Republicans confident of House control, Senate remains close as first polls close
and other day-to-day concerns, coupled with President Biden’s low approval ratings, will give their party an advantage., especially in the House, where Democrats currently hold 220 seats, just two more than the 218 needed for a majority. In midterm elections since World War II, the president’s party has almost always lost seats.A Republican win would likely elevate Rep. Kevin McCarthy, a Bakersfield Republican who now serves as minority leader, to the speakership he has coveted for years.
But some Democratic incumbents in battleground or red states appear stronger in areas the president narrowly won, such as Rep. Sharice Davids in Kansas and Michigan Rep. Dan Kildee. The Senate, which the Democratic Caucus controls with Vice President Kamala Harris’ tiebreaking vote, is harder to predict. That’s largely because several candidates who won Republican nominations because of backing from former President Trump and his supporters have struggled to gain an advantage over potentially vulnerable Democratic incumbents.
Despite widespread anxiety, there were no reports by Tuesday evening of election-related violence or significant voting problems. Democrats tried to address the nation’s pocketbook anxiety by dubbing their signature legislative achievement of the year the “Inflation Reduction Act.” But the branding does not appear to have helped, in part because the various provisions —which included clean energy investments to combat climate change and efforts to reduce prescription drug costs for Medicare patients — did not make an immediate dent in rising prices.
Republican control of the House likely would elevate McCarthy, but his hold on a potential speakership could be weak because his party is internally divided. Lawmakers such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, whose conspiratorial rhetoric once put her at the fringes, could see her clout elevated as McCarthy tries to prevent internal revolts. That raises the potential for a return to the brinkmanship that risks more government shutdowns and potential defaults on the nation’s debt.
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