Democratic Senate control will greatly help Biden’s legislative agenda
Washington:
Democrats are favored to come out of 14 hotly contested US Senate races with full control of Congress in Tuesday’s election, but the final results of at least five of those contests may not be available for days or even months .
With President Donald Trump’s public disapproval weighing on Republicans across the country, voters will decide to end the political careers of beleaguered Republican senators, including Trump ally Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and moderate Susan Collins of the Maine, among others.
A total of 12 seats held by Republicans and two seats held by Democrats are at stake, based on a Reuters analysis of three non-partisan U.S. election forecasters – the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, the Cook’s political report and internal elections.
“There is air combat all over the country,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the top Republican in Congress, said during a campaign hiatus. He described the option for Republicans to retain a Senate majority as a “50-50 proposition.”
These probabilities appear optimistic, according to the three forecasters.
They predict the Democrats could emerge with as many as 55 of the Senate’s 100 seats, giving them a majority for the first time in a decade in both the Senate and the 435-seat House of Representatives, where they are expected to retain control. .
Democrats hope to usher in a new political era in Washington if their presidential candidate, former Vice President Joe Biden, also wins.
While likely to fall short of a filibuster-proof 60-vote majority, scrutiny of the Democratic Senate would greatly aid a Biden legislative agenda or help block a second term for Trump.
Authorities and party officials in several states, including two with tight Senate contests – Iowa and Michigan – reported a spike in automated phone calls on Tuesday warning voters to go to the polls for various reasons. false.
“Obtain reports of multiple robocalls to residents of Flint who, due to long lines, are expected to vote tomorrow,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said on Twitter.
“Obviously, this is FALSE and it is an effort to suppress the vote.”
A Department of Justice official said the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is receiving complaints about calls in Iowa, where Senator Joni Ernst is fighting to keep her seat against Democrat Theresa Greenfield.
“We are aware of the automated call reports and have no further comment,” the FBI said in a statement.
To win a majority in the Senate, Democrats need only win three Republican seats if Biden is elected president and Sen. Kamala Harris casts the deciding vote as vice president. Republicans now hold a majority of 53 to 47 seats.
Republican Senator Cory Gardner of Colorado is considered the most vulnerable among more than half a dozen first-term incumbents in Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Montana and North Carolina. Democrats Doug Jones and Gary Peters are also on defense in Alabama and Michigan, respectively.
Expected delays in results
The results of some races will likely not be known until after Election Day, due to the unprecedented volume of ballots in the mail this year and possible second-round elections in four races.
Delayed results could occur in Arizona and Maine, where Democrats are heavily favored to overthrow Republican seats. With races in North Carolina and Iowa tightening, analysts say Colorado could be Democrats’ best chance for an election victory on the evening.
The final results of a four-way fight in Maine between Collins, Democrat Sara Gideon and two independent candidates could be delayed for some time if no one wins an absolute majority on Tuesday, Collins said as the vote rolled out.
“If neither of us gets 50 percent of the vote, then we get into the rather odd choice voting… We probably wouldn’t know for sure who won another week,” Collins said Tuesday morning at the Hugh Hewitt radio show.
In Maine’s “ranked choice” voting system, voters can rank candidates in order of preference. If no candidate obtains a majority, the lowest ranked candidate is eliminated and their support is redirected according to the voters’ second preferences.
Two elections for a pair of Senate seats in Georgia could face the same fate, except that the second round of elections would be delayed until January 5.
In Arizona, Democrat Mark Kelly could be on the verge of toppling Republican Senator Martha McSally. But county officials have up to 20 days to review the election results. McSally’s 2018 election contest failure against Democratic Senator Kyrsten Sinema took six days to produce a winner.
In Michigan, where Peters could be vulnerable to an upset from Republican John James, state election officials warn that final results may not be available until Friday.
The outcome of the tight races in Montana and South Carolina may not be known until Wednesday, according to national election and Democratic Party officials.
In the race for the US Senate from Montana, incumbent Republican President Steve Daines is neck and neck with Governor Steve Bullock. In South Carolina, Graham, a three-term Republican, faces an unprecedented challenge from Democrat Jaime Harrison.
If Democrats come out of the election with Senate control, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer has vowed to leave nothing in their way. “Nothing is off the table,” he said.
(This story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
