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Surprisingly Weak Democrats in Congressional Elections
| Reading time: 4 minutes
Republican incumbent Kelly Loeffler missed a first-round majority of more than 50 percent of the vote in Georgia.
What: REUTERS
Regardless of whether Joe Biden wins the last necessary electoral votes or whether Donald Trump manages to catch up, the future president will have to rule again with a divided Congress. At least one term will be decided in a second round of the January elections.
secondIn the elections of 35 of the 100 members of the Senate held in conjunction with the presidential elections of the United States, democratic hopes for decisive achievements have not yet been fulfilled. Several electoral districts in which a change was considered possible returned to the Republican headlines. On Thursday night (local time) it was not yet decided whether its majority of 53 of the 100 seats will occupy. Outside Alaska, North Carolina and from a seat in Georgia final results are not yet available.
Republicans defended their seats in several states: in South Carolina Incumbent Lindsey Graham prevailed against Democrat Jamie Harrison, and also former Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Kentucky he was re-elected. Susan Collins in Maine kept their seat, Republicans were more successful in Texas, Iowa, Montana Y Kansas. McConnell was cautious: “We don’t know which party will control the Senate,” he said in Louisville. With a small blow to President Donald Trump’s premature claim of victory, he also said: “Claiming to have won the election is different from ending the count.
In Michigan the Democrats escaped defeat when Gary Peters defeated Republican John James. Also in Colorado Democratic candidate John Hickenlooper prevailed against the Republican incumbent. But in Alabama the formerly Democratic seat went to Republican Tommy Tuberville, a former soccer coach. In Arizona Former astronaut Mark Kelly won the Senate seat for Democrats once held by Republican John McCain, who died in 2018. Kelly prevailed against Martha McSally, who had been declared successor after McCain’s death.
Runoff election in Georgia in January
Another Senate seat previously held by Republicans in Georgia It will not be decided until the second round of the January elections. Incumbent Kelly Loeffler, like her Democratic challenger Raphael Warnock, missed a majority of more than 50 percent of the votes required for a first-round victory. Loeffler also had intra-party competition in the wide field of candidates: Republican Doug Collins was eliminated in the first round. Warnock is pastor of the Atlanta church where Martin Luther King preached. He wants to become the first black senator from Georgia.
Whether your party controls the Senate is critical to the power of the president. Until now, the ratio was 53 to 47 for Republicans, which ensured the majority in decision-making for President Trump, who was also a Republican. If there are now four seats for Democrats, this support would be broken in the event of a new election victory for Trump.
You can find all the updates on our live indicator for the US elections.
If Trump’s challenger Joe Biden moves into the White House, three more Senate seats would be enough for the majority, because in the event of a deadlock, the vice president’s vote counts.
A total of two senators from each of the 50 US states are sent to Congress. Not only does the Senate have to pass important bills, it also has to confirm personal details, such as those of Supreme Court justices or High-ranking officials: Trump recently lobbied Conservative Judge Amy Coney Barrett.
Rotating there were 33 Senate seats plus by-elections in Arizona for McCain’s seat and in Georgia for resigned John Isakson.
Polls had indeed confirmed that Democrats had a good chance in the Senate. They apparently defended their majority in the House of Representatives. Although some seats were filled in the Senate and House of Representatives, there were no major upheavals. The House of Representatives will continue to be democratically controlled, but with a smaller majority for Democratic President Nancy Pelosi. There were no signs in the Senate that Democrats would win the expected seats to win a majority there.
Therefore, a comprehensive political reform agenda will be difficult for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden if he wins the election.
In recent years, both under Democrat Barack Obama and his Republican successor Donald Trump, Congress had been marked by a deep trench warfare between the parties, repeatedly blocking legislation and placing tight limits on the president’s efforts. Trump, but also Obama before him, repeatedly eluded Congress with presidential powers.
