This year’s midterms are the first chance for Americans to grade Joe Biden and congressional Democrats on how they’ve been running the country for the past two years.
Typically midterms don’t go well for the party in power, and Democrats are defending razor-thin majorities in Congress, as one-third of the Senate and the entire House is up for grabs this fall amid a tumultuous time for the country.
Republicans were giddy at the start of 2022 given Biden’s shaky first year in office that was defined by legislative failures and economic woes caused by historic inflation squeezing people’s wallets.
For much of this year, the president’s approval ratings were languishing with most voters saying the country was headed in the wrong direction and independents siding with Republicans.
Many political observers were forecasting a massive red wave that would sweep the GOP into power.
But a relatively successful summer legislatively coupled with the conservative-leaning Supreme Court striking down abortion as a constitutional right has given Democrats and their voters an adrenaline rush as the last leg of the Nov. 8 relay approaches.
Progressive elected officials and activists were also delighted that former President Donald Trump gobbled up so much of the political narrative. During the primaries, Trump flexed his influence in a tussle with Republican rivals that helped polarizing candidates capture nominations and, with it, boosted the once-dismal electoral prospects of Capitol Hill Democrats.
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What’s at stake in November is more than just control of Congress and the next presidential contest, however.
Across the country vital statewide elections are being held, including 36 gubernatorial contests that feature many incumbents seeking reelection who dealt with the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic and other topics Washington failed to handle.
Here is a guide to the 2022 elections
The latest midterm developments you need to know
- Primary season is over, and six months of intraparty political battles revealed one basic conclusion: The Democrats are in better shape for the November elections than previously thought.
- A midterm race once thought to be determined in favor of Republicans by the old adage “It’s the economy, stupid” is being redefined in favor of Democrats with a cross-party rallying cry to save abortion rights.
- The Supreme Court is already having a big impact on this year’s midterm elections. And the court’s docket for the term that begins in October is all but certain to have major repercussions for the 2024 presidential election.
- Sen. Lindsey Graham introduced a national abortion ban that would prohibit the procedure after 15 weeks of pregnancy and provide a Republican response to a politically charged issue that could be galvanizing for Democrats this fall.
Who is running?
Democrats currently hold a 9-seat majority in the House.
It takes 218 seats to control the chamber. The vast majority of races are considered safe for both parties, which means about three-dozen districts rated as toss-ups are going to decide who runs things.
Among the most interesting will be in Colorado, which gained a brand new congressional seat following the 2020 Census count. The new district, which extends north from the Denver suburbs to Greeley, is competitive: President Joe Biden won the area in 2020, for instance, while Trump won it in 2016.
With the Senate at 50-50 (Democrats control the chamber thanks to Vice President Kamala Harris’ tie-breaking vote), the GOP needs a net gain of a single seat to regain the majority.
There are at least two toss-up races — Georgia and Nevada — where Democratic incumbents are on the defensive, but the map has tightened for Republicans too in places such as Wisconsin and Ohio.
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Read More: What’s at stake in the 2022 midterm elections? Here is a guide.