​2022 Midterm Elections

By Chip Genung ’25

On Nov. 8, the U.S. held the midterm elections to choose the entirety of the House of Representatives, a third of the Senate, and over half the governors. The Republican Party and Democratic Party had very different strategies going into this election. The Republicans went into it with a focus on the economy. They knew that if they could blame President Joe Biden for the recent troubles of the economy and get voters to blame him as well to sway more support to their side. They were also operating on historical trends; since 1922, the opposite party as the president have gained seats in congress in roughly 21 out of the 25 midterm elections.

Meanwhile, the Democrats focused more on democracy and abortion rights. They campaigned heavily to convince voters that if Republicans gained more power in congress, our democracy would either fail or be subverted and that they would put further restrictions on abortion.
 
As election day neared, polls showed that most Americans cared about the economy more than the issues being pushed by the Democrats. Additionally, it had been assumed due to historical trends and the low approval rating of President Biden that the election would be a “Red Wave” in which the Republicans would win both houses of congress in a landslide. But this was not the case.
 
As of Nov. 10, the Republicans have won 49 seats in the Senate and Democrats have won 48, this difference is far smaller than expected and it may even be possible for the Democrats to win in the Senate. The three remaining seats are Nevada, Arizona and Georgia. Interestingly, neither the Republican nor Democratic candidate has achieved a fifty percent majority of the vote in Georgia. Thus, a run-off election will be held in the state in early December between Republican Hershel Walker and Democrat Raphael Warnock. It is believed that this race will determine control of the Senate.
 
On the other hand, the House is somewhat of a different story. Of the 435 seats in the House, 209 have been won by the Republicans and one 191 have been won by the Democrats. There are 35 seats left to be called and either party must reach at least 218 seats to achieve a majority. Although popular belief continues to bet on the Republicans to win the house, their victory is likely to be by a far smaller margin than previously predicted. Overall this election is still likely to end in the Republicans’ favor, but by a much smaller margin than most political analysts and politicians themselves predicted.