Democrats boosted by initial vote results
CONTROL of the United States Congress hung in the balance yesterday as the Democrats showed surprising strength in the American mid-term elections, defeating Republicans in several races and defying expectations that high inflation and President Joe Biden’s low approval ratings would drag down the party.
In the most heartening news for the Democrats yesterday, John Fetterman flipped the Republican-controlled Senate seat for Pennsylvania that is key to the party’s hopes of maintaining control of the chamber.
The Democrats also held a crucial Senate seat in New Hampshire, where incumbent Maggie Hassan defeated Republican Don Bolduc, a retired army general and Trump supporter.
In the race for the House of Representatives, Democrats kept seats in districts from Virginia to Kansas and Rhode Island, while many districts in states like New York and California had not been called at the time of writing.
Democrats were also successful in governors’ races, winning in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania – battlegrounds critical to Mr Biden’s 2020 win over former president Donald Trump.
However Republicans held on to governors’ mansions in Florida, Texas and Georgia, another battleground state Mr Biden narrowly won two years ago.
With votes still being counted across the country, Republicans still had the opportunity to win control of congress, but the results were uplifting for Democrats who were braced for sweeping losses, and raised questions about the size of Republicans’ governing majority if they win the house.
Representative Kevin McCarthy, the Republican poised to be House Speaker if the party takes control of the chamber, sounded a note of optimism as he told supporters: “When you wake up tomorrow, we will be in the majority.”
Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said: “While many races remain too close to call, it is clear that House Democratic members and candidates are strongly outperforming expectations across the country.”
The outcome of races for House and Senate will determine the future of Mr Biden’s agenda and serve as a referendum on his administration as the nation reels from record-high inflation and concerns over the direction of the country.
Republican control of the House could be expected to trigger a round of investigations into Mr Biden and his family, while a Senate takeover by the Republicans would hobble the President’s ability to make judicial appointments.