America decides today how much power Biden has to give up

• Lucas Waagmeester

  Correspondent from the United States

This is still a handful of states. With very subtle differences in the polls. For months, the US Senate election picture has been swinging back and forth; from Republicans sitting on roses, to President Biden’s popularity having a resurgence, to Republicans even getting a chance in Democratic districts.

It is the day of the in the medium termelections in America: for seats in Congress and power in individual states. Voting has been going on for weeks in many states; by mail or by mobile phone mailboxes. Today the polling stations are also open throughout the country, tonight the counting of votes begins.

An election with the greatest advantage of the majority in the Senate. Will the Republicans manage to win a majority in the Senate as well as an almost certain victory in the House of Representatives? So not only can they block President Biden’s policies in the coming years, but they actually take the helm of the national government.

The polls are unanimous: Republicans are likely to win back that majority in the House. The race is still open for the Senate, the powerful 100-seat body, two for each US state. With an unpredictable outcome for at least six seats. If the Republicans win three of these six, they will take power in the Senate.

These are elections with a poisonous edge. The system itself, trust in democracy, is in a ballot. In nearly every crucial race for Senate and Governor seats, Republicans have presented a candidate backed by former President Trump. They are repeated in the campaign are fraud lies in the 2020 elections and question the reliability of these terms.

Furthermore, the Republican campaign was primarily concerned with the “radical left” Biden administration. With the difficult economy they had a strong asset in the hands. The price hike in the US is even more extreme in many places than in Europe, a full tank costing twice as much as a year ago. Everyone feels inflation skyrocketing every day, something that obviously boils down to the incumbent: President Biden and the Democrats.

They struggled to overcome it with their message on undermining democracy. Biden sounded the alarm in several major speeches, calling this election “a battle for the soul of the nation”. Democrats also preferred to talk about fundamental rights that are under pressure in Republican-ruled states, such as abortion and gay rights.

And so it became primarily a campaign in which everyone talked to each other side by side, or in other words: a campaign of immense contrasts. Two parties that support a completely different America. Those who want to stay positive say that at least the voter really has something to choose from. The darker version: however the result falls, America remains practically ungovernable and divided to the bone.

As mentioned, posting results revolves around a handful of Senate races. It is a well-known list of oscillating states where the majority decision will be taken in the Senate.

Many eyes will be on Pennsylvania, where Trump-backed Mehmet Oz, as “Dr. Oz ‘grew up in Oprah Winfrey’s shows, confronting John Fetterman, a former left-wing mayor of the rust belt.

It will also be exciting in Georgia. Democratic pastor Raphael Warnock defends his seat against this American football legend and longtime friend of Trump Herschel Walker.

Arizona is the third state it has long remained unstable in 2020 over outcome determination. There, too, a decisive race is underway, and there too the Republican candidate is a Trumpist. Blake Masters challenges incumbent Democrat Mark Kelly, a former astronaut.

In addition to power in Washington, the findings could have important implications for dynamics within the Republican party. Are Trumpists like Oz, Walker and Masters doing well? So this is one more incentive for the party to continue to focus on the radical right-wing voice in the upcoming elections. If a number of prominent Trump candidates fail to win, there is hope for conservatives who want to get rid of Trump.

And then there is the long wait for the results: when the Netherlands wakes up on Wednesday, there will probably be nothing but a rough idea of ​​which party did well in these terms. Of the states above, Georgia is likely to have a rash soon, but Pennsylvania and Arizona are already confident enough that it will take longer.