than a decade, noting the diversity among the women who have run for office this year.
Texas is set to send its first Hispanic women to Congress, as Democrats Veronica Escobar and Sylvia Garcia both won their races. In Kansas, Sharice Davids, a Democrat running in a suburban Kansas City district, will become one of the first Native American women elected to Congress, and the first openly LGBT person to represent Kansas at the federal level.
While women gained in the House, results were still uncertain in the Senate, where there are 23 women serving. As of early yesterday morning, 22 women were headed to the Senate.
Ballots were still being counted in California and Nevada.