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While the full results of the mid-term elections were still expected on Thursday evening in the United States, attention was already turned to another poll, that of the presidential elections of 2024, with the question of Democratic and Republican candidates in line with the objective.
Full midterm legislative election results were still expected in the US on Thursday, where Joe Biden was pleased his camp had foiled predictions of a crushing defeat, but focus was already shifting towards the 2024 presidential election.
The Democratic president will likely have to contend with a Republican-held House of Representatives, which will complicate the rest of his term, but the victory of his opponents is shaping up to be much shorter than they thought.
Control of the Senate was still uncertain. The definitive composition of the upper house, suspended with three seats, should in fact be known only in weeks. Because the counting of the votes in Arizona and Nevada could still take several days, and in Georgia, a second round is scheduled for December 6.
For a long time the Republicans believed they had an avenue to take back the two chambers from their rivals, promising a “red wave”, even a “tsunami”. “It didn’t happen,” rejoiced Joe Biden, who will soon turn 80, along with his vice president Kamala Harris on Thursday.
“A good day for democracy”
November 8, the day of these historically dangerous elections for the incumbent party, was “a good day for democracy”, he repeated, and “a solid night for the Democrats.” “There were a lot of concerns that democracy would pass the test. It passed it,” she added, saying he was “ready to work with the Republicans.” “But the American people have made it clear that they expect Republicans to work with me too,” she warned.
The president had largely focused his campaign on defending democracy and rights, including the right to abortion. He had urged the Americans to block the most extreme fringe of the conservative camp and its “extreme MAGA philosophy”.
The acronym MAGA refers to former President Donald Trump’s iconic slogan, “Make America Great Again”, which continues to hammer home in the 2020 presidential election, was “stolen” from him by Joe Biden.
Republicans insisted more on their economy and inflation campaign, which hit record highs.
2024, déjà
Asked Wednesday about the 2024 elections, President Biden reiterated that he “intended” to run for a second term, but would confirm it “early next year”. Because the race for the White House is already being organized.
Donald Trump, who was very present during the mid-term election campaign, would be ready to go back to the conquest of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue: he promised a “big announcement” on November 15. But his foals’ more than mixed performances cast a shadow over his plans and cast doubt on his reputation as a king maker.
He himself admitted on his Truth Social platform that “in a sense” the results of the “intermediate measures” were “rather disappointing”. Before attacking the “false narrative of the corrupt media that I’m angry about the midterm” on Thursday. “I’m not mad at all, I did a great job (I wasn’t a candidate!) And I’m very busy looking to the future,” he said, stating that he picked “many winners” from his protégés.
Murdoch media target Trump
Not everyone is of the same opinion. Owned by the influential Murdoch family, the tabloid New York Post, until recently in favor of the former president, accused him of having “sabotaged” the Republican ballot, bearing the nickname “Trump the Toxic” in its columns.
Most importantly, the election helped consolidate its most prominent Republican rival today, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, triumphantly re-elected on Tuesday. Ron DeSantis gave a victory speech widely regarded as a glimpse into 2024. “The fight has just begun,” said the man who made Florida a laboratory for his ideas.
As for former vice president Mike Pence, also a candidate in the next presidential elections, he conveniently published an extract of his memoirs the day after the elections. His book, in which he recounts the pressures to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, will be released on November 15, the same day as Donald Trump’s promised announcement.
With AFP
