[ad_1]
Since the turn of the millennium, Democrats have not come close to winning a Senate election in South Georgia. Now they can win two, thus giving the future president of the United States, Democrat Joe Biden, a majority in all of Congress.
Therefore, the special election in Georgia, which takes place on Tuesday, is also described as a fateful election, not only for Biden’s political ambitions, but for the entire United States.
One of the many reasons Democrats now have a chance in the blood red state is Republican chaos, partly caused by US President and Republican Party leader Donald Trump.
Some Republicans in Georgia even fear that Trump has done more harm than good to the party’s reelection chances in the state.
Election manager under pressure: “Great risk”
Out against Trump
Among them is Jay Williams, a Republican campaign strategist who has worked for the Georgia United Victory organization. The organization is raising funds to support Kelly Loeffler, one of two Republican senators from Georgia.
– If you had asked me about this the day after Biden won, I would have said that Republicans would win this Senate election easily, he says.
Now the situation is completely different.
Williams believes that Trump’s barrage of falsehoods and conspiracy theories in the wake of the presidential election, the outcome of which he still refuses to acknowledge, combined with the president’s public attacks on party members, has hurt Republicans’ chances of winning in the state.
– Prevent Republicans from rallying behind a single message about how bad Democrats are. If the Republicans fight each other, it is much easier for the Democrats to unite and cross the finish line first, Williams tells US broadcaster NPR.
It may be because of Trump
American expert Hilmar Mjelde, a researcher at the Norce Research Institute, describes the election as a “fairly open race.” He also believes that the uproar in the wake of the presidential election, largely caused by Trump, could cause problems for Republicans.
– The division of the Republican side can create more Republican residents. The Democrats, on the other hand, are united and well organized, Mjelde tells Dagbladet.
It also points out the demographics of Georgia. The electorate in the southern state has become much more diverse in recent years. It is, and can continue to be, in favor of the Democrats, he believes.
US expert Svein Melby, principal investigator at the Department of Defense Studies (IFS), part of the Norwegian Defense College (FHS), shares Mjelde’s analysis.
– Do you believe what Trump says? You cannot trust the electoral system at all. A logical conclusion for many will then be that there is no point in voting. The Republican loss of these seats can be largely attributed to Trump’s actions, Melby says, adding:
– Trump only thinks of one person and we all know who he is.
That is why the choice is important
Demographic changes were likely a contributing factor to Biden winning the state in the presidential election, as the first Democrat in nearly three decades. Only about 12,000 votes separated Biden’s victory from Trump’s defeat, of just under five million votes.
In Georgia, Democratic Senate candidates Jon Ossoff (33) and Raphael Warnock (51) now hope to repeat Biden’s business.
By-elections are taking place now because none of the candidates managed to get more than 50 percent of the vote in the November elections, which is a requirement in Georgia.
If Democrats win both elections in Georgia, both Republicans and Democrats will each have 50 seats in the Senate. It will give the future vice president of the United States, Democrat Kamala Harris, the deciding vote on how simple a majority is needed to make decisions.
Easier, but not easy
This will make it “moderately easier” for Biden to gain political support, according to US expert Mjelde.
– A party that has a majority in both houses and the president does not have full control when the majority is slim, that is, less than 60. Most cases require a majority of 60 votes in the Senate to make a decision, he says Mjelde.
He believes that the parliamentary situation Biden finds himself in fits into a familiar pattern from the past.
– Like both Presidents Bush in 1989 and 2001, respectively, Biden will lack a clear majority in Congress to back him. Therefore, it will have to rely heavily on the issuance of decrees with the power of law. This is how presidents usually do things today, says Mjelde.
