Will President Joe Biden be able to maintain his narrow majorities in the United States Congress? Or will control of the Senate and House of Representatives revert to the Republicans, who will try to obstruct the president’s policies?
Source: AFP
The answer will come on Tuesday, during the mid-term elections, in which the House of Representatives is at stake, 30 seats in the Senate, 36 governorships and practically all the local assemblies.
These midterm elections effectively become a referendum on the occupant of the White House. In more than 160 years, the president’s party has rarely escaped punishment.
– What is chosen?
As it happens every two yearsall 435 seats in the US House of Representatives are up for grabs.
In the Senate, which has 100 seats with six-year terms, it will renew 35 seats that will begin their term on January 3, 2023.
Americans will also elect the governors of 36 of the 50 states in the Union, as well as a host of local officials.
– What do the polls say?
According to the latest polls, the Republican opposition has a good chance of winning between 10 and 25 seats in the lower house, more than enough to snatch most.
Instead, the polls are more mixed on the fate of the Senate, but Republicans appear to have the upper hand there, too.
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– Double referendum
Although the name of Joe Biden does not appear on the ballots, many Americans see this election as a referendum on the president.
But these elections are also a great test for the political future of Donald Trump, who threw himself headlong into the campaign, multiplying rallies across the country.
For both, who are flirting with running for the 2024 elections, the result of the mid-term elections could presage a possible re-edition of the 2020 presidential elections.
– What is at stake?
The impact of these elections will be decisive throughout the country.
Biden implores Americans to trust him with enough majorities to bypass congressional rules that currently prevent him from legalizing abortion nationwide or banning assault rifles.
In almost all his speeches he insists that the future of abortion, firearms and the health system will depend on the result of this vote.
For their part, Republicans promise to lead a fierce fight against inflation, immigration, crime and continue their offensive against transgender athletes.
Some of them are also considering cutting off Washington’s aid to Ukraine.
The candidates of the “Grand Old Party” also promised that, if they obtain a legislative majority, they will open a series of parliamentary investigations against Biden, his adviser on the pandemic Anthony Fauci and his Justice Minister Merrick Garland.
They also plan to bury the work of the parliamentary commission investigating the January 2021 attack on Congress by Trump supporters.
